First Crit + Early Exhibition ideas (Experiments & Observations)

 

Figure 1.) Crit display (Click to enhance image size)

The first crit saw both projects, Gone but not Forgotten and Lost and not Found, exhibited
simultaneously (see Fig. 1). Drawing from Shirley Read in ‘Exhibiting
photography: a practical guide to displaying work’, the exhibition has one main
area of focus: “to enhance communication and create a strong visual narrative
or storytelling concept”, (Read, S. (2014) Exhibiting photography: a practical guide to displaying your
work. 2nd ed. Burlington, Mass: Focal Press.)  Also encouraged by Shirley, I used this crit as an opportunity to explore how my collection of images could be transformed into an exhibition layout.

Figure 2). Reprint on Luster (left), Matte (right) and Matte with post-processing adjustments (middle). (Click to enhance image size)

Combining the
presentation of the two projects gave the opportunity to observe the relationship
between two projects once the display was merged. Additionally, the crit was
inclusive of some development, showcasing reprints of the same photograph (selected
from Gone but not Forgotten) printed on different papers, Epson Lustre
and Epson Matte (see Fig. 2) This experimentation was conducted with a keen interest in how
images printed on different paper types would appear once wearing rose-tinted glasses,
a fundamental strategy to immerse the viewer into the image. Interestingly, the
difference in paper types did not have a tremendous impact upon the colour difference
when wearing the glasses (although a critical difference in saturation compared
from screen to paper was noticed, solved by increasing saturation in post-production
prior to printing). 

Figure 3). Snapshot of image captured through glass lens. Fluorescent (left) and soft box (right). (Click to enhance image size).

More importantly, the overhead fluorescent lighting in the studio became
the determining factor in transforming the tonal range of pink present in the images. With the overhead lighting acting as sole source of illumination, little difference was seen when wearing the glasses. However, If the
overhead lighting is substituted for soft boxes, the warm light acts as a catalyst
in the transition from an ordinary scene becoming rose-tinted once wearing the
rouge spectacles, successfully amplifying the romanticism of the scene (see Fig. 3).

Figure 4). Snapshot of image captured through glass lens using mobile device. Lustre (left) and matte (right). (Click to enhance image size).

This observation is
most important when contemplating the potential exhibition layout of this
project. Since a warm light (positioned closely to the photographs for an immediate
effect to take place when removing or applying the glasses) is a clear necessity
in the final display, the risk of unwanted reflections poses a serious danger.
Two actions prove a resolution to this dilemma. Unlike luster which gave an immediate reflection, printing on matte paper ensures
no glare can occur directly upon the image. Similarly, the framing method for
this project is now limited to that available which maintains an absence of glass.
 

Figure 5). Same object with varied presentation. (Click to enhance image size).

The early photographs
for Lost and not Found was subjected to some constructive criticism. The
display showcases two approaches for each object: one photograph demonstrates
the object in its raw form, the other include vegetation and other natural
materials as part of the presentation (see Fig. 4) Most notably, the choice of background
paper (an earthy tone of brown, chosen to mimic the tonal values of their
initial location) proved an unsuccessful decision on two accounts. Firstly, the
overall result lacked in any aesthetic. Secondly, some of the colours already present
in the objects are in a near identical shade to the back paper, causing the
object to ‘bleed’ into the background. A too-wide aperture was also observed, causing
some parts of each object to appear unsharp.