Final Project - Due June 4th

The Final Project is where it all comes together. Your subject should be something that is meaningful to you - but used in a manner that can be relevant and meaningful to others.

I'll be meeting with you individually to help you figure out the details of size, materials, presentation etc. Bring work on Tuesday to get that discussion going!

Each project will include an Artist Statement: 

Artist's Statement is written after you've created the project. It is there to help the viewer have a sense of how they should look at the work - it also helps you start to figure out what the work is about. It must be typed out and will sit with the work during the final critique.

Section 1:
This is your thesis. What you wanted to do and why. You explain how the project came to be, what your initial motivation was.

Section 2:
Here is where you discuss how you completed the project. What the process was, what worked and what didn't. Ideally, we learn from our art as we make it. Those realizations would be in this section.

Section 3:
Your summary of the final product. An honest and straightforward appraisal of the work now that you're done.


Schedule: 
Open lab and individual meetings
5/19 Open lab and individual meetings
5/21 Open lab and individual meetings  and Written Critique is DUE

5/26 Open lab and individual meetings
5/28 Open lab and individual meetings

6/2 last day of lab before the final crit
6/4 Final Project Critique with Artist Statement

Project 3: Liquid Emulsion and Alternative Processes.

Images: What should I be printing? 

For this assignment you are required to work with Liquid Light and Cyanotypes - your images should be new ones that you've shot for this project. As advanced students, the assumption is that you have your own goals for your imagery, what you're interested in and that should drive your visuals. These techniques are a chance to see how your images work in a different medium.

Liquid Light: 
1. This is an emulsion in gel form when it's cold and liquid form when it's warm. It can be applied to a wide variety of surfaces (paper, ceramic tile, metal or glass).
2. This is considered a "projection" type of process - using traditional printing methods because the emulsion will still be a bit "tacky" when it's ready to print.
3. AG-Silver works a bit better than Liquid Light due to an increased amount of silver. There is also a reversal version that allows you to print on dark surfaces.

Surfaces: 

1. The best approach is on a good quality paper such as Arches 140lb hot press, since this is a stable surface and will usually have consistent results. 

2. Other hard surfaces must be primed. If you want to see the surface material, prime with a Glossy Polyurethane Varnish. If you don't want to see the surface (or want it to be white) use a white or tinted oil based primer paint. Do NOT use water based paints. lacquers, shellacs or other water-based materials. 

3. Glass and/or metals must be well cleaned (use vinegar/water mix) and then primed with Glossy Polyurethane varnish. I recommend doing at least two coats of this - make sure it dries fully between coats. You want to do this in a well ventilated location and allow a drying time of at least several hours between coats. 

4. Papers will perform based on their texture, porosity and chemical makeup. It should be able to absorb evenly and completely. Some papers (not watercolor) may need to be sized - spray starch may work for this. 

Method for working with LL emulsion: 

1. Place closed bottle in tank of warm water to melt gel. Avoid over melting. Try to use what you have melted each time. 

2. Don't shake the bottle, there are often air bubbles with this - if you see them after application remove them before you leave the paper to dry. 

3. Different brushes will have different effects. Don't use a brush with metal on it. 

4. Print when the emulsion has semi dried. Developer for 1.5 minutes, we will provide a diluted fix to use as the Stop Bath (30sec), we will add a Hardener to our Fixer (5-10 minutes) and you'll leave it in the fix until the milky quality goes away. 

5. Wash in the tank for 10 minutes, then in a clean water bath out in the processing area of the lab. We don't use the rotating washer for this. 

Cyanotypes:

1. This is a solution that becomes light sensitive when the A&B solutions are mixed together. 

2. It can be coated in artificial lighting. 

3. Unlike LL, it must be completely dry before printing. 

4. It prints in daylight or in a UV printer. 

5. On our right sidebar there is a link under "Tutorials" for a full set of Cyanotype instructions. 

Method: 

1. We will mix the A & B solutions and then create a working mixture by using equal amounts of both solutions. It's best to use an eyedropper for this process. You only need a small amount to coat as it's very watery. 

2. Using a clean surface (watercolor paper or other materials) brush on the desired area and allow to dry. This does not have to be done in complete darkness, but you must wait until it is fully dry. The surface will look powdery and light yellow.  Cyanotypes work best on natural fibers like cotton, silk, rice papers...it's a very flexible process. Avoid synthetic fabrics or papers. 

3. Printing: you will need a negative the same size as the print you want since it is a contact print process. You can make this enlarged negative through this process: 

Cyanotypes need a "heavy" dark negative

a. Open your image file (either from a scanned negative or a digital original) in Photoshop. 

b. If it's a color image, convert to b&w using an adjustment layer. 

c. Invert the image using an adjustment Layer. 

d. Apply a Layers adjustment layer and increase the contrast and darken the image. We're looking for a fairly contrasty heavy negative to make a good cyanotype print. 

4. Have this negative printed at FedEx or Kinkos - you want to ask them for a "transparency" print. It runs about .80 at FedEx and you should be able to upload online. 

Our schedule for this project:

4/23 - Intro to project and in-class use of Liquid Emulsion

4/28 - Bring your negatives and be prepared to print this week with the Liquid Emulsion

4/30 - Working lab with Liquid Emulsion

5/5 - Cyanotypes printing

5/7 - Cyanotypes printing

Intersect: Friday May 8th Argotypes workshop and Saturday, May 9th Lith Printing

5/12 - Working lab to finish project

5/14 3rd Project Critique Due: 4-8 new image prints (either LL or Cyanotypes) matted

Local event - interesting talk at the Getty

The Getty is having an interesting FREE talk on "Light, Paper, Process: Reinventing Photography or Back to the Basics?" which sounds a lot like what we've been working on. It's Tuesday, April 14th at 7:00pm.  

Here's the link: http://www.getty.edu/visit/cal/events/ev_369.html

Thanks Maya for the heads-up!

Long Beach ZineFest over the break

Hi Guys: on the last sunday of spring break, the Museum of Latin American Art will host the first ever Long Beach Zine Fest. It will feature a diverse range of zine vendors, live music, panels and workshops. It's being hosted on the Free Admission Sundays - so check it out!

Long Beach Zine Fest
Sunday, April 12, 2015
11:00 - 5:00pm

Museum of Latin American Art
628 Alamitos Avenue
Long Beach, CA 90802

The Digital Darkroom

Today we will be having a lecture/demonstration on the process of scanning your negatives and then working with them in a digital darkroom environment. I've created an online tutorial of the lecture that can be accessed here. 

I will be uploading additional videos to the same channel - you can find it on the side bar to this blog.

Project Two Alternative Cameras: Pinhole, Vintage and Toy Cameras

In this section we'll be exploring various types of image capture - first by creating a Camera Obscura...which was the earliest use of a small opening in a darkened room. This technique was used throughout history as entertainment and an aide to help artists visualize their perspectives. 

A contemporary artist who uses this method for capture is Abelardo Morell (there's a link to his website on the sidebar). His exposures often last for many hours and he uses the room as a camera. This is central park reversed in a room overlooking the park.

Schedule:

3/24: Introduction to project and creation of Camera Obscura and Pinhole Cameras
3/26: Processing film and paper negs (you can print digital or darkroom)

3/31: Paper Negatives and Digital Output - bring your pinhole cameras
4/2: Lab

4/5-4/12 Spring Semester

4/14: Lab
4/16: Lab

4/21 Critique of your 3-6 images printed and matted.

Assignment: Using your vintage or Holga camera, you'll be shooting your own series of images. I'm open on the subject matter. As advanced students, you should have your own area of interest - so use this as a chance to further explore your photographic interests. For the critique you will be showing 3-6 printed/matted images from this series. You'll also bring your pinhole shots so we can see how you did.

Due Date: 4/21 - 3-6 new images printed and matted for the critique.

Cinemagraphs

After today's lecture on Ideas - I decided to experiment with Cinemagraphs. Here's one of the first ones, which works fine...but you really want to have something frozen within the shot.

The next version had something fixed within the frame and then a space for movement. In this one I looped the movement to create better continuity.

Here's a link to a tutorial for the process.

Field Trip to San Pedro - Thursday, Feb 19th

We will be meeting at Sacred Grounds Coffee House at 1:30pm on Thursday, February 19th. I'ts located at 468 W. 6th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731

Then at 2pm, I'm happy to say that we will be visiting the home and studio of Ray and Arnee Carofano, two photographers who live and work just a block away. Ray will be speaking about his work and hopefully, Arnee will show some of her photography as well. They are very inspiring and dedicated to photography. Their studio is at 478 W. 7th Street, just one block away. There's a large parking lot right next to them, so I'd recommend you park there. 

As a group we will be creating a large panoramic photograph of several blocks on 6th street. Bring any type of camera you'd like to work with - you can shoot color or black and white. I'll be assigning each of your an area to photograph. We will be using the Joiners format pioneered by David Hockney.

Note: our current exhibition at the LBCC Gallery has a large panoramic of a single street in England by the artist Kim Abeles - here's a link to the press release. 

Welcome to Photo 42

Welcome back from the break - I'm looking forward to an interesting semester. Our big goals will be to expand our ideas about what an image is and how to use our tools.