One Week Sketch

In 1952, Henri Cartier-Bresson published a book called The Decisive Moment, a title that captures the reliance of his photographic oeuvre on the formal element of time. Theoretians such as Roland Barthes have pointed out how the photograph refers to a specific time and place. But what happens to the idea of a "decisive moment" in contemporary photography, where artists direct, stage, and composite their photographs?

In this assignment, the artist is asked to create a series of 5 images that break the conventions of time and space in photography-- to create an "indecisive moment" that could not have existed without the will and hand of the photographer.

Example artists: Jeff Wall, Anthony Giocolea, Arthur Tress, Patrick Nagatani

Chris Drake

In my series, I—like Jeff Wall—chose to play with the notion of reality and time by specifically staging a scene to photograph. Setting: Saga brunch on an average weekend morning. Everywhere you look, there are students sitting, eating, and conversing. This typical college interaction is something that most students become particularly acclimated to over the four years of their college career. That being known, I wanted to play with this regular aspect of HWS college life. I set up my model at a table by herself, with a surfeit of different foods arranged across the table’s surface. In each image, she plays with the reality of how students actually consume their meals (this notion is best illustrated—in my opinion—when my model tries to bite into an unpeeled orange), how much students actually eat, how students interact and conduct themselves in this arena of public activity and speculation.
By staging this event, inherently there exists an interesting discussion about time and space. This event was staged in an environment where students actually were having brunch, but our set (my model, the table, the food, etc.) is clearly something that is disconnected, separate from this normal activity. Yet at the same time, this series ironically strives to comment on the very environment it’s disconnected from.

       In the world today we are constantly reminded of the omnipresent force called gravity. This force is so powerful that we are always aware that it could get the best of us and as a result take measures to prevent this from occurring. This force also influences how everything in our world is arranged and limits how this arrangement can be changed. My pictures attempt to break this convention through the suspension of different objects, some interacting with the human form and others not at all.
Time and space are both elements of photography that we often try to control but there are major limitations to the degree in which these can be changed for a picture. My series tries to incorporate some of these elements and at the same time break norms, such as objects sitting on top of other objects or a person holding an object. This was accomplished by separating the objects and having them free-floating in space. Our relationship with gravity is such that it gives the pictures and indecisive nature because you try to figure out whether the objects are falling or held by some alternative means.

For this series of images I attempted to make visual representations of dreams. My concept stemmed from the idea that often in our dreams, we watch the events that take place as though we are not in our bodies, but outside of our bodies watching ourselves like a film. With that in mind I decided to make each image contain two figures (two of the same figure) one acting as the “dream self” and the other as the “real self” who is dreaming, watching their “dream self.” Each of these images illustrates the idea of dreamers following themselves through their dreams—a sort of out-of-body experience, which is what dreams are, in a sense. In each photo the “dream self” is completely unaware of the spectator, because they are the dream that the dreamer is having (and the “dream self” is unaware that he or she is a dream.) Through these images, we are now watching other peoples’ dreams, and the dreamers having those dreams. I decided not to use the same person or same scenario for all five images so as to better represent the idea of dreams—that many different people dream many different things that occur in a variety of places.

“I Am Not What I Wear”

In this series, the indecisive moment is captured through viewing both the outward appearance and seemingly contradictory actions of an individual in a single moment. In each photograph, we see the two facets of a single person in one image: what they wear, and what they do. In modern society, it seems as though we are only defined by our outward appearance and not our actions. Are we only what we appear to be, or is it what we do that makes us who we are? This series is an attempt to make the viewer ask themselves this very question. Each image is a societal oxymoron, where the jock can feel vulnerable, the pretty girl can be one of the guys, and the nerd’s abilities are not confined within the walls of the library. The subject looks straight at the camera in each image, perhaps feeling in that moment that they have been caught committing some heinous crime. Yet, through the intentional composition of each image, the subject is begging the viewer hear them reveal “I am not what I wear.”

Before attending the 1st Annual Turkey Trot this weekend, I knew that it would bring out some different characters and the stage would be set for me to take photos of indecisive moments. In my photos, I persuaded students to take upon acts out of the ordinary. In the first image, which was taken before the race, I would title ‘warm-up’ appropriately because it was a brisk autumn afternoon and the runners were preparing for the race. The second image consists of the gentlemen in charge of the race, who did not choose to participate. I had one individual (JENCO) cover his face, acting as if he did not want to be portrayed as a non competitor. The third image, I had my friends give each other motivational speeches to one another, but without looking at one another and gazing off into the distance. The fourth image, which I would title ‘finish line,’ is an obscure picture because the paper towel is acting as the end of the race. It appears that the paper towel is just floating across the image with the help of the wind. Also, the person holding the finish line is looking in the wrong direction is which the racers are coming from. The final image I would title ‘motivation.’ The runner is followed by a student carrying a speaker projecting music to help finish up the final 200 yards.

The indecisive moment is a moment in which a viewer cannot distinguish weather a scene is created or stumbled upon. I chose to place an object that, while in context it is completely ordinary and unobtrusive, but when placed out of context, it’s odd. One does not expect to see a pickle jar used for much else besides holding pickles, but that’s just what it is doing. It is breaking the bonds of the expected and putting itself into places it doesn’t belong. I wanted to not only place an object out of context, but I wanted to challenge our conceptions of what “proper context” actually means. It seems that “proper context” is defined by society; dictated by the masses to be an absolute in a world of things that are ever changing.

It was my intent to use a very simple approach to breaking the bonds of “proper context”. I believe there are many different and distinct ways of approaching the question of the indecisive moment. By simplifying my approach, the most basic understanding of the concept of the indecisive moment can be made tangible. This series makes small moves to try to explore the simplest parts of the indecisive moment.

I decided to play with the notion of frozen water for my assignment. I dripped water off of a roof and onto a hedge a few times a week in the cold water. It created somewhat of a mini ice cliff on the hedge. I decided to photograph the ice cliff. The way I tried to photograph it was so that it appeared as if it was a huge ice cliff as opposed to a very small ice cliff. I tried to crop the images in a way so that the branches and leaves of the hedge were not visible.
For the other images I decided to pour water down a broken gutter in the cold weather. The water froze at the bottom of the gutter where it disconnects from the rest of the piping. Although the water is frozen it appears that the water is flowing out of the gutter. The snow under the pipe even looks as if it is a puddle of water, and it is the equivalent of a puddle of water for icicles.

I interpreted the “indecisive moment” as the realization of surreal and outlandish imagery. I used models dressed in formal wear, and introduced them to settings that are not typical for their attire. The contrasting differences between construction areas and formally dressed men and women stood out to me as awkward and rare. In order to make the imagery more surreal, I made duplicates of characters engaged in different actions throughout the photo. Some may be subtle, but all of which create a strange mood. I shot in the dark, allowing me to utilize a flash and attain a bright omnipresent light. I also took advantage of the fluorescent street lights. This takes the idea of “natural” lighting away and makes the model aware of their presence in front of the camera.