MPHO402-Photographic Practice 1: Research Summary
New generation’s reactions and relations to street art
“Street Photography is the simplest and at the same time, the hardest form of photography, its subject is all about you and yet it is extremely elusive.” (Nick Turpin, Black & White Streets. Very first works).
Within this caption by my first source of inspiration, the photographer Nick Turpin, I would like to introduce my Street Photography project. Influenced by the works of both Nick Turpin and Kay von Aspern, I came upon the real meaning of this sort of visual art. Street Photography is primarily a spiritual and intellectual activity, it takes great awareness, mental presence, self confidence and faith. Their works issue hush, silence and a strong sense of observation emerges too. As those images focus on vibrant moments of human life, turning the ordinary into extraordinary, I choose to incorporate this emotional component within the power of children’s behavior. What is more accessible nowadays than art? Although we should not taking it for granted, it has become really easy to interact with more and more different forms of creativity in everyday life.
Setting the “studio” in the open and inspiring space of Covent Garden, my approach was to observe and not to attract children’s attention, letting my eye intuitively discover the reality under the surface. Going around in circles, through the market and the places above, I never hided my camera. The distance that separated me from my subject was only the length of my arm, so I was able to occupy the room between the subjects and the actions they bumped into. Definitely it wasn’t easy to relate with such energetic characters, but the choice of “new generation” as subjects of my project brought me beyond feelings and reactions I already knew.
Differently from adults, these little creatures enjoy being photographed. They live inside the groove of curiosity, so it’s easier for them to abandon their image to a fate they cannot control. At the very first beginning, my film was basically fill by portraits. I wanted to capture surprise from children’s mouths, fear from their eyes and courage though their bodies. But I found out it was hardly impossible to represent someone’s reaction to art without incorporating this one inside the frame. So I moved from being in front of the subject to include street performers in the photograph. Some of them are clearly interacting with the principal subject, some else are described by a mysterious atmosfere that release incertitude in the eyes of the onlooker. As I spend more and more time on the streets watching and shooting I develop an instinct for what is about to happen or where I should probably be standing, which can definitely lead to a higher hit rate.
I discover Street Photography as an attitude, it is an openness to being amazed by what comes your way, it is unlearning the habit of dismissing the everyday as being ‘just the everyday’ and beginning to recognize that extraordinary, beautiful and subtle stories are occurring in front of you everyday. Of course, this process requires plenty of time, especially when you’re supposed to end up with a coherent series of photographs. Having the chance of going though more films and periods of time would have been useful, considering that one good photo (according to my theme and subjects) originates in between 10/12 ones which are basically all the same. By the way, I am sure that the project itself has a few tough aspects: the framing of the photographs, sometimes obtained by buildings and sometimes by art performances or the crowd; the closeness of the shoot and the impact given by the high contrasts, especially blacks. Of course there are defects in each photograph, as working with the massive quantity of people who walk through Covent Garden every day has its advantages and disadvantages. Good aspects first: I wasn’t able to stand still in front of the overcrowd market, it was fundamental for me to open both my mind and eyes to catch the perfect moment. Certainly there are more possibilities to get a non-well balanced image because of the people going though the “stage” again and again.
Apart from technical and philosophical stuff, it was definitely my first experience with a manual camera. Having the opportunity of developing and printing photographs on my own enriched the meaning of photography to me. I found it satisfying holding a good print in my hands, after spending a day through chemicals and enlargers. It’s strongly powerful.
I had all the luck that photographers need when they are in public: luck to be at the right time, in the right place.
Bibliography
Nick Turpin, citation get from his official website