Francesca Woodman is an American photographer
from Colorado. Her work in the field began at the tender age of thirteen when
she took her first self-portrait. In later years, she would enroll at the Rhode
Island School of Design, and after graduating with a degree, move to New York
City to continue her work as a black and white photographer. She made use of old, empty loft spaces as her studio, and she remained there in New York until her suicide in 1981 at the
age of twenty-two. Much of Woodman's known work was from her student years in the 1970's. Personally, my adoration for the young photographer comes from her ability to evoke such honesty and personal emotion into all of her photos. Through techniques such as motion blur and self portraiture, Francesca Woodman creates fascinating photographs that continue to receive praise even after her passing.
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| "On Being an Angel #1" |
Without fail, Woodman shot female subjects.
Rather than being sexist, it is clear that she chose to explore and interpret
the female body on a personal level. Much of her composition aided in the conception
of her own type of woman, as opposed to a generic model seen in much of the
media. The picture on the left is an example of her use of the feminine physique in an intimate and elegant way. Her use of shadows and light creates a sense of mystery that many of her photos have, and they frame the subject in a way that suggests her rising up, as if she really were an angel. Woodman
is commonly the subject in her own work, giving it a certain element of
autobiography that is now the basis of much intrigue. When asked why she so
frequently photographed herself, she simply responded, “It is a matter of
convenience – I am always available.” It has been said that she “uses her own
body to investigate her own vision.” It is apparent that her photos detail a
certain growth or self-discovery. Her use of female subjectivity has given her
work singularity in its style, but has equally brought a sense of delicacy to
each photograph.
In addition to her female subjectivity,
Woodman’s other most noted characteristic is her use of movement. By setting
longer exposures, she gave her subjects enough time to move and change
position, resulting in a blur in the area that was in motion. As a result, the
blurry figures would come across as soft and faint, creating images she
referred to as “ghost pictures”. The picture on the right ("Untitled") stands as an example of this technique. The subject is blurred almost to the point of transparency, and the mirror below her creates another level of distortion in her body. Her subjects, much like this one, had vulnerability and impulse,
exhibiting honest human qualities and a sense of surrealism, largely inspired by Man Ray. This photograph seems to express a sense of struggle, perhaps echoing Woodman's personal turmoil at the time.
Motifs such as mirrors, sheets, and feathers were commonly found in Woodman's work. Any prop that she may have used, such as the ones listed, served a purpose and every photograph was a temporary scene.
Although many of her photographs were experiments, they all
embodied very dark emotions and combined body and space in a way that was both
innovative and appealing. In the image to the left ("House #3"), we can see a disheveled and aging
backdrop, in this case the interior of an old building; here the subject is portrayed equally as ruined as her surroundings as she almost becomes a part of the deteriorating wallpaper. Equally, it is clear how she effortlessly created a scene in her photo by organizing objects on the floor. In combination with the subject's placement, themes of disappearance and secrecy come across, giving her work emotion and intensity.
Although Francesca Woodman’s short career was
only truly appreciated after her death, she remains one of the most significant
photographers of our time. In recent years, Woodman has become the source of
much mystery and intrigue throughout the art world. Some speculate whether her
untimely death was a career move, casting an intentional shadow on all of her
work. It is clear when viewing Woodman’s body of work that there is emptiness
and sorrow present, and it is arguably the result of her known suicide. Themes of death and decay are present undoubtedly, but perhaps they carry greater prevalence today. Similarly, her
images begin to take on personal characteristics, and almost every model
suddenly begins to look like Francesca. This mysterious aspect of her work is
what continues to fascinate, and regardless of its truth, it draws people to
her work in a way that has is truly unique.
In addition, Woodman remains a pioneer for the photography of today. During her time, her surrealist work acted as an example
of the “critical development in photography and video in the 70’s”. The late
60’s and early 70’s were crucial periods for the growth of photography, and
Woodman undoubtedly contributed to its development as an art form. In shooting
female subjects, Woodman had the opportunity to shape the way women were viewed
in art. Many of the techniques found in photographs of women – primarily in the
media – were initially used by Woodman. Ad campaigns and catalogues now utilize
her concept of photographing solely a woman’s legs. Although it
may not have been her intent, Francesca Woodman revolutionized the way woman’s
bodies are now perceived both in art and in the media.
After recently seeing an exhibition of her work in New York City, Francesca Woodman become one of my all time favorite photographers. Her delicate and ghostly images embody poetic
imagery in a way that is honest and intimate, and each photograph always seems
to have a story. Her composition of body and space is beautiful, and creates a
truly unique image. Although her passing
remains in vain, her work is reflective of a certain sadness and torment she
underwent prior to her suicide, adding something personal and fascinating to
her photographs. Francesca Woodman’s work has been featured in a number of
museums and galleries, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, a number of
British museums, and is currently being shown at the Guggenheim Museum in New
York City.
After thinking about nothing but Francesca Woodman and her photo career for about a week, it came my turn to emulate her work. Initially, it was extremely intimidating to try and copy-cat the style of someone whom I admire so much. When it came down to it, I found it was actually really fascinating to use Francesca Woodman as inspiration, as I ended up with a series of photos unlike anything I had taken before.
Unfortunately,
I didn't have access to run-down Victorian style buildings or an abundance of
vintage furniture, so I had to settle for imitating Francesca
Woodman's style in other ways. With the first two photographs, I tried to
get a sense of the movement and blur that Woodman so often used in her
work.
In the first photo, the subject waved a
sheet of thin white fabric in front of her, creating transparency in the
areas that she moved, but also creating a white "ghostly"
illusion with the fabric. I placed her by a door to connect the viewer to
a sense of escape, as she almost looks like she could fade away into the white
blur at any moment. In the second photo, I wanted to have more
of her body solid, and primarily have her move one part of her body. By getting
her to shake her head around and with the placement of her arms, I wanted the
subject to exhibit struggle or perhaps mental frustration. Much of Woodman's
work does this, showing the viewer the subject's vulnerability and strife. In the final photo, I took a different
approach and chose to emulate the softer side of Woodman's work. I used a bunch
of fairly wilted flowers and got the subject to turn away from the camera.
These little details reminded me of this photo taken by Francesca Woodman, as it shows
femininity and elegance, but equally speaks to her motifs of death and
introversion.
In the end, I was satisfied with my
embodiment of Francesca Woodman's style. Although I still feel completely insecure
about placing my photos anywhere near hers, I feel I was successful in
capturing the meaning and emotions that she did in her photos. Rather than
being direct copies of her images, I am glad my photographs were inspired by
Woodman yet incorporated my own style as well.
All photos were taken with a Nikon D3000, 1/12 f5.6 ISO 400
Bibliography
http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/exhibitions/on-view/francesca-woodman
http://photoarts.com/journal/romano/woodman/
http://www.victoria-miro.com/artists/_7/
http://www.studio-international.co.uk/photo/woodman.asp
http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2011/jan/24/long-exposure-francesca-woodman/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/art-news/9279676/Blurred-genius-the-photographs-of-Francesca-Woodman.html
http://www.berk-edu.com/RESEARCH/francescaWoodman/
