Going in the darkroom- capturing of light
I went in the darkroom, and used the facilities to create to expose objects on the glossy surface paper. The outcome on the left, did not really work out as the image is too dark, which could mean the paper was exposed to light for too long. The outcome on the right worked out slightly better as there are more of a range of tones, also the grey tones of the objects are more clear and brighter. |
I could use this process in the darkroom to create artist research responses by re-creating how certain artists, who also use the darkroom, use their technique, for example, how Schad consumes torn paper, newsprint, and fabric; I could try out his technique but add some elements that would make it more personal to me. My darkroom experiments might become more personal if I used my own negatives, important artefacts, and other objects on the paper to represent the theme of my own project.
There are many artists who began to experiment with camera-less photos; photograms, in the early 20th century. The three i have researched are Christian Schad, Man Ray, and Laszlo Moholy-Nagy.
Christian Schad
Schad is a German painter, as well as printmaker. He creates 'schadographs', which are abstract photographs. In 1919, Schad began to prepare small consumptions of torn paper, newsprint and fabric, which he then arranged on photographic paper, covered the surfaces of light sensitive paper with various objects and then left them to develop by his windowsill. He preferred using worn materials, such as scraps of paper and bits of fabric, often searching for these things on the streets and in garbage cans.
Man Ray
Man Ray was an American who did originally begin with photographing everyday objects with a camera. However, he then became very interested in the unique images created by placing objects like coils of wire, on a sheet of photosensitizied paper and then exposing it to light, creating negative images. What was interesting about his work to people was that he created these without a camera. These were photograms, however he called his, 'Rayographs'. Ray's rayographs were both abstract and representational. Sometimes, Ray would use part of his own, or a model's body on the sheet of potosensitizied paper, which is unique and quite personal, as it creates a strange connection between the audience and the artist. His images are considered the origins of Surrealism in Photography, as they exist in an obscure realm between reality and subconscious.
Lazlo Moholy-Nagy
Moholy-Nagy made images without a camera, in the darkroom by placing ordinary objects on photosensitized paper and exposing it to light. This process had already been pracitced in the 19th century, however it was popularized as amusement for kids in the 20th century and the photogram technique was re-discovered to explore expressive properties of light.
He made his photograms by using commonplace domestic objects and placing them on a sheet of photographic paper, which was then exposed to light. He made many innovatives using this technique which made to be his best works.
Susan Rankaitis
The use of colour in her work is very appealing to me, since I want my photos to be more bright and colourful. I believe the colours she uses are consistent throughout her work and so serve as a hallmark for it. I'm especially fascinated by the textures generated, utilising brain scans; I believe this is such an unique concept.
Floris Neusüss
“Photograms don’t show us what’s beyond the visible, but they give us a hint of it,” -Neusüss
Neusüss' work immediately drew my attention because the photograms of the silhouettes' edges are so well-crafted and, to me, convey a type of tale about the individuals the viewer encounters in his work. The photogram of the body bending upwards, almost as if it is falling, strikes me as particularly powerful, since the movement is so graceful, and the movement results in a distortion and a dazzling white colour.
Tina Rowe
Tina Rowe is an artist who often works in the darkroom, creating wonderful pieces on oyster shells she has picked from the River Thames, some being 400 years old, as well as bowls and plates. She doesn't call herself a photographer because although she has traces of being like a photographer, she is interested in mark making and uses the tools of analogue photography to do so. We were extremely lucky to have her visit us and talk to us about her work as well as show us how to us liquid emulsion. Liquid emulsion is what Rowe uses to create her pieces, and she does this in the darkroom. Liquid emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are normally immiscible. |
Experimenting with Liquid Emulsion-
We were able to experiment ourselves with using liquid emulsion in the darkroom. Rowe showed us the process first. The process begins with putting the liquid emulsion into a bowl and then placing that bowl on top of another bowl, which has boiling water in it. The liquid emulsion takes around 5 minutes to melt. Once it has melted, you coat your object with the liquid emulsion, and the amount of layers depends of the type of object you are using and the result you hope for. As I was using paper for my first experiment using liquid emulsion, I used one coat of liquid emulsion, using a big paint brush, and I decided to not go to all the edges, so that I had the paint stroke effects. I then had to hang up the paper to dry . I used a vintage piece of film that miss lent me, and placed it within the filter of the light. I decided to tear a piece off of my paper and then exposed it to light for 2 seconds. Finally, I fixed the image, washed it and left it to dry. This was my result (the one on the left is when it was still wet and on the right is the image of it completely dry) :
I was really impressed with my first attempt using liquid emulsion. I like how you can see the paint strokes on the side, which was what I was aiming for as it gives the illusion of the picture just being painted on in one stroke. There are some areas where there are brown or discoloured bits, which are where I had not left this in the fixer for long enough, also miss left my image on a string folded over and the fibres have caught all the dirt off the string, which is why the brown line in the middle is there. However, I quite like that the line is there because it reminds me that this is an old image, and gives the result a vintage atmosphere. I am not sure if the image of the women was originally blurry or if the women is blurry due to how I developed this image, however, seeing as I do not know the women in the image, as I used vintage film, it reflects the blur of me not knowing the subject in the image. The paint stroke created a picture like frame, reminding the viewer that this is a photograph. I really enjoyed learning to use liquid emulsion and I think I might use it within my second personal investigation. As you can use liquid emulsion on fabric, among other surfaces, I thought it may be a good idea to use this process on clothing items, such as t-shirts, for models to wear and create a photoshoot out of it or maybe an event, to document with photographs for my investigation.