Last week we delivered our project proposal presentations and got some feedback. From talking to my tutors I realised that I need to do more research about the techniques that I want to use for my project’s output. In order to do so, I’ve looked at some surrealist photographers and the techniques that they’ve used.
Man Ray is most well-known for his surrealist photography and photograms (photographic images made without a camera). You can create a photogram yourself by setting yourself up in a darkroom, placing objects on top of photo paper, and then exposing both the paper and the objects to light. Once you develop the photo paper, you’ll see that there are white shapes where the objects sat. Photograms are an easy way to get acquainted with surreal and abstract “photography” in the darkroom. He also used solarization, double exposures, montages, and combination printing to create works of art that left viewers scratching their heads.
Maurice Tabard (1897-1984) is another notable surrealist photographer. Like Man Ray, he used the techniques of solarization, double exposures and montages to create eerie and unnerving photographic images. He began his work as a portrait, fashion and advertising photographer, while experimenting with surrealist images in his personal work. A room with an eye, a lady who seems to be turning into a tree, and ghostly solarized portraits are only a small portion of the surrealist work he created.
Jane's Advanced Media Production Project 