The Object

Concept 




The brief asked me to create a Still Life based upon something that concerns me. I didn't find anything in the media that addressed an issue that concerned me, so I decided that I would pursue a personal issue which is really important to me. I decided that I would look at my Mum's health and especially her addiction to extreme pain killers. I Know it will be hard to portray and represent these objects correctly as I want the viewer to understand that my Mum's addiction is medical and not personal.

Mind Maps




                                            

My minds maps outlined what a still life was and how I would represent a current issue that concerned me. From these mind maps I decided on the theme and for me I was looking at my mums medical addiction to tablets and also looking briefly into her other addiction of cigarettes. 

Influences


Traditional Still Life Paintings

These two photographs are a style of painting in the 16th and 17th century called Vanitas its a style of  a Still Life Painting  associated with the Northern European art scene. Common symbols in this style of painting was the skull which represented death. Unlike today death was not feared it was just a life cycle.

F.64 Group

Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Imogen Cunningham and Willard Van Dyke were the founders of the F.64 Group which was created in the year of 1932. Between these Californian based photographers they created photographs which enabled the viewer to see how clear the lens was. Ansel Adams's Invention of the tonal system enabled him to create photographs with large amounts of tone. This allowed his photographs to show great detail.

Sophie Calle and Laura Letinsky

The above two images are to different styles of photography but the aim of the photographer seems to be very similar. Image one by Sophie Calle ' The Hotel Series Room 28' the aim of Calle was to show items which people have left behind at a hotel and then photographed. In comparison to Laura Letinsky where she photographed left overs of a party at the scene not moving anything or repositioning which Calle did as everything looks neatly styled. Letinsky doesn't its a snapshot of a finished celebration.

Taddeo Gaddi

This is a Still life painting created by Gaddi he was a eighteenth Century painter. I am especially inspired by his work as this is is the location where my mum stores her medication and his work will help me in the arranging of my objects for my final outcome. I would like to use other objects which are found in the cupboard alongside the medication. 

Irving Penn

 

After looking at the work of Irving Penn and the still life's he created of cigarettes I decided that I wanted to create a project surrounding the idea of smoking. Smoking has always been a issue that concerns me. Growing up around cigarettes I hated the feeling that I got when I saw my mum smoke and the fact that my nan died from lung caner. Its a if there a slow killer I now call them cancer sticks. Since coming to University I have  found that so many young people smoke why is this? Are more and more people giving in to peer pressure is it the cool thing to do. You would think that people would listen to Health teams. Many old people smoke as back in the 1950s it was cool to smoke as many of the Advertisements showed. The Marlboro man showed living a care free life as a cowboy. The use of the campaign saw sale figures rise by a 300% increase over two years from  1957 the ads lasted until 1999. All of the three man who modelled as the Marlboro man all died of Lung cancer showing  Controversy to the cigarette business. The Below advertising image glamourised the cigarette industry which resulted in the boom of sales.

Andy Warhol 

Andy Warhol's still life photographs are taken from above the objects (Birds Eye View) which gives the impression that they are being watched due to the angle of the camera.  I decided to do some test shots using the same technique that Warhol used to see if this is the style of narrative I want to reveal in my final image. 

Test Shoot's

Cigarette Photo shoot 1

My Mum smokes very differently to how she takes her tablets she takes her medication routined unlike smoking which is very random, she has to take 32 tablets or more a day if she wants to mask the chronic pain but she lives every day feeling the pain she will feel until the day she passes. Unlike smoking my Mum smokes at least thirty plus a day trying to take her mind off of the pain.

I have started this project by developing my idea of Addiction. I am looking at the addiction my mum has in counted due to her disability. I have photographed the cigarettes that she smokes the reason the butts are scattered  is because the amount of cigarettes she smokes is not consistent in the way she takes her tablets. My Mum has to take her tablets at a certain time each day or she will be in chronic pain something I do not understand. 

Research - Mum's Daily Medication Consumption  32 Tablets consumed a day. Plus more if needed to mask the pain further. 

Morning AM                                  

Morphine 30mg - 1 Purple small Round

Gabapentin - 3  yellow Capsules 

Nefopam - 2   Small white 

Duloxatinee - 1 Yellow small 

Paracetamol - 2 Red and white Capsule 

Afternoon 

Diazapan - 1

Gabapentin - 3

Nefopam - 2

Deluxatine - 1

Parcetamol - 2

Evening 

Diazapan - 1 

Gabapentin - 3 

Nefopam - 2

Deluxatine - 1

Paracetamol - 2

Night 

100mg Morphine - 1 Small Grey

Diazapan - 2

Paracetamol - 2

Medication Shoot 1

In this set of test shots I wanted to portray to my audience the fact that these tablets are for medical use and not drug abuse. For this test shot I have played around with the use of lighting and exposure to decide on the effect I want to use for my final Image. I especially am fond of image three I like the fact that pile of tablets shows the amount of tablets my Mum has to take to stay out of pain but the lighting portrays the idea of clinical use.

Further Research 

Gareth McConell

After Attending the studio workshop on Depth of Field I decided to go back over my notes and I Came across  Gareth McConell's name which I Googled. I really loved his work and I am now thinking this is a style of work I am going to test out on my Images. Prior to looking at his work I was dead set on this idea of my images looking clean and crisp suggesting hospital-ism, I now feel if I carry on photographing with bright white lights  it may become or be portrayed as less personal something which I do not want the viewer to feel. Using a shallow depth of field will portray the darkness of the narrative and will focus on the tablets which my Mum is addicted to and draw the viewer into the image.

Test Shoot towards Studio Shoot

I have moved away from photographing the tablets as a scattered object and instead have decided to include an element of hospitality by placing the tablets in tumblers. Also I have used a shallow depth of field of f.8 to allow the tablets to be the focal point but  area there stored in will have an importance as keeping tablets in a cupboard where you keep your personal objects is pretty strange and anybody looking in would find this ad normal but to my mum it seems to be the norm.

Francis de Zurban 

Francisco de Zurbaran was a seventeenth century painter. The above painting in particular inspired and helped me in the process of deciding how I would arrange my objects from my final Photograph. I wanted to portray the location of where my Mum keeps her medication. So, I thought I would use for my final image the medicaiton and other objects found in the cupboard where the medication is stored. I would like to use a similar technique to Zurbaran, where he has placed his objects clearly centred to the frame of the imagery.

Drawing of studio Layout 

This image is the drawing of the layout of my set in the studio. I decided to do a drawing as I thought this would be the best way to re-create the set if my negatives didn't turn out the way I wanted them to visually look. I am not the best drawer as you can see but this image is basic and will be helpful if i need to re shoot my objects.


Final Image 

The above image is my final outcome for the Object Project I feel this image works well for this project and clearly demonstrates my ability to control colour, focus and exposure. This image portrays what I wanted my final outcome to visually represent and gives the viewer an insight into the amount of medication my mum takes a day.