“All pictures are autobiographical, yet they’re telling us everything and nothing about the photographer.” - Gregory Crewdson
I watched a documentary named “Gregory Crewdson's Photography Capturing a Movie Frame | Art in Progress”, which is surprisingly about the photographer, Gregory Crewdson. The first ten minutes of the documentary is the process of photographing the photo above, named “Burning House”.
Crewdson is a pure example of a perfectionist. Each figure on the right, their positions are exact. The house’s flames must have a certain flow, the lighting had to be at a certain angle, the smoke needed to blow a certain way. Even the boy’s shirt was requested to be taken off, and he be the only one facing the flames directly.
(image found here)
Crewdson’s father was a psychoanalyst. In his teenage years, he would try to listen in to the conversations that his father had with his patients by placing his ear to the floor. Although he could rarely hear the talks, his idea of this “psychological universe” was something that interested him.
Edward Hopper, one of his high inspirations, was a painter who dealt with the sense of emptiness and loneliness, as well as lighting to capture the theatrical scene. It wasn’t until ‘Twilight’ (1998 - 2002) where Crewdson took this into consideration, and brought a team together to obtain cinematic lighting and other effects, such as fog and water, easier. Over one hundred lights will work on just one photograph, that will be hidden in certain areas so they are not in the shot.
Photography and design are very relatable when linking to Crewdson. His perfectionist ways, his idea of freezing a moment to discover every aspect and detail. It is something I have written about before, the idea of telling a story in design for it to be more powerful to the viewer or client. Without a story in the visual, or at least an idea, the design becomes practically worthless.