Reflection & Research

In reference to ideas that are forming for my project I started a process of reflecting back to what inspired me to start a creative journey. Back when studying for my Art Foundation I was pretty obsessed with the surrealist, cubist and futurist movements. In particular the works of Duchamp, Boccioni, Picasso and Ernst to name a few.

‘Unique Forms of Continuity in Space’, 1913 bronze by Umberto Boccioni

After discussing my project progress with my course tutors they helpfully pointed me in the direction of contemporary photographers that have worked on similar concepts to my ‘space between’ project.

The first being Thom Atkinson’s ‘Missing Buildings’ a photo book collaboration with his sister, Beth Atkinson, brings together an extensive body of work documenting the physical and imaginative landscapes of the London Blitz.

‘Missing Buildings’ Thom Atkinson. Wapping High Street. https://www.thomatkinson.com/missing-buildings

I then looked at Martin Parr’s ‘Parking Spaces’ project that looks at the global problem of where to park your car. Parr photographed the last car parking spaces in more than 28 different countries. Surrounded by a minimum of 2 other cars these photos inevitably tell us about the topography and cliches of the country depicted.

GERMANY. Cologne. From ‘Parking Spaces’. 2002. Martin Parr

Further research into contemporary photographers who are working within the urban environment, akin to the style and ‘feel’ that I’m looking to achieve, came up with two names. Alexey Titarenko (who’s work I had seen some time ago) and Riccardo Magherini. The work of both these photographers really resonates with my passion for the cubist & futurist movements and seem to capture the type of movement I want to portray in my work.