Research Log: Surrealism Photographer Research: Katerina Plotnikova -

Surreal: Katerina Plotnikova - 

Why Chosen:

I chose the Russian Moscow based photographer Katerina Plotnikova because her work is a study of fairytales in reality thus encompassing the ideology of surrealism as the juxtapositions of reality and unreality of the dream-like enchanting worlds. Additionally, the stylistic components of Plotnikova's work is important to me; the saturation and use of hues create a soft safe dream world, her backdrops employ real locations such as forests and nature to create a natural flow to the images and the eerie undertones tie in well with a few of my own ideas for my project. Plotnikova aims to capture her wildest imaginations through the photographic lens. Katerina Plotnikova states herself that her work is "another tale of wonderland".

Plotnikova captures all of her image using a Canon 5D Mark II and a Canon 50mm f/1.2L lens with the subjects such as wild animals all being trained animals used directly in the photoshoots rather than added post-production in Photoshop.

Another reason that I have chosen Plotnikova is due to her inspirational photographers; Tim Walker, Annie Leibovitz and Adam Smith are all significant to her work in the same way that Tim Walker is to me.

Examples of Work:



Denotation: The embrace between an animal and a human occurs central to the composition of the photograph. The saturation is naturally muted but has hints of a warm hue which creates a serene world. The depth of field leaves the foreground as the main focus whilst the background is blurred possibly to alleviate the connotations of the dark and harsh horizontal lines of the trees in the back.

Connotation: The reunion between humanity and nature in a neutral ground of a forest. The dream world of animals with human characteristics.

Context: Plotnikova travels all around and is always thinking about the way to create the supposed impossibilities of her photoshoots such as the employment of real animals. The animals are trained and either pets of peers or found after extensive searching.



Denotation: The image is a ghost holding a young subject centrally within the framing of the photograph. The hue is blue which evokes an eerie sense. The supernatural subject is opaque and the background can be seen through the subject. The leading line of the path takes the audience through the scene and also creates a sense that the viewer is in fact in the photograph themselves facing the subjects.

Connotation: The leading line of the path leads the viewers attention to the isolation of the location with the subjects eliciting an eerie atmosphere. The ghost could be an angel receiving the spirit of  the young person or it could be a study of worldwide cultures such as the beliefs of the spirit world shamans or other culturally diverse equivalents.

Context: This image may depict a Russian and Slavic folklore spirit related to children such as the nightmare spirit Nocnista/ Polunocnica who torments children at night. Although the spirit could easily be a good spirit too protecting the child rather than tormenting; the shape is unclear and could be two spirits such as the Zorya who are two guardian goddesses who look after Simargl the doomsday hound.



Denotation: The subjects are in a surreal environment where they are seated in amongst the tree line. The colours of the background are lowly saturated to create the dream-like surreal quality whilst the subjects are more highly saturated signifying their importance to the piece. The composition is unbalanced due to the positioning of the subjects.

Connotation: The fairytale of Rapunzel is conjured upon in this image with the lengthy plaited hair and the towering isolated subjects confroming to the 'nurturing' mother like character from the story by brother's Grimm.

Context: Plotnikova often focuses on stories that she can adapt into images of her own creation. Many fairytales are used as inspiration.



Denotation: The subject is directly addressing the audience through eye contact which is aided by the depth of field which blurs the background. The use of the animal changes the composition of the piece and works well with the lowly saturated and natural hues of final outcome.

Connotation: This image appears to imply the story of Adam and Eve. The subject is a representative of Eve in the natural garden of Eden manipulated by the snake.

Context: Plotnikova travels all around and is always thinking about the way to create the supposed impossibilities of her photoshoots such as the employment of real animals. The animals are trained and either pets of peers or found after extensive searching.

Research Log: Surrealism Photographer Research: Pierre Javelle and Akiko Ida -

Surrealism: Pierre Javelle and Akiko Ida - 

Why Chosen:

I chose this photographic duo as they experiment with surrealism in reference to manipulations of size but also the combination of different photographic styles together in one. The pair combine food and surrealism through the implementation of small figurines to create landscapes within everyday situations. The website called "Minimiam" meaning "mini yum" explicitly states their style of photography and its interpretation of surrealism through change of scale. These are the only duo of photographers that I have studied and I believe that their dyptich style is almost a metaphor for the team. The duo met in Paris at an art school where the Frenchman Javelle studied and met Japanese born Ida who work well as both creators and photographers due to prior experience working in professional food shoots for magazines and cookbooks.

Examples of Work:



Denotation: Food is used as a landscape with toy figurines employed to create a surreal element in the change of size. The composition is of a diptych format in that the photograph is in two parts. The lighting and colour gels create a supernatural atmosphere which ties in with the use of a UFO prop.

Connotation: Scully is a character from the hit sci-fi TV series called "The X Files" about the investigation of supernatural life. This image takes the audience back to a time of childhood adventures tied to shows that many grew up with based around space and aliens. The idea of children playing with their food and having adventures within their imagination is also implied and could infer that as adults we can learn through the reminiscence of a simpler childhood.

Context: These photographs are called "Scully's Pistachio" and are from 2006 in the "food/ sweet" category.

Denotation: Food is used as a landscape with toy figurines employed to create a surreal element in the change of size. The composition is of a diptych format in that the photograph is in two parts. The lighting is very reminiscent of the other work created by the pair in the mode of food advertising such as recipe books.

Connotation:  This image shows repair workers fixing a road after an event such as an earthquake. It takes on a more serious note than the other works which focus on ideas such as childhood fun and innocence.

Context: This photographic series is under the title of "La Coupure" and is an early 2004 image from "food/ sweet". This image was created when Ida and Javelle were scouring local Parisian patisseries for ideas and discovered  the eclair which when bit into appeared like the ground after an earthquake. The reason this may have been seen as the direction to take the photograph is that 2004 witnessed a huge earthquake and tsunami off the coast of the Indian ocean which tolled up 250,000 deaths.

Denotation: Food is used as a landscape with toy figurines employed to create a surreal element in the change of size. The composition is of a diptych format in that the photograph is in two parts.

Connotation: The lifestyle of American society is implied through the multitudes of techniques in this image. The use of the hamburger as a staple of the American diet and fast food industry implies the obesity of the population and the consumerist capitalist nature of their society. Additionally, the use of the blue tablecloth with the red and white starred napkin again links to the materialistic consumerism of the country. The figurine used is Captain America who is a vital figure in reference to American Patriotism and could convey the extreme patriotic nature of society.

Context: This dyptich is entitled "Bonbek Hamburger" from the 2013 instalment in "food/ salty".




Denotation: Food is used as a landscape with toy figurines employed to create a surreal element in the change of size. The composition is of a diptych format in that the photograph is in two parts.

Connotation: This image seems to be about the business world and advancements within building work. The composition of this particular image appears to link back to Lewis Hine's work studying the building of the Empire State building focusing on the workers of the great depression sat upon an iron bar eating lunch. This therefore, links to the themes of food and to size and scale within the frame of a photograph.

Context: This final outcome is named "Express Bento" and was captured in 2009 within the category of "food/ salty".

Research Log: Surrealism Photographer Research: Christian Hopkins -

Surrealism: Christian Hopkins - 

Why Chosen:

I chose the surreal photographer Christian Hopkins for the exploration and development of my ideas due to his dark understandings of society. His work reflects his world of living with depression and how it is interpreted within society; the work is both personal and public. Some photographs are studies of his emotions as an individual and how loneliness and isolation are prevalent whereas others  delve into society such as how the barrier is placed between people in society due to mental illness, the capitalist ideas that think life can be bought and how the medical world views mental illness.

Examples of Work:



Denotation: The subject is without their full anatomy due to the absence of a head leaving them anonymous in that respect, the subject is central to the image with the other props of interest displaying the identity also being central above the subject leaving sparse empty areas either side. The image is edited into black and white which evokes a specific tone to the finalised photographic study of surrealism.

Connotation: I believe that this image is about how we, as individuals, portray ourselves and how others perceive us through the many versions or portraits of ourselves. I also think that the dissected aspects of identity featured through the photo-frames convey how it feels to have the condition of depression in which many identities can often feel like they are fighting right beneath the outer exterior. The central image appears to convey the idea of the being trapped and isolated as is often associated with a "major depressive disorder"; the photographs on the wall are Hopkins' "inner life" and inner self.

Context: Hopkins in an interview revealed that "Being able to take emotions with which I was struggling out of my head and trap them in a photograph gave back to me a sense of control over my life... If only for a moment."; this conveys the idea behind this photograph in that he is capturing his emotions and trapping them in photographs so that he as the subject is free, at least briefly, from his depression.



Denotation: This photograph is constructed differently to the others in that it does not fit the same dimensions. The saturation is muted with a sepia-like filter and a more blue coloured hue overlay to evoke an eerie sense within the image. The antagonist of the photograph has three arms which again adds to the surreal nature of the final photograph.

Connotation: This image to me, after contextually researching the photographer, displays the routines of depression and conveys the daily battle with inner demons. The three arms of the creature could imply the past, present and future all grasping for the subject and pulling him in multiple directions. I believe the image to be more explicitly about the difficulty many people with depression have such as leaving their bed to face the day or insomnia. Although, the faceless figure obscured by the sheets also seems to be a symbol for the Grimm reaper as a potent reminder of how many people with depression commit suicide each year. Furthermore, the subject is grasping a soft toy in his arms which could infer the way that depression makes many people fear demons once again. Much like the ones believed to be under the bed or hiding when they themselves were a child.

Context: The photographer behind these images was diagnosed with depression at just 16 years old and thus the soft toy could represent the idea that depression can affect anyone even children as voiced by Hopkins when he stated "It affects millions of Americans every year -". Furthermore, the obscured reaper like character beneath the sheet is vital due to Hopkins attempting suicide. The area surrounding the subject is in the dark, an all "black void" with the "demon" blocking his path to the light. Additionally, Hopkins said that his earlier projects were based around other surrealist artists hew found on Flickr before he discovered his own style; it could be said that the ghost like characters could be reminiscent of Rene Magritte or a more modern photographer within the field of surrealism Christopher McKenney.



Denotation: The subject is central to the image with a symmetry to the composition. The subject's identity is obscured by a face covering with a mask in a jar held by the subject. The lighting is bright and backlit allowing shadows to form on the subject. The contrast between light tones and dark tones is prominent in the foreground of the photograph. The filter creates a blue coloured overlay.

Connotation: This particular image appears to be a study of how the individuality of self is lost when facing an illness such as depression. Due to the nature of depression being a mental illness many people with the condition feel that they, their self-constructed identities, are lost as the illness takes over. The mask could be symbolic of either the demons or the mask that the subject wears to hide themselves and their true emotions from others.

Context: Hopkins himself stated in an interview that "I don't have any captions for the photos. Despite [them] being self-portraits, I try to keep as much of myself out  [of the photos] as possible." due to his desire for the audience to "elicit their own personal meaning from the image".  The construction of the photographs are surreal as they are all "self-portraits" but more so in reference to being a reflection of the audience in how they see themselves within the work.



Denotation: The same location is used in this photo as is also used in two of the three featured above. The composition is again almost symmetrical. The colour is of a grey tint and blue filter with strong contrast between the light and dark tonal areas. The viewer is taken on a journey due to the composition in that the eye travels in a vertical line due to the hand from above juxtaposed to the many hands below.

Connotation: Without contextual information I would say that this image implies the materialistic nature of a capitalist society in which we try to buy life and time to avoid the grasps of death. Although, now with more information I believe that the image, titled 'Bargaining', from within the series '5 Stages of Grief' implies the feeling of being trapped once someone dies whether that it physically or metaphorically such as the death of self-identity. People try to buy more time with ones that they have lost by making deals with death.

Context: This series composed of 5 photographs took place over 5 consecutive days. The idea of grief is more variant from Hopkins' other works in that this series more explicitly studies other emotions rather than displaying the "symptoms of depression". Hopkins said that he hopes "that these pictures reveal the possibility of using photography as a powerful means of emotional expression, even if those emotions don't relate to mental illness.". 

Research Log: Surrealism Photographer Research: Sarolta Ban -

Surrealism: Sarolta Ban - 

Why Chosen:

I chose Sarolta Ban as they have explored art through multiple mediums before deciding on photography. This photographer focuses on photo manipulation and is a pioneer for the open meaning artwork that can be understood in many different ways by different audiences depending on context of reception.

Examples of Work:



Denotation: The composition of the photograph is within a square framing as opposed to the often used landscape layout. The image can easily be divided into the compositional grid with three diagonal and horizontal cross-sections; the human subject falls at the third line of the grid which is why the audience eye is immediately taken to him. The border creates a finalised style to the piece with the vignette and black and white cross sepia colourisation and lacking saturation adding to the atmosphere of the piece. The change in scale is also vital to the surreal nature of the work.

Connotation: This photograph, from my understanding, connotes death; the crows/ ravens symbolise many different things in various cultures although within my beliefs they are cohesive with death and darkness due to their natural instincts to find food from morbid circumstances such as death. Therefore, I believe that this image is conveying the short lives we live as insignificant and small entities on this world through the crows/ ravens and the elderly man who is having his materialistic possessions stolen by the birds.

Context: Contextually speaking the above birds symbolise various meanings in different belief systems. In Native American beliefs the bird is respected as the bringer of light and creation. Although, other Native American's believe the bird to be a trickster or shape-shifter due to its smart nature which also lead to others believing it like a bad omen in the same way that an owl is.  In Celtic beliefs the bird has supreme visionary powers and is associated with the Halloween-like celebrations. In most western cultures the birds are associated with death and bad luck due to their dark feathers and nature of finding food at battlefields. However, it is hard to say what the photographer herself intended the meaning to contextually be due to the subject of the birds meaning different things although the photographer is Hungarian. Moreover, Ban said that the meanings of her works are nebulous so that audiences can make their own understandings from the pieces.



Denotation: Again the composition of this photograph is within a square framing which is a stylistic choice employed by the photographer. The subject is almost central to the photograph with the props including a trumpet and multiple chairs. The vignette adds to the dark atmosphere of the work alongside the sepia/ black and white colouring.

Connotation: The ape as the subject could connote humankind and the instrument and chairs could imply formality of our breed. Instruments are often a symbol of class status and prestige within society which also links to development and evolution whilst the chimp could link to Darwin's theory of evolution. Therefore, the overall combination of the subjects and props could imply the true nature that we, as humans, are still as primal as our beginnings no matter how advanced we believe ourselves, our minds and our systems.

 Context: Ban said that she enjoys combining everyday "ordinary elements" to create stories and "personalities". The chairs and trumpet could be considered ordinary but the chimp more unusual.



Denotation: Framing is within a square, the image is more multi-tonal than the above two, the eye is taken on a journey due to the triangular composition of the person, the birds and the top of the stairs. The vignette, another stylistic choice of the photographer adds to the darkness of the image whilst the contrasting light from the clouds add to the juxtapositions.

Connotation: The birds again appear to symbolise death with the light through the clouds and stairs implying the stairway to the afterlife. The landscape is barren and appears to criticise the world which we live in.

 Context:  Each image takes around 50-100 layers which are composed either over many hours or many days. Therefore, everything small detail chosen in the photographs are vital. The smaller details which could easily be lost are emphasised through tools such as black and white. The dark nature of Ban's work is reinforced by her answer to the question asking if she would like to live in her surreal works; her reply was "No, I wouldn't, because it's really frightening. I might visit that world, but I wouldn't want to live long in there".




Denotation: Framing is again within a square, the photograph is a mixture of tonal greys and dark blues which work in contrast to the light and yellow of the central segment of the image. The eyes are taken up through the photo due to the horizontal lines of the ladders leading to the subjects of the crows/ ravens.

Connotation: The birds once again symbolise death with the yellowing light through the clouds and ladders implying a world distant from the living world. The landscape is barren and appears to criticise the world which we live in.

 Context: The grainy nature of the photographic final outcomes are partly due to stylistic choices but also because of the costly nature of most cameras. Ban uses a 5 megapixel point and shoot FinePix S5600 and Photoshop to make her creations.
 

Research Log: Surrealism Photographer Research: Tommy Ingberg -

Surrealism: Tommy Ingberg - 

Why Chosen:

I chose Tommy Ingberg due to his extensive professional portfolio of societal criticisms. His black and white mono tonal photographic manipulations are reminiscent of the earlier examples of surrealist artists such as Rene Magritte who has served as an inspiration to me for many years. The two series from which I have gathered the below photographs are from the portfolios entitled 'Journey' and 'Reality Rearranged/ Solitaire'. Personally, the implicit perspectives are vital to surrealism especially within the vein that I wish to follow which delves into an interpretation of the human psyche and identity through means such as mental state and regional identity.

Examples of Work:



Denotation: The chimney sits in the left third of the compositional grid, a face is emerging from within the chimney thus displacing the balance, the image employs a vignette in the corners, the smoke and clouds are captured in motion moving to the right, the eye is taken on a journey through the image due to the fading out landscape in the background and finally the photograph is edited into black and white.

Connotation: The chimney connotes the factory work of past and modern society, the burning of fossil fuels and the idea of society and its workers, as shown through the face appearing from within the chimney,  as a machine of production within a capitalist society. Furthermore, the vast expanse of desert could imply an apocalyptic-like world to which we are heading towards if we continue to exploit the natural resources such as oil. The vignette and black and white add to the dramatic and mournful nature of this photograph in the sense of the implied exploitation of both workers and natural resources.

Context: This series is entitled 'Journey' and the individual piece is called 'Chimney'. The series 'Journey' follows the artist post the birth of his son and how his world took a slow shift of path as a result. Because of this Ingberg had less time for his work and more time with his family and so when it came to creating art he decided instead for it not to be riddled with "rules, expectations or judgement" but to become more "fluid and chaotic". The stories for both this image and the rest of the series were created without planning ahead which allowed for "unexpected results".



Denotation: The subject is central so that it is the first point which the viewer sees which stresses its importance, the subject is suspended within the image by a hand, the leading line of the road in the landscape ensures that they eyes follow the path through the image and the photograph is edited into black and white to add to the mono tonal style alongside the heightening of contrast between light and dark.

Connotation: The hand suspending the subject above the landscape is almost like a criticism of an omnipotent god-like character; whether it truly is in relation to religion, the opium of the masses as coined by Karl Marx, or aimed towards other intuitions such as government is for the audience to interpret. If  the hand is linked to god then the audience could perceive the formally dressed subject to be embodying the clothes of a funeral as though they have died and as a result the leading line of the road could be an idea about the bright light at the end of a tunnel or the reference to the crossroads of life or death. However, I believe that the hand could resemble the hegemonic people in power physically manipulating the the anonymous masses of suits and ties in the rat race of life. The road could also, in reference to this, symbolise the never ending journey towards the unachievable 'American Dream' or other such ideologies that are flawed due to a capitalist society.

Context: This photograph is called 'Puppet' from within the series 'Reality Rearranged/ Solitaire'. This series occurred over five years, 2010 - 2015, and Ingberg himself said that his own life served as inspiration although the he also wanted "the viewers to produce their own questions and answers when looking at the pictures, my [his] own interpretations are really irrelevant in this context". This particular photograph was featured in the photographer's blog to explain his creative process. Ingberg employs all his own photography and his works are often manipulated in Photoshop as little as possible in relation to composition and the fixing of images. Additionally, Ingberg said "If you do the photography really well you could technically just print your pictures, cut out the parts you want with scissors and paste them onto an empty piece of paper and be done with it. I find that to be a good reference to have in mind when planning my composites". Contextually, Ingberg works on a budget and has to find cost effective ways of creating his work which is good inspiration to amateur photographers like myself. This photo posed many issues for the photographer in respect of creating a montage of the various images. Firstly, the model had to be in the air but systems such as wires would have made the clothes move in a false way and edits would have to be made in Photoshop; eventually, the decision was made for the model to be captured mid jump. The hand in the photograph was captured by someone pinching an object of weight, a phone, to create as realistic hand positing as possible for the final outcome.



Denotation: This image does not employ a direct landscape like the others above but instead focuses more in the medium of portraiture, the subjects are again anonymous whilst the central subject is revealing a manipulated clockwork inside. Finally, the image is edited into black and white as is the style of the photographer/ artist in every series.

Connotation: This image is varied to the ones outlined above in that there are multiple subjects, this creates an army-like atmosphere to the photographic outcome. Of the  central subject who is facing the audience a mechanical inside is being shown which could imply that within society we are an army of anonymous masses just cogs in the mechanical system which must all follow the same path for the machine to work. However, the subject facing the opposite direction has become sentient and aware of the society they live in and wishes to instead lead a life different to the others ruled by the institutions of socialisation such as education, religion and government.

Context: The photograph displayed above is called 'Inside' from the series 'Reality Rearranged/ Solitaire'. This series occurred over five years, 2010 - 2015, and Ingberg himself said that his own life served as inspiration although the he also wanted "the viewers to produce their own questions and answers when looking at the pictures, my [his] own interpretations are really irrelevant in this context". Ingberg himself stated that "surrealism is about trying to explain something abstract like a feeling or a thought, expressing the subconscious with a picture. The Reality Rearranged series is my [his] first try at describing reality through surrealism" as this series falls before the ongoing series 'Journey' which began in 2015. This contextual information is vital to me as my interpretation of surrealism is the "unreality of reality" and in contrast the "reality of unreality" as equal and opposite ideologies on life. Life often provides many challenges which we deal with from our own mind which is the unreality of reality. However, a surreal idea draws its inspiration from society and therefore displays the reality of unreality.  This is further evidence by Ingberg in that he says he "settled into a safe non-challenging “normal” life" but soon realised "something was missing"; the aspect of life missing was the unreality of surrealism in his photography.



Denotation: This photograph is interesting in composition in that the subject is a diagonal line that cross-sections between the rule of thirds compositional grid. The image also, whether intentional or not, conforms to Leonardo Da Vinci's 'Fibonacci Spiral' with the rock being the base and the detail gathered in the centre spiral where the head of the subject would be. The image features a faceless subject who is being lifted by balloons and held down by a rock above a seascape. The image is also within black and white again linking to the photographers chosen style and the photograph appears to be darkest on the left column then transitioning lighter as the eye moves across right.

Connotation: This photograph has many interpretations but I believe that the idiom "head in the clouds" could be an inspiration for this specific piece. Although, more specifically I believe that the anonymous subject portrays mental health. The balloons replacing the head exemplify a hope for freedom and release from a situation; also, as balloons are often associated with childhood the photograph could symbolise the difficulty of growing up into a world of serious problems rather than a carefree happy childhood. Additionally, the rock and rope holding the subject down could symbolise the weight of depression, often referred to as a weight on the shoulders and mind, therefore not allowing the subject to be free from their situation. The isolation of the individual also continues this idea through the loneliness of mental illness. Furthermore, the black and white again adds to this through the idea of a world without colour being linked to depression and feeling "blue".

Context: The photograph is titled 'Torn' and is part of the series 'Reality Rearranged/ Solitaire'. This series occurred over five years, 2010 - 2015, and Ingberg himself said that his own life served as inspiration although the he also wanted "the viewers to produce their own questions and answers when looking at the pictures, my [his] own interpretations are really irrelevant in this context". Furthermore, I believe this photograph documents the "visual diary" of Ingberg as a response to the time in his life in his late twenties when he "hit some sort of bottom". As a result of this spiralling decline Ingberg focused his life more so on the creative surreal photography and after being "Deep down in my [his] own personal abyss I found what art is to me. As a sort of therapy I started creating pictures" which is how Ingberg became the non-conformist of the art world he is currently and is trying to be at the end of his 'Journey'.