Author: degrayded

His first series of photographs after college was called Natural Wonder from 1992-1997. These photos were in the same location that his senior thesis photos were taken in Massachusetts. diving deeper into the beginnings of his work, these photos are focused around wildlife: Insects, plants, and animals. From the photos you get to see the disconnection that civilization has with nature. The wildlife is always shown in the foreground with signs of human existence in the background. Mostly consisting of suburban homes and interiors. These moments aren’t seen very often and depict very eerie, unsettling and in some cases grotesque, specifically the ones with human legs and arms. Yet his photographs are staged so beautifully you are drawn into them taking notice to the most minor details that help tell the narrative. The narrative is this case is reflected from external forces of his marriage falling apart, and the internal emotions that gave the vision for these photos.

Twilight

It’s interesting to see the progression and evolution of Crewdson’s work through his career. Seeing his first works stemming into his latest, he seems to remain fairly consistent with lighting and color and his fascination with suburban America as his backdrops and main focal points. Moving into one of his first exhibitions in 2000, Twilight was a continuation of his intricately staged sets. But these photographs illustrated humans rather that wildlife, compared to his first series Natural Wonder. These photos clearly show the cinematic style and quality that he is renowned for. The surreal nature of all the images tell stories of rebirth, death, and what lies beneath the surface. Contrasting with all of his other works, the Twilight series were all shot on location. Also, like many of his other series of photos, Twilight became a photo book which was released in 2003.

Cathedral of the Pines

Crewdson’s work can be seen as a vague representation of his childhood. But they can also be seen as dark, and isolating, which can be referenced in some form in all his works, namely his newest being “Cathedral of the Pines.” These photos take place, deep in the forest of Becket Massachusetts. His interest in taking real life and ordinary situations and making them mysterious can be seen yet again so beautifully staged and composed. This series has an even more personal feeling, with many of his photos coinciding with the current state of his life. In fact, the photos were taken in Becket, Massachusetts. The same place that Crewdson moved to after living in New York for 25 years. Here is where I moved into an old church that was converted into a home. Crewdson had strong affiliation with this church and the area around it. The title of this body of work actually came from a trail the he found while hiking in the woods in Becket. “These pictures seemed to capture exactly where I was at that time. It was one of those unusual aesthetic awakenings. We have a few of those in our life. They came once in a great while.” (Smyth 2017).

Final Remarks

Crewdson is one of the most photographic legends of the 21^st century and is an inspiration for many photographers and artists. The traditional approach to photography being documentary that Crewdson learned at Yale is combined with the oppositional style of fictions and construction. His images show the emotion and poverty that these people face every day. And in some cases, can leave his audience with more questions than answers. His photos are these moments in between moments, the setting of the sun, the interior and the exterior, of homes and humans. His work is a  psychological experience that can visually show you, anxiety, fear and Desire. And can leave you wondering what came before or what happens next.

I chose the domestic turn approach to this assignment, photographing my cousins during the quarantine. This was an average day for all of them since the quarantine began. Everyone was on their computers, they were playing video games, doing online, and learning new skills with all the extra time. Their dog is definitely a source of comfort within the home, along with their electronics. Things do get boring now, and I noticed that a lot of people begin to snack when their home and have nothing to do. It’s good to find comfort with all these things, but it’s also good to go outside for a little while too.

I Chose option two for this assignment, Photographing my response to the COVID-19 crisis. This was the first time I have been back on campus in a week since the shut-down began. This was a time when I would normally have class in the Carnegie building. I chose this specific area on campus because I felt this had the most traffic flow of students. But besides seeing only one car drive through and an elderly couple walking , the campus felt abandoned. The only thing I can think about when seeing these photos is “This would be a great time for senior photos.”

(Walker Evans/ American) – 1937

For this assignment I actually used a photo of Walker Evans himself. Searching through his work I found many great portraits he took. But along with that was many photos of himself, this specific photo along with another stuck out to me. Comparing the two photos you can see they are not exactly the same. Body positioning, facial expressions, and hairstyle are different. I had my subject have a smirk mostly showing content rather than a sense of worry or anxiousness like the photo of Evans. The positing of the hand on the face is moved further back as well Lighting is different as well due to the fact the subjects cause a shadow to land on his face. The overall look is the same, but I wanted to show that similar images can have two very different feelings.

This first photo is an image of a power station taken by Alexander Rodchenko (1929). Rodchenko was an artist, photographer, and sculptor. He was well known as one of the founders of constructivism in Russia beginning in 1913. I chose this photo because of its shot at a odd angle like many of Rodchenko photos, but also because of its architectural and geometric look. I also enjoy the natural daylight along with the reflections off the windows.

The photos above was my inspiration for this imitation of Rodchenko’s style. As previously stated Rodchenko used odd angles which I matched in my photo. My photo is angled the same way but is a building the is longer, not higher than the building Rodchenko photographed. I would say lighting is very similar but I have shadows from the water tower that are not displayed in Rodchenko’s image.