Abstraction

Photographs are rooted in the real world. But for this assignment students are asked to take what's in front of the camera and make it non-representational. We want them to think purely about design: line, shape, form, texture, rhythm, pattern, color, etc. So an abstract photograph of a wall is not about documenting that wall, but something completely different. Here are some examples:


Rudy Alfaro


Khalid El-Amin


Gabriela Lopez


Diana Martinez


Diana Oropeza


Diana Oropeza


Maritza Vales


DeAndre Watts

Time and Motion

Time and Motion is an interesting conundrum for photography, as it is a medium that deals with still imagery. By utilizing the camera control called shutter speed, however, a photographer can allude to motion or freeze motion within the photograph. The best examples not only demonstrate a competency at understanding shutter speed, but utilize it in a creative fashion. Being in an urban environment is perfect for this assignment, as it is an environment that is constantly in motion. Students can allude to time and motion in their photographs to both comment on their worlds and/or to create abstraction. And often times the best examples do both:


Ben Lozano


Dolly Rivera


Marcelo Penaherrera


Andrew Vega

Space and Scale

Click HERE for instructions to the Space and Scale assignment.

The space and scale assignment is difficult, as it requires the student to really consider the entire frame: front to back and side to side. No longer can they rely on interesting subject matter to get a good photograph, it is now purely about composition. They are asked to surprise the viewer by arranging the world within the photographic frame in a strange or unique fashion. Within the photograph, the viewer might be confused as to what is in front of the frame and what is in back. Or, it might be difficult to ascertain the size of an object. Students create this confusion by considering the edges of the frame and relationships between objects within that frame. Here are some student examples:


Ross Citron


Cassandra Cooper


Amanda Marco


Deja Richardson


Kristen Thorpe


Andrew Vega

World AIDS Day

All of the programs at Gallery 37 AAEP were asked to present a group project in response to World AIDS Day. The idea was to consider how AIDS impacts us individually and collectively, and then to respond to those considerations through song, dance, the visual arts, and culinary arts.

Marvin Gutierrez and Kristin Thorpe, two second-year students in AP photography, composed an artist statement for our project:

On December 1st of each year, recognition is paid to Worlds AIDS Day. For 2009, Gallery 37’s AAEP Photography students collaborated to produce a photographic collection symbolizing the isolation of AIDS. On their own, the students came up with the idea for the piece and were aided in production by their teachers: Thomas Cinoman and Bill Guy.

The work was based on every day scenarios in a general perspective of the people. The black and white represents two themes. One theme depicts the solitude of what an AIDS patient might experience on an daily basis. The other theme exudes an idea of silence in the surrounding environment. The red punctuates the isolation of standing out as one of a certain group amongst all others.

In light of the AIDS epidemic, the students found it fit to produce 64 photos which they would alter to have red stand out against black and white. The red is a metaphor for a number of things: blood, life, passion, etc. This process of alteration included a series of methods that were combined in Adobe Photoshop. The method includes desaturating the photograph, or removing the color until black and white only remains. Red is painted into the selected sections.

And here are some samples from the installation:











The performing and visual arts, along with culinary, presented their work at the Chicago Cultural Center on December 1st. Check back soon for installation and event photographs and video.

Halloween Party

Though we spend most of our days working hard at AAEP, we also take some time to celebrate and to enjoy the sense of community that we form here. Recently we had a school wide Halloween party. Some students came in costume. There was music, dancing, and plenty of good food provided by Culinary Arts.

Here are some shots of the students looking spooky:

Trip to the Cultural Center

Last week the group went across the street to see the Barbara Crane retrospective at the Chicago Cultural Center. Sannya Munir, a student in AP photography, recounts our time there:

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. When you look at a picture you only see some of the words. Others viewing the same picture might see the other words. And some words are yet still hidden. When our class visited the Cultural Center’s exhibit on Barbara Crane titled Challenging Vision, our vision was definitely challenged. Crane has an ability to create different styles of images, and she can force viewers to compare the different in the same light.

Crane is “someone who is very curious about photography,” remarked Bill, our instructor. After viewing the exhibit, I believe that Bill’s statement is true. She used Polaroid, film, and digital cameras; and experimented with fish-eye lens, sandwiched negatives, and double exposures. Here is an example of her ability to experiment:



There was a picture of a dead bird. It didn’t make the bird pretty or anything; it was more about the study of the physical characteristics. This picture was in a series that Crane did, in which she captures the “beauty” of death. Here is an example from that series:



This was a fun field trip. We learned a lot about the different processes of developing/making pictures.

Cinoman says:

Motion Photos due next week.

Vantage Point

Click HERE for instructions to the Vantage Point assignment.

Where a photographer is standing in relationship to their subject is called the photographer's vantage point. When beginning in photography, most students tend to make all of their images at eye level. For many images this is appropriate. There comes a time, however, when a photographer needs to mix up their approach. Changing vantage point is an affective way to give the image a greater sense of design, or to present a familiar scene in a new way. So for this assignment, we ask the students to break outside of the vantage point norm. We ask them to find a high spot and look down; we ask them to get low and look up. During this assignment students begin to understand how physical photography is as a medium, as they climb stairs and crawl on the ground in search of that perfect vantage. Here are some examples:


Ben Lozano


Ben Lozano


Erika Marquez


Diana Martinez


Diana Martinez


Deja Richardson


Dolly Rivera


Andrew Vega


Andrew Vega

A Day In the Life...

A Day in the Life... is the first assignment of the year where we ask the students to make photographs using their cameras. The main intention is to introduce them to using their 35mm SLR film cameras and to working with their digital cameras. During this time we also discuss the process for developing black and white film and for making prints in the darkroom. We also continue our discussions of Photoshop. The students then use this software to edit their photographs (density, contrast, color balance, etc). Finally, they make professional quality inkjet prints on our Epson 4800 printer. These are all skills that they will continue to improve upon during the year.

The subject for the assignment is wide-open. We merely ask them to consider the world around them, and to make pictures that reflect that world. This is where the assignment title A Day in the Life... comes from. Here are some examples:


Khalid El-Amin


Khalid El-Amin


Amanda Marco


Erika Marquez


Diana Oropeza


Diana Oropeza

Photography is an odd conundrum: it records the world, but the best photographs are something new--something only the photographer observes. As the students progress during the program, they begin to realize this more and more. They begin to understand Garry Winogrand's famous dictum that "I photograph to see what the world looks like in photographs.

Bill Guy
Teaching Artist
AAEP

Light and Shadow

Click HERE for instructions to the Light and Shadow assignment.

I always tell my students that Light and Shadow is the meat and potatoes of photography. If you can use it well, then people will pay attention to your photographs.

So for this assignment we ask students to make photographs where light and shadow is the signature element of the image. In other words, the shot would be meaningless without it. They are asked to use light and shadow to create a sense of design, to set the mood of the image, or even as a metaphor for a greater meaning. They are asked to consider this "problem" with black and white materials, along with color. Here are some examples:


Rudy Alfaro


Ben Lozano


Erika Marquez


Leif Novak


Deja Richardson


Dolly Rivera


Andrew Vega


Andrew Vega

After this assignment they generally begin to understand that light is available in a wide variety. Natural light changes during the course of the day, and is also influenced by weather and the seasons. As the light changes, so does the design and feel of the picture. Students start to see that they have to wait, find, or create the appropriate light for the types of photographs that they want. They start to exert more control over their photographs, and their unique vision for photography begins to take shape.

Bill Guy
Teaching Artist
AAEP