So I Have an Idea

So I have an idea of what it is that I want to do for my uncontrolled project, so stay with me. Ok so I wasn't really too keen on the idea of doing something lost identity largely because I didn't have any really good ideas to do with it, so now I do have an idea and I really like it. But I was really want to do something with the idea of being lost, I haven't completely abandoned it, but at this time, I think it is to difficult to photograph what it is that I want to convey. So what it is that i want to do is self portraits of myself, but what i'm going to do is ask 10 people for an outfit, I'll have no control over what it is that they select for me to ware, and i'm going to build my ten images from that. I'm going to ask Haley if that'll work, so I'm just going to ask tomorrow at the car wash. It is funny though, because I was thinking of this for my studio lighting project, but I like it better for my photo three project. I also have a preformative art idea that stems off of this idea of self identity, but I don't think I can get the materiels I need together in time, but it may pop up later, but not in this class.

Didn't Work

So yeah my Lost idea really didn't turn out, in fact, I'm not even going to show those in class they really are of me just driving, and we were out in the boonies, I know we went off the beaten track. We switched at a dead end of a road, so i'm driving and no joke like two intersections later I found highway 14, I wasn't lost because I knew that 14 goes right to Memphis. I like the idea of exploring "Lost" as a concept, more because it a really hard subject. So tonight I'm going to be doing deep down ipc style digging to try to generate a cohesive concept at class. Ad the reason I'm exploring this instead of the Bruce Gelden thing is because it just doesn't excite me, it's boring as a concept, I'm not saying it is easy to pull off because it's not. I just don't want to do something just because it something, I really want to do something that is personal to me and that I feel important. Yeah so I'm going to rant and rave this may be a long post to but, sometimes writing it out can generate ideas. so at the start it is hard for me to get lost, I just have a good sense of direction. I can always remember directions if I've been some where once, no joke, if I've been there before, I can find my way with out any help. Now that being said I do hate being lost, but I think my hate for becoming lost has made me have a good sense of direction so I don't ever feel lost. In fact I was thinking probably in the last five years I've only been lost once real bad, and it was a super freak out when it happened. And I have deconstructed the event to see if there was a way to recreate the satiation, the first was a time factor, I needed to be at a place at a cretin time, the second is I need to be there for a good reason, if it's not I'm liable to not worry about it. Third never having been there before, again because I really do remember directions, and last I had been given bad directions on how to get to the place I was going to. Another event that has stuck with me and has led me to be this way is when I was in kindergarten I was placed on the wrong bus home, and this is a sign of how things have changed, because I remember the bus driver at the last stop on her rout, telling me, this is the last stop you need to get off, even though I told her this wasn't my stop. I remember being scared, and not knowing what to do, but a mom at the stop took me inside called the school and my teacher at the time came and picked me up and took me home. I can say that my ability to not get lost has to stem from this one event, but I'm not sure how to explore it. I was thinking about the idea of "Lost Identity" but I'm only luke warm about that idea, it has potential, because I think there is something I could do with that, I just need to think of a way to make it performance based. Now the project I'd like to do and only because it is the only thing I can think of doing on the idea of "becoming lost" is no joke going to the middle of nowhere and wondering for days in the wilderness, but never being find my way. Now that being said did find an artist who does some cool work along the same idea as what i want to explore, and he has taking the approach of lost self identity, and I'm actually going to include his artist statement here.

I value the humour present in the gravity of phenomenological encounters. I often find myself lost within experiences, overwhelmed by the multiple interpretations of urban spaces that are also relative and fluid with time. I see my practice as an artist to be parallel to that of an alchemist who gathers different elements, and through transmutation produces deliberate, yet surprising interventions. It is in this process that the sense and pleasure of being lost is negotiated with the ideals and accomplishment of being found. Conflicted by this slippery nature of consciousness where one state obliterates the essence of the other, I engage in comedy to cope and translate this precarious situation in my artwork through painting and different modes of photography. My practice offers a stimulated perspective of urban living that is invested in the satirical and sublime.

I feel like I'm the opposite, I can't let go, I can't allow myself to become lost even when I'm trying hard to become lost. So that is the challenge I'm faced with and and the question I'm trying to answer, how do I become lost when I so in control of everything that trying to become lost, becomes a challenge? Again I know this is a long entry, but I was thinking blogging about it might help. Also I'll have class tomorrow, so maybe I can brainstorm in class with all of you and and it's not like anyone reads these, so no one really will know. In fact i' thinking of starting a tumbler just to link all of these over to tumbler. get some more feed back.



Also do Asian artist just have a fascination with boxes? Also his website Here.

Bruce Gelden

So for my uncontrolled project I am thinking of working in the vain of something along the lines of Bruce Gelden. I went down to the sam cooper festival and got some shots, I'm planning on going down town tomorrow and do some more shooting. I have to say that what he does is vary difficult, because really the moment to take a picture the way he does really only last a moment, and if you don't get it on the first try they just don't happen. And if your moving fast or they are, you end up with a lot of pictures of shoulders. These are some examples of what I shot that day.





Also I'm approching this as a back up plan, I'd still like to do the project were I have to drive back home with out any idea as to how to get back home, any one who is available and can drive a stick shift, let me know, if you help me I'll defiantly help you out with anything that you need.

Mark Menjivar

Mark Menjivar works in the vain of documentary photography, but In his You are What You Eat project he spent three years travailing around the US and examining differnt food issues and eating related stories. What came out of it were portraits of refrigerators as they were, as like this for the uncontrolled aspect of what he is photographing because he isn't changing anything about what e is showing but the tell something about the person it belongs to. I highly recommend checking out his website I was really impressed with the photographs, but i'm not going to show all of his images because there are a lot, but these were a selected few I found interesting.

The fridge above belonged to a person living on fixed income.


This fridge belonged to someone who sleeps between 8am to 4pm, there is something about all the to go boxes that kind of makes me sick, and when I say sick I mean nauseous. I think it is because you can tell that that is all this person eats, but I can only stomach fast food only once in a while.

It is no surprising that this fridge belonged to a guy that lived in Texas and the meat is from a buck he shot on his own property.


This fridge belonged to a family of four that had just begun a local produce only diet the week before.

What I think is so great about this series is that you don't need to do something totally complicated to get a beautiful set of images that are spontaneous and free of control of the photographer, now he is editing what he is showing the viewer as far as images go, but that something all together.

One more just because I finished looking through the entire gallery, and saw this image that belonged to someone with type two diabetes, but also I could recognized everything in this fridge as something sold by Costco.

Heat Stroke

So I had to go to using paper negatives which I'm ok with more because I know what my exposure time is which is really long at 15 min, but I like having the long shutter speed because it allows for having plenty of time composing the shot, that being said, I decided to shoot self portraits with the pin hole camera, because it does have such long shutter speeds. I knew that the image would become blurred with time which is the effect I wanted, I liked the endurance aspect of having to sit still for 15 min. but the images look good, as soon as I scan some I'll post them. Also i would advise not doing it on a hot day I did get a little bit of sun.

Fuck

So yeah I made a huge mistake and ruined about 20 sheets of 4x5 film, I developed an unexposed sheet and it was pretty badly fogged, but I will not despair over this. Yes it's a really bad fuck up, but after talking it over with Haley I think I will be ok. I'm going to incorporate the face that this is ruined film, really I can go in one of two ways I can shoot things that have been ruined, or I can shoot things that are pristine and new, in Memphis I think ruined will be easer to pull off. I'm going to scan a test negative I did and add it to this blog to show what I'm working with, also open to ideas, so if you have any let me know.

The more I look at this the more I like it and am ok the look of the damaged film.

A design I like

So I have finally decided on a design I like for my pinhole camera. Again I am not surprised by the fact that is is just a simple design that I think will work well and give me some interesting effects. I plan to turn a Chinese takeout box into my pinhole camera. I think it'll be fun to play with it because the pinhole on the front will be slanted forward while the film on the back will be tilted back towards the top and allow me to play with placement and perspective.