Sonia/methods

DRAFTS THREE THINGS

Sketches (of a Place)

•What (100 words max)

Sketches (of a Place) is a series of 25 black and white unique instant photographic prints. The dimensions of the image area is about 8x8cm, or 11x9cm if one includes the surrounding white rebate. The image area features a glossy surface whereas the surrounding rebate is matte. Despite the prints being considered black and white, in reality a slight sepia tone runs throughout the series. Some images feature details of the landscape, e.g. foliage, the ground, while others comprise of details of indoor spaces or manmade structures such as a rope pulley, window frame, or chair.

•How (100 words max)

The series was produced with a Polaroid 600 camera using instant film manufactured by Polaroid Originals. The photographs were taken over a seven day period and ordered sequentially during editing. As soon as a photograph is taken the Polaroid camera immediately ejects the print, which at first is blue in colour with no image yet present. In order to develop the print one must keep it in a dark place at around an optimal temperature and after between 20-40 minutes the image is developed and revealed. The results are also influenced by this development period.

•Why (100 words max)

I produced the series in November 2017 just before, during and just after, a five-day practice-based research residency entitled “Place Exploration” which was led by artist Bram Thomas Arnold. The residency focused on exploring an autoethnographic approach to exploring the concept of place in the broadest sense as well as sense of place within an artistic context. I produced this series as a way to explore the place through my own lens, as a way to sketch out the impressions of my journey and the place we were.

Colour studies

•What (100 words max)

Colour studies is a collection of 40-50 10x15cm glossy C-Type (Chromogenic) prints. The subject matter is abstract, graphic and painterly in nature dominated by highly saturated primary and secondary colours which blend and overlap throughout; however red hues tend to dominate. This series was produced during my time as artist in residence at a Kalamari Klub, a community darkroom and collective located in Heidelberg, Germany over a three to four week period.

•How (100 words max)

All of these prints were produced using analogue photographic processes in a colour darkroom. Effects were achieved in all cases without a camera or negative and often without the use of an enlarger. Some of the techniques employed include painting with light, using translucent materials as a filtering mechanism, physically placing objects onto the photographic paper during exposure and placing colour gels either directly onto paper or within the negative holder of the enlarger. Because one must work in complete darkness during exposure, it can be difficult to control the outcomes resulting in unpredictable and varied results.

•Why (100 words max)

The aim of producing this collection of images was to experiment with techniques within the darkroom. I am interested in how colour, abstraction and the altering of photographic images can influence how a viewer may respond emotionally or psychologically to an image. The results were not necessarily important and I do not consider either of these successes nor failures. The processes were an opportunity for practice-based research, to allow me to better understand the materiality and expressive potential of analogue photographic media. My intention is to take this new knowledge and apply it to the production of future work.

Hover

•What (100 words max)

Hover is a series comprised of a variable number (between 15-30) of square format photographs. For the most part the photographs feature sparse natural landscapes, dominated by a muted pastel colour palette. A secondary component entitled “Going” is a moving image piece (without sound) that runs for about 13 minutes featuring slowed down footage from a moving vehicle looking out toward the passing landscape.

•How (100 words max)

All photographs were shot with two different medium format cameras over an extended period of time at various locations throughout Europe and Australia. The photographs have been shot on analogue film, scanned and presented as C Type (Chromogenic) Prints. The photographs were always taken when I was on a journey, always away from my “home” space. The moving image component was filmed with the camera of my phone looking through the waist-level viewfinder of my medium format analogue camera.

•Why (100 words max)

My aim with Hover is to attempt to encompass particular sentiments or psychological spaces we encounter when we undertake a journey or experience a place. For me this series is an attempt to communicate the feelings of detachment and wonder one can simultaneously experience when travelling, particularly when travelling on one’s own. The photographs are not intended to be descriptive but suggestive.