Artist

The Narrative Genius of Tyler Mitchell Tyler Mitchell is the introducer of modern portraiture photography. He was born in 1995 in Georgia. He is the first person from the black community who work for a Vogue for its cover. This is the first time in Vogue magazine, made history in 126 years. He features Beyonce on the Magazine cover, which makes him a pioneer of his style and builds his reputation, making him one of the great pictures to look for photographers of this generation. His pictures were full of identity, joy, and beauty of Black life.

I admired his one artwork, released in 2019: I Can Make You Feel Good. This picture is about black people enjoying their moment. It was exhibited at the International Center of Photography in New York. The picture is rich in colors and bright, and using soft lights is awesome, making me feel warm and inviting. The subject is about dreams, peace, relaxation, and enjoying the moment. One of the Iconic pictures from this series shows a young man, lying on the ground at a blanket, and his clothes color matches the tone around his surroundings. This is simple but makes you feel relaxed and calm.

 I am impressed with the joyful nature, that he puts his artwork. It makes me feel about the positivity. Also tells me to enjoy the moment. His style of telling a story through his images inspired me deeply to use visual elements to tell my own story. Whether, in design, photography, or animation.

His work has been published in major places like the Tate Modern in London and the Foam Foto Graphic Museum in Amsterdam. He also released is book named I Can Make you Feel Good, where you can see his style and creative skills. Many art critics loved his style of mixing beauty and activism, which are

If you want to explore more about him, You can check out his website or read articles about him in Artforum and  The New York Times. These sources could be a great place to learn more about his style experience and techniques.

References

"I Can Make You Feel Good" – Prestel Publishing, 2020.

Artforum, review of "I Can Make You Feel Good" exhibition, 2019.

The New York Times, profiles and interviews with Tyler Mitchell.

International Center of Photography, exhibition details, 2019.

The Rising Star: Nadine Ijewere

Nadine Ijewere is the creator of new waves of mixing fashion and portraits. She was born in London and raised in Nigeria and Jamaica. She reflects the theme of identity, diversity, and beauty in her artwork. She is the first woman from the black community to work on a Vogue magazine cover. Her famous image is Dua Lipa for the British. Especially Vogue magazine is famous for its unique style, and vibrant colors and is celebrated for its representation of nontraditional beauty standards.

She is known for using bold colors, textures, and natural light in her artwork. One of her famous series is Tallawah which was released in 2020 and was inspired by her Jamaican heritage. She captured the faces of women who were wearing traditional and contemporary styles, against the tropical backdrops. Every single image represents joy and pride. They have a vivid tone of fabrics and lush green of the environment. They have various sizes ranging from medium to large which help viewers to see every detail in photographs.

After watching her photographs, I was amazed by her subject and the way of captured portraits with dignity. They feel personal and every frame has a different story. Which I admire most. The way of mixing fashion and culture seamlessly, making stunning visuals and deep meaning inspires me to think about my artwork and pushes me to integrate elements of my own heritage and experiment with it in my design, photography, and animation.

Her work is exhibited in some major venues like the National Portrait Gallery in London and the Aperture Foundation in New York. She has also collaborated her work with some famous brands like Gucci and Dior. Where It brings freshness and premium looks. She also published a book named Our Selves in 2021, which talks about her skills and experience.

If anyone wants to know about her work and skill, I recommend following her website and published interviews, featured in The Guardian and Vogue. This could be the great place to go for insights and know about her challenges to traditional beauty norms and inspired upcoming generations

References

"Our Own Selves" – Prestel Publishing, 2021.

The Guardian, profile on Nadine Ijewere, 2020.

British Vogue, "Dua Lipa Cover Story," 2018.

The Visionary Work of Alex Prager

In this modern era, there are lots of known photographers who are masters in contemporary photography. Among them, I was influenced by one photographer named Alex Prager who built a different space. Her photographic action is touched and choreographed in a cinematic style, which makes a feel of a gap between film and photography. Parger themes of surrealism and emotions is touched and narrative. One of the famous works in her series is Face in the Crowd, which was published in 2013. This series is focused on each detail. Has a large size, crowd of people and every single frame brings a different story. She is more focused on lighting costumes and expressions.

She is not only the photographer but also the creator of her own world. She cast the actors, and costume designers to make a set to make her imagination into reality. Her work brings a mystery and full of life. There is one painting that is full of crowd and the view is inside the airport, where everyone is stuck in a time. And it feels like a unique moment. In that picture color is bright and the scenes feel like a mix of dramatic, real, and surreal.

I was amazed after seeing her style and thinking about the story and the emotions that she tried to fill in the one frame. It is an example of finding beauty and drama in one frame. And also inspires how to create a story with mystery. After looking at her work I feel I should experiment with color and compositions like her.

Prager’s work was exhibited in many places and museums like the Museum of Modern Art in New York and, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. She has also experience making a short film named, La Petite Mort which was released in 2012 and shows her creativity level. She also published a book named Silver Lake Drive, which shows the depth of her work.

I would suggest, if anyone is interested in learning about her work, check in Art forum and read about her. Also, her movies are a great way to learn about her skills. References:

"Alex Prager: Silver Lake Drive" – Chronicle Books, 2018.

Artforum, review of "Face in the Crowd" exhibition, 2013.

"La Petite Mort," short film directed by Alex Prager, 2012.

The Surreal Vision of Jerry Uelsmann

An American Photographer Jerry Uelsmann (1934-2022), is well known for inventing modern style through his artwork. He was brilliant at photomontages, creating and mixing the images without digital stuff. He worked in the darkroom and continuously blended multiple negatives to create surreal images. He breaks the traditional norms of photography and makes a different space in the photography world. His artworks were exhibited in well-known venues like the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

I stand out with his one-piece Untitled (Tree House), which was published in 1976. The picture shows the massive tree merged with the house. This is black and white photography but blends with multiple nature and architecture to make it feel like magic and full of mystery. It looks like so natural and well-detailed development in his darkroom. This is 16X20in picture which is a good example of executing your imagination and skill, making you stop to think about reality.

I felt I was dreaming when I saw his work for the first time. There is some attraction to his work which captures my mind and makes me think about his work. The work is beautiful and unsettled. Particularly, it makes me think about the connection between human society and nature. His theme sparked for new idea for my project, I was fascinated and imagined a unique way to execute my ideas. I love and enjoy visual storytelling and I am inspired by the way of using simple elements to make big stories.

In this digital era, this is very easy to modify images and blend multiple pictures to create new ones. No one wants to spend hours and hours in the darkroom layering negatives carefully and experimenting with techniques. He is not so interested in capturing the real world but wants to make his new world. He spends hours and hours and puts in hard effort which makes his work more impressive. His work is entirely his imagination which makes him so special and solidifies his legacy as one of the greats in photography.

I suggest to look his own book Uelsmann: Process and Perception. Which could be a good source to know about his style and learn about his imagination. It teaches us to work like a pro.

Reference:

Uelsmann, J. (2000). Uelsmann: Process and perception. University of Florida Press.

image source: https://www.catherinecouturier.com/artists/jerry-uelsmann/gallery/untitled-tree-building/

The Visionary Work of Gregory Crewdson

Gregory Crewdson is a very well-known American photographer born in 1962, whose works mix the feel of dreams and haunted nightmares. He is known for his cinematic photography style, full of mixed stories in a single frame. One of his best photography series is Beneath the Roses which was exhibited in 2003 and 2008. This series is the best example to explain his style and visions. Those pictures are not just pictures, they were captured in detail and make you feel like a movie set. The photo size is 48X60 inches, which is hugged, and displayed in the Guggenheim Museum and Museum of Modern Art, a very prestigious venue.

I loved one of his artworks Untitled (Ophelia) from 2001. In the picture, a lady is lying down on the living area floor, she is half-soaked in the water. It reminds me of the story of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The room is in dim light and water reflection is perfectly marked. This represents my mood of mystery, sad, and quiet. He creates this scene as a final output which is the mind-blowing product. He puts a lot of effort into setting an entire setting, using movie lighting and every detail during post-production. These images will create a lot of questions in your head. What will be the story behind this scene? Who is this woman? How did she end her life? This is the perfect visual story. He is putting so many emotions in a single frame. I was inspired by how lighting, detailing, and composition help to execute your ideas and create the story.

Crewdson turns his daily activity into something extraordinary which makes his specialty. He is inspired by the filmmaker David Lynch, and the artist, who were specialists in creating a scenic environment for theater, but his photos stand as a part of their theater. Producing a series Beneath the Roses is not his solo work. It’s a teamwork and effort, like actors. Lightman, set designer, costume designer, and so many crew members. He uses collaborative art form in his photography with many layers.

If you want to know more about him and his style, you can follow his official website (www.gregorycrewdson.com). Also, there are great articles about his process published in the New York Times and The Guardian, and his own book Gregory Crewdson: Beneath the Roses. They offer you to watch Crewdson work closely. I suggest everyone who might be or might not be from the art background, you will learn from his ability to create your own stories in a beautiful way.

Sebastiao Salgado is more focused to capture the theme of hardworking nature, migration and any those moments which touch the hear and mind. He builds a story through his artwork about environment, nature, human and the any part of the world. He was born in 1944 in Amores Brazil and well-known photographer of modern time. His styles talk about powerful stories about environment and society.

He did one famous project named Genesis in 2013, which got huge appreciation in the audiences, he exhibited his eight-year journey globally and into book also. He captured some pictures from untouched place from the earth which features more than 200 black and white picture of wild life and landscapes and indigenous people which is untouched by modern time. One of the most recognized photograph series of him is Nenets people from Siberia. They were standing in snow, wearing animal furs and beautifully captured against the start white tundra. This image represents his style of using contrast to focus the deep connection in between human and environment. We can find emotions in his artwork which shows his ability to capture the moments. He captures raw beauty and sense. His jaguar photography from Amazon Forest is best example of beauty and sense. He print his artwork in silver gelatin which helps to enhance picture quality with texture with dramatic contrast, so that viewer can engaged closely to his artworks.

After watching Salgado artwork “Genesis”, I truly moved with his incredible style. That is such a detail and meaningful image. The way of using light and shadow, emotional depth makes me feel of Renaissance period. This image is talking about call to action, urging to protect untouched beauty from this world. His style of telling story through visuals inspired me to approach my art and graphic design and animation with more awareness. His works were timeless. He not only showing his style but also telling us to keep our planet safe. Environment is a reflection our society and it is the core part to shaping the future of us. This theme touches my heart and inspire me to rethink of my artwork. If I have to suggest about him, I recommend to explore his own books Workers, Exodus and Genesis, which might be good to start to know about his style and artworks. He often exhibited his photographs in known galleries and museums. Some of his work is collected by Natural History Museum in London and the International Center of Photography in New York. Also some of his work documented in documentary named The Salt of the Earth (2014), directed by Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado (Salgado son).

References:

Genesis by Sebastião Salgado, Taschen Publishing

Sebastião Salgado’s official website - www.sebastiaosalgado.com

One of the most influential photographers in American history – Dorothea Lange, (1895-1965). Her styles talk about resilience, hardworking, struggles of human. Her works is the powerful examples to talk about social and economic stress for human beings, which inspires to viewers all around the world. I like “Migrant Mother”, which is one of the known works of her and published in 1936. This is the black and white photograph focused on Florence Owens Thompson, a mother surrounded by her children’s represents seeking hope, resilience and stress. This picture is just about 8X10 inches, and it is taken in Farm Security Administration (FSA) in Nipomo, California. In this picture, Thompson looking at long distance, her face expression is tensed, her children are leaning into her, so their faces were hidden in the camera. It’s a beautiful shot, focusing on facial expressions that holds the viewers for moment. This Picture is also symbolized as a great depression, which highlights the struggling of life, hard time of family, low economy. It was featured in numerous exhibitions after few years, including Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), New York. This picture has emotional depth and one of the recognized artworks in American photography. I read the history of Great Depression of America, and while I am looking into this image, I was stuck in the emotion of this artwork and i feel this reflecting the back draws of depression. This picture represents the uncertain future, not only for her but also for her kids. This emotional angel is so powerful, and I aspire to explore in my projects. I inspired and admired the ability of Lange, to find and capture the beauty of strength in hardest situations. She inspires to pay attention to the stories around and work with empathy. After on I will try to focus on every detail which might bring big emotions, whether doing painting or an animation or taking photos. I will try do like her. If I have to suggest to know about she and her work, I will recommend to look out the book Dorothea Lange: Alife Beyond Limits by Linda Gordon. This book is about Lange Life and her whole life. This is great perspective to know about her work and  life. There are also online sources that you may find about her. But MoMA’s could be the good resources to check out about her work. They have good collections. Her work brings the story and impact the art. Her work is real and immediate

References:

Linda Gordon, Dorothea Lange: A Life Beyond Limits

MoMA: Dorothea Lange Collection - www.moma.org

Library of Congress: FSA Photography Collection - www.loc.gov

The Poetic Vision of Fan Ho

Fan Ho (1931–2016) was born in Hongkong, who develop his interest in black and white photography and filmmaking. He was very famous in 50’s and 60s era. His artistic style makes a different place in photography and film making. He often presents his work in a poetic way and make feels intimate and cinematic, which represents the evolving urban life of Hongkong. His style of presenting composition, lighting, story creates a masterpiece of art. One of his famous works is “Approaching Shadow” which is captured in 1954. And the size of that photograph is 24X20 in. The pictured is focused on a young woman who is leaned on a wall and her shadow is stretched away into the darkness. The picture is silent, feels of stress, and loneliness. This picture makes me feel sadness, guilty, which is beautifully photographed in one frame. The wall with white color represents the light and bright future, and black color represents the dark side or past time of life. This pictured is loved by many viewers and exhibited in numerous exhibitions. It is also exhibited in one of the famous Gallery in Hongkong “Blue Lotus Gallery. This is a piece of great work and preserving it for Ho’s legacy.

Ho is the master of using natural lighting in his work. The titled “In the Mood for Love” Which was published in 1957. He used a light to capture Hongkong streets, crafts, and sculpture. His often capture solitary images and silhouettes, sometimes we can see his photograph represents the urban life of the Hongkong. His style creates the rhythm which reflects the chaotic moments into peace scene.

When I saw his work, I find cinematic quality in Ho’s work. His styles remind me the classic film Noir, it is great movie to see the examples of light and shadow in direction and dramatic scenes. By saying this, we don’t have to underestimate the other side of his style. His style also carries the emotional value. His artwork is great example of human sentiment, their connections to place and time. His works help me to understand how light and composition could be narrative and used in photography art and design. I love the way how he transforms the ordinary things into extraordinary. His artworks encourage me to explore the experiences through cities and day to day activities. It could be the great way to explore and enhance my skills and presentations.

If anyone want to know about Fan Ho’s work, I suggest to look one of his collection of photography; “The living Theatre and Hongkong Yesterday” – very good resource to know about him. This book collects some iconic artwork of him. Also, his legacy is preserved in Blue Lotus Gallery, Hongkong and articles were published in the guardian and Lens culture. Which helps to understand his artistic process. His working is symbol of humanity, meditation and peace, lights and space. His works inspire to new generations to find poetry in daily life and always look the beyond the surface.

References:

Blue Lotus Gallery: www.bluelotus-gallery.com

LensCulture: Fan Ho’s profile and works