Very first tutorial and a workshop

My first tutorial was a great group sharing of ideas. I got a clearer vision of an actual outline, which leads to a much clearer idea. We as a group discussed various topics, which appeared to be extremely helpful. I always value others opinion, I find that comments and criticism usually becomes a key to the success.

As mentioned before, I would like my digital version to have photographs together with text, and my printed version will probably become a photographed hand written text. As a fan of writing, I will try using my calligraphy set and write using a feather, nibs and

ink. I was also encouraged to do so by a

calligrapgy

tutor. It just really looks so beautiful.

Today, I was introduced to creating slideshows in Adobe Lightroom workshop, and it seemed like a great way of presenting photographs. So perhaps the old photographs of myself mentioned in an earlier post will be scanned and used as a digital version of this project! :)

Writing blog is useful

I found, it is very useful to actually write this blog. It helps me construct my ideas, and every time I write I feel more confident about what am I doing here. I have been thinking about many themes, but this morning I came up with something exciting, and I would like to try it.

I like story telling. I like romanticizing. All it usually takes to me is - write a first sentence, and my thoughts flow as a river. Yesterday I thought I should try and do something Raymond Queneau did in his 'Exercises in Style' - write the same text in different styles. Of course, I didn't rewrite it 99 times, however I did 5 and I'm proud of it! I told a story about a little girl, her love to flowers, sunrises and sunsets, and I left it open ended saying 'one day she grew up, one day she met a man...' I leaves this kind of excitement and freedom of imagination to the reader. I also started very conventionally 'once upon a time'. Then I rewrote the text as a poem, diary, mathematical etc. And it is entertaining, I am interested myself, to see what will happen next to that little girl.

So from these first attempts, it develops further. I keep reminding to myself that it actually is a photography project and I can not get totally immersed into writing. Then I saw the photographs of myself, really old ones, 20 years old, black and white hanging on my wall. And I thought, I should use them! There she is a little girl in that photograph, wanting to tell a story.

IDEAS IDEAS IDEAS

So my head is full of ideas, and I really need to write them down, as I usually come up with a great idea in a place where I have no chance to write it down, then it just goes and I can not sleep at night trying to remember it...

Anyways, I've been reading different books, researching and analyzing other peoples' works , talking to my friends, presenting my ideas, trying to find something better than good. I thought of simple things, such as photographing for instance my friends eye randomly when on different activity. I would expect to see red eyes in the evening, sleepy in the morning, tired when reading, enlarged pupil when excited and so on and on and on. But then I thought, who will be interested in it? Maybe it's just me?

I found myself thinking too much about what will others think. I believe it is important of making something appealing audiences, however I understand it is not as important for this project. It is all about experimenting, and I might actually try to do that!

Kate and Wills Up the Aisle: A Right Royal Fairy Tale by Alison Jackson

I just read another book - Kate and Wills Up the Aisle: A Right Royal Fairy Tale by Alison Jackson. 

A really funny and entertaining storytelling about a royal family, that always seemed to me as an unreachable, unknown and hidden. However it appears to be a public figure, and everyone is able to 'go' into a Buckingham Palace, analyse their life and make it reachable to anyone. I don't think it is respectable in any way, therefore that is what happens to any public figure.

Anyway, back to a story telling; It is a made up story, with fake photographs, none of the real royal family members were involved into the making of the book, no permission, nor that it was needed. The writer took a 'once upon a time' story telling style, which is childish but entertaining  at the same time. She begins telling a story about Carole (Kates' mum), how poor the family was, how the mother worked so hard so Kate could attend a good school, a good university and this is where she meets Will - The Prince. Yes! It is amazing, how unexpected and lucky can a simple person become. 

The book contains plenty of images and less of a text, however it does the job, and 'tells the story'. I thought of taking an example and try something like that, I am still considering if that is OK to copy a style and do your work out of it, but I guess this is how the experimenting works!

I really think about tiny simple things at the moment, like making a love story of two paper cups, I believe it would work well if it is made well. :)

Raymond Queneau - Exercises in Style

During the tutors talk, I became inspired by a couple of artists who work with narrative. One of them is a poet, novelist, editor

Raymond Queneau (1903-79) whose book Exercises in Style I read today. 

The book retells a same story 99 times employing a variety of styles, which I found really interesting. What a talent to do this, what a great idea! The story itself is not any special, it is actually very casual and simple; A crowded bus, narrator observes one rude man, when a seat becomes vacated a man takes it, later in another part of town the same man is seen again with his friend. Raymond Queneau represents very unexpected ways of HOW can a story be told, for example:

LOGICAL ANALYSIS

Bus.
Platform.
Bus platform. That's the place.
Midday.
About.
About midday. That's the time.
Pasengers.
Quarrel.
A passangers' quarell. That's the action.
Young man.
Hat. Long thin neck.......

or

COMEDY

ACT ONE

Scene 1

On the back platform on an S bus, one day, round about twelve noon. 

THE CONDUCTOR: Fares pliz. (Some passengers hand him their fares.)

ACT TWO...

And so it continues, form the style of Notation, to Synthesis, Couplets, Sonnets etc. Each style provides a different mood, atmosphere, meaning even understanding. I believe it is educational and entertaining at the same time, which appeals wide audiences. I thought I could try to do something similar, I love writing and it may be a great beginning for my project!

First thoughts

I am currently working on my Photography NARRATIVE project- the title itself says a lot. This is a project where I need to tell a story, create two significantly different narratives in different mediums.

My very first thoughts developed while listening to an old Lithuanian song about a nut, the one that grows on a tree. The lyrics are all about this little growing beautiful nut, it's actually a man singing TO a nut about its beauty, the man is encouraging this nut grow slower, the man tells the nut how beautiful it is, he talks about the beauty he as never seen, he mostly wants to freeze a moment of this nut growing and admire forever. Unfortunately the STORY of a nut should keep developing, it can not stop, and there are so many ways to tell that story... Thanks for inspiration!
So to follow on the same track; I am a lover of a nature, I love watching, photographing, filming - birds, flowers, rain, water, forests etc. I think that nature is amazing in any possible way. So I thought, if you can really tell a story about anything then that's great! I might tell a story about a fallen leaf, or a paper cup, or a nail grow, and I will try to do that.
So far, I think I will combine photography and the text, but how, where and what, I'm not sure. Will keep working on it.