OLIVIA BLUNDEN

INSPIRED BY THE PHOTOGRAPHIC WORKS OF THOMAS RUFF AND YOUSUF KARSH, I ENVISIONED A SERIES THAT REFLECTS A CONTEMPORARY CONTRAST TO MODERNISM AND SOCIAL MEDIA. SOCIAL MEDIA IS HIGHLY INFLUENTIAL IN THE 21ST CENTURY WHERE PHOTOGRAPHS ARE DIGITALLY MANIPULATED TO ENHANCE CERTAIN FEATURES AND TO EMPHASISE THE AESTHETIC.

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THE LIGHTING STUDIO AND A CANON EOS 70D CAMERA WERE INTEGRAL TOOLS TO MY CONSTRUCTION PROCESS, WHICH WAS HEAVILY INFLUENCED BY THE PORTRÄT SERIES OF THOMAS RUFF. MY PASSPORT STYLE IMAGES ARE STRIPPED BACK TO THEIR MOST NATURAL AND RAW FORM BOTH PHYSICALLY AND TECHNICALLY. MY PORTRAIT SERIES IS UNEDITED AND REVEALS THE ANONYMOUS AND GENERIC QUALITIES THAT EACH IMAGE EMBODIES, BUT THEIR GRAND SCALE CONCEALS SUBJECTIVITY ABOUT PERSONALITY, INTERESTS AND LACK OF INTERPRETIVE ELEMENTS.

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BY DRAWING UPON THE IMPORTANT ELEMENTS OF COLOUR, TEXTURE, LINE, SIZE, SHAPE AND SPATIAL ORGANISATION I WAS ABLE TO CREATE A WORK THAT FRACTURES THE NORMS OF THE SOCIAL MEDIA FAÇADE AND DRAW UPON REALISM IN ITS MOST NATURAL STATE. THE TRADITIONAL PORTRAITS ARE A REMINDER THAT WE ARE HUMAN AND WE CANNOT HIDE BEHIND THE WALLS OF THE DIGITAL ERA.