Liz Hickok

While researching Lori Nix, I came across an artist named Liz Hickok.  She has some amazing work she constructed with jello and photographed.  I love it!  The colors are insane.  


http://lizhickok.com/index.html


Project:  San Francisco in Jello

Lori Nix

Another photographer that Susan Moore suggested I look at, is Lori Nix, because she constructs her subjects and then photographs them.
  
http://www.lorinix.net/index.html


Here is an excerpt from her site:

I am often asked questions about the inspiration for my work as well as my working process. As a ‘non-traditional’ photographer (I construct my subject matter rather than go find it) people find it hard to grasp what exactly it is that I do. And the fact that it is all done in front of the camera, with no digital manipulation, adds its own set of challenges. Building materials, lighting, issues of scale and space all become significant when you are recreating the world on a table top. I've listed a few of the more frequently asked questions and my responses. Hope you enjoy. 


Here are two of her images:

Susan and Sandy

Yesterday I was fortunate enough to get feedback from our guest speaker, Susan Moore, on my first prints for my book.  My chosen subject is flowers.  After class on Tuesday I received some great feedback from classmates, as well as a couple of Digital I students who came into the lab.  Of the 4 prints I had, Susan thought I had 2-3 different ideas going.  In one of my photos, there was a bright green background with a vibrant purple rose.  She said that the two colors were competing.  She said it was a nice image, but the use of depth of field would help.  Also, she advised to respect color and think about how it's placed in the photo.

She gave me the names of a few artists to check out.  The first one is Sandy Skoglund and her website is here:  http://www.sandyskoglund.com/.  I really enjoyed her work, she uses color and it is very strategically placed in most of her photos.  Here are a few that I really liked:  

Monday

 I took this a few weeks ago at Main St. St Charles, MO. It makes me think of  The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe.

And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore!

Assignment for the photography show in FAB

Last week I went to the photography show in the FAB.  I chose a photo from an artist named Bob Rickert.  The title of the image is "Mackinac Roofline".  The medium is Digital Image Ultra Chrome Print.  Here is a link to the image I found online:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/bob-rickert-photography/4688589650/

In the link, the image is much more dull than the real version.  The real version's colors are much more brilliant.

Description:  2/3 of the page are a brilliant green with tiny vertical black lines.  1/3 of the page is yellow with a white wooden bench type item 2/3 of the way down.  It is a beautiful green and yellow line composition.  I do not quite know which is the roof and perhaps which is the building.

It is organized in a way that makes the viewer try to figure out what it is.

I do think it is quality art because the colors draw you in and it makes you want to figure out what it is.

Vivienne Westwood

I was reading an online forum and someone posted about Vivienne Westwood.  She was referring to her being older, but having this young spirit and just not caring what others think about what she wears, the color of her hair, etc.  So, as I usually do, when I don't know anything about a person, subject, word, etc., I googled her.  She is a British fashion designer and is credited with bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.

This lead to a series of different portraits and to other blogs.  I found this blog with a variety of portraiture (not just of Vivienne) that I really enjoyed viewing and wanted to share.  http://artportraiture.blogspot.com/

As for Vivienne Westwood, she is 70 years old and here is a photo of her from 2008.

A Fresh Viewpoint

I enjoyed this article by Jim Richardson on the National Geographic website.  He talks about how you can improve your photos with a different or unique viewpoint.

http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photo-tips/creative-point-of-views-richardson/