Project: Narrative

Exercise: A narrative picture essay

I have done NOTHING on TAOP since Focus on Imaging because I have been far too busy at work. It’s starting to get on my nerves that I’m being pulled away from it as I really want to come back to my art and get cracking on this chapter.

I’ve had a read through the chapter and it’s quite short this one, though a lot of thought will have to be put into the final assignment. I want to bring everything I’ve learnt along the way into this one and go out with a bang before submitting for assessment in July. Flicking through, however, the first exercise in narrative seems to follow the Sequence of Composition exercise in Chapter 1. Also, a large proportion of Assignment 5 seems to follow this format so I don’t want to exhaust my most creative ideas on the exercise. I’m not big on skipping exercises but I feel that I’m going to on this one…

Speaking of a narrative, however, and given my love of elaborately staged scenes, Horror Photographer Joshua Hoffine has produced a series of works called PICKMAN’S MASTERPIECE, based on an H.P. Lovecraft story called PICKMAN’S MODEL. As I’ve said about Hoffine in a previous log entry, he is an expert on the macabre and seems to emulate a certain elegance to a scene that would initially stretch the comfort zone of a sensitive viewer. I love his work.

Now, this series Hoffine produced was for ‘Famous Monsters of Filmland Magazine’. I have been desperate to emulate Hoffine's work much like I did Gregory Crewdson for Assignment 3 and I might have found an excuse in Assignment 5. The brief is to produce a narrative for a magazine so I’m wondering if I can stage something much like this, maybe a twisted fairy tale such as the telling of Red Riding Hood. So much fun could be had!!!!

Another idea I’ve had for the planning stage was a tattoo studio and following the course of someone selecting, receiving and living with skin-art. I’m fascinated by tattoos and how gorgeous a piece a talented artist can produce. I don’t currently have one because I haven’t found an artist I trust enough yet!!!

Something I also found which I will expand on later is http://www.coverjunkie.com/ all about creative magazine covers. Assignment 5 expects x1 photo to adorn the front page so I will have a look through this site for some inspiration.