At the start of a new term and new module, I begin with a short reflection on the feedback and assessment for the previous term. Overall, I was disappointed in the grades I received as these showed a considerable drop since the first term. The feedback itself was relevant and helpful, certainly aspects that I will take on board and integrate into my future practice, particularly the suggestions to experiment with different photographic techniques and methodologies, as well as different ways of presenting a portfolio.

What concerned me the most was that I didn’t necessarily feel that my artistic vision was communicated clearly enough, or that it was fully understood, and I have been left with many questions on whether my choice of project is suitable or if my technique is good enough. I have spent the holidays feeling tremendous self-doubt and questioning my abilities as an artist. I’ve had to remind myself of my reasons for choosing to study and for selecting the particular project that I have, in order to return to the original integrity of my artistic choices and vision. This is what I now hope to be able to articulate and express clearly as I go forward this term.

“Photographs bear witness to a human choice being exercised in a given situation. A photograph is a result of the photographer’s decision that it is worth recording that this particular event or this particular object has been seen.” – John Berger (1972)

Not only do we make human choices in our photography, but we also have human responses to our subjects, whatever these may be.  The dilemma or conflict that I have encountered in my own practice is the suggestion that I should choose between two paths or contexts, namely that of documentary or art – choosing whether my work will be subjective or attempt to be objective, whether it will be narrative or emotive, or both?  Whether it will be a challenging and outward focused body of work, or a sentimental and self-focused body of work? My impulse is to attempt to find a synergy between the two, some kind of balance between apparent opposites and contradictions and this is what I attempt to achieve through the human choices I make as a photographer.

The intention of my work is to document what I believe are the last days of the areas in my city known as Stokes Croft and The Bearpit. Originally Stokes Croft referred to a section of road by this name, however, over time it has come to refer to an area surrounding this road which has a distinct cultural and community identity. This is particularly seen in the diversity of people, artistic enterprises and graffiti art which appears throughout the area, including artwork by the well-known Bristol graffiti artist, Banksy.   I do not wish to romanticise the area or make it appear more glamorous than the reality of what it is, so I acknowledge and hope to portray that this area is not without its problems – it has historically been neglected by local authorities, leading to social issues and urban decay. However, the community itself has transformed the area into a colourful space of diversity, tolerance and freedom of expression, something I value and believe is important in our city.

It is my belief that it is only a matter of time before development will completely erode the character of this area, the slow creep of gentrification has already begun and just in the time since I started the MA, the Bearpit was locked down and stripped, the graffiti washed from the walls and Ursa the Bear, a much loved art installation in The Bearpit, was also taken down. This is the moment that I feel the heart of the city was wounded and the slow creep of gentrification had become visible. I do not purport to change this or to prevent it or to challenge it through my photography, as this has already been done by various groups and campaigns – the slow creep of gentrification has been eating away at the heart of this area for years already, so my intention as an artist and photographer is to preserve what I can through photographically documenting the area across time and before the cultural identity of the place is gone forever. At the same time my own feelings of loss and sorrow are what I also hope to convey within the images, as I believe this will explain and express my human choices.

My practice at this time might be considered as anti-establishment and anti-intentional which is even more pertinent because of the area my current project is documenting – the spirit of anarchic rebellion has always been the spirit of this place.  I am not neutral in my feelings towards the area and the way in which it has been impacted by decisions made by a faceless officialdom and authority, yet I may not overtly express a political stance due to my personal circumstances and the nature of my employment.  This is one of my limitations and also my challenge, to be able to express through image that which I cannot through verbal statement, to make clear my stance and feelings, and communicate that I am not neutral in the choice of what I photograph, of what I include in the frame and where I am located inside this narrative. 

In many ways, academia and the arts, is also a form of establishment, and this could also be translated as conformism to contextual traditions and styles. Again this is one of the challenges for me, as I struggle to balance this desire to learn and inform my photographic choices without becoming mired in conformity or colouring this project with the perspectives of establishment. I aim for a raw, honest authenticity in my work – with no artifice or sense of construction to a scene, but rather a more spontaneous on the ground feeling to the images.  I want the viewer to see the scene as it is, unapologetically flawed, imperfect and rough.  I feel that I am most resonant with the tradition of the snapshot aesthetic, a technique that was made prominent in Stephen Shore’s American Surfaces. Inspired by Stephen Shore’s work, I aim to capture the mundane, the everyday reality in a way that begins drawing the viewer in as if they are part of the scene, really there, participating in the image and not just viewing it. 

I want the images to be relate-able, to connect with the people who know this area, understand it’s character and recognise the places in my images, making this aimed to some extent at a niche market. Yet I believe that there are many communities that are similar and undergoing the slow creep of gentrification, which means that it will be recognisable to others from other cities, to other people who are experiencing this same sense of loss of community and place.  The impulse to document places and their socio-cultural contexts in a way that creates this broader narrative is inspired by those photographers who have embodied the concept of the ‘American road trip’ into their work, in particular Stephen Shore, Alec Soth, Edward Ruscha. All three artists have incorporated travelling, or journeying, into their practice, be it through road trips or walking, be it across a country or simply in their own cities in a the so-called ‘on the road’ style of photography that I find tremendously authentic and honest.

“I fell in love with the process of taking pictures, with wandering around finding things. To me it feels like a kind of performance. The picture is a document of that performance” – Alec Soth (Magnum Photos, 2020).

These artists show a natural curiosity for the world they live in, an awareness of the beauty of the mundane and every day places and people, that tell the real story of a time and place. They are also all willing to undertake long term and large-scale projects in order to tell a compelling story of the reality of place and people. These are all aspects that influence my work and provide the context from which my work is informed despite being located in an entirely different part of the world and working in a far smaller scale. As I do most of my photographic exploration through walking, I also relate to the older French tradition of the flaneur, the urban wanderer and artist, as described by the French poet Charles, Baudelaire and embodied by photographers such as Eugène Atget and Brassaï. I also feel affinity to aspects of the related tradition of psychogeography, a concept defined by French philosopher and Marxist, Guy Debord, which brings in the psychological aspects to a place and adds a sense of the mysterious to my explorations of the urban areas in which I wander.

The act of walking is, in fact, integral to my photographic practice and my experience or sense of the places I explore, as it is this powerful and intentional act of walking which helps me to the understand and know the subtle nuances and details of a place, which is what I hope to share through my images. There is no artifice or gloss to the images or to this project as a whole, as this is what gives it authenticity – the gritty, real and tangible feel to the image – and it is authenticity that elicits a response. I believe this has been both my success and my failure simultaneously – it has been achieved but perhaps not understood without knowing the wider context of my artistic vision and the direction I am taking, something I have struggled to define and articulate. Perhaps this is related to the sense I experience daily of being ‘silenced’ by rules, regulations, systems of hierarchy and power.

Going forward, I aim to express more freely and clearly what I truly feel as I believe there is opportunity to express my subjective feelings within a framework of documentary narrative. I view the image,the photograph, as a form of communication – a way to start a conversation, engage with an issue or an audience, to tell a story and invite participation in this story. This impulse must naturally push me towards exploring street portraiture even though I am uncomfortable in this style. Conceptually, this is the next step to explore along with further immersion into the snapshot aesthetic, and possibly even exploring black and white photography as an artistic choice. I am considering exploring different techniques by using 35 mm film photography as a means to experiment initially and potentially including Polaroid to bring something a little different to the project as I move further into the process.

An important concept that I must emphasise and which is always central to my practice, no matter what context, technique or aesthetic I apply, I don’t want to decide for the viewer what they will feel or think when looking at the scenes I capture.  I want them to experience it for themselves and to only become aware of my subjective feelings as the artist once they have already begun to follow the narrative as the viewer – this I hope to achieve through the small links and clues provided within the images, within their sequencing and layout, and potentially by the inclusion of text. This will hopefully invite the viewer to engage with the image and the narrative, allowing the viewer to become immersed into their own experience of the scene and only then becoming aware of my presence and feelings as a participant within the narrative, a character within the scene, in relationship with it or to it.  There should be no fixed script, but rather a fluid and unique response to the experience as this is when narrative becomes dialogue; when viewing becomes experiencing. This is my aim and artistic vision – my human choice.

References:

• Alec Soth • Photographer Profile • Magnum Photos. [online] Available at: https://www.magnumphotos.com/photographer/alec-soth/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2020].
• Barthes, Roland (1977). ‘The Photographic Message’ in Image Music Text. London: Fontana.Magnum Photos.  
• Berger, John (1972) ‘Understanding a photograph’ in Trachtenberg, Alan (1980) Classic Essays on Photography. New Haven: Leete’s Island Books.
• Gallup, New Mexico, July 1972 – Stephen Shore. [online] Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/work/P81318 [Accessed 28 Jan. 2020].
• Happiness Inn, 2005, From Niagara – Alec Soth. [online] Available at: https://www.bjp-online.com/2018/10/alec-soth-niagara-2006/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2020].