lecture about selfportraits

robert blu

robert blu

quiet photographer
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I have been ask in my photo group to prepare a lecture about selfportraits. To illustrate authors who used different approaches. Francesca Woodman, Cindy Sherman and Nan Goldin are the first name which came to my mind. Does anyone have any more suggestions? authors or books ?
Thanks in advance
robert
 
Don't know if this would relate, but Canadian photographer Andrew Danson did a book a number of years ago entitled 'Unofficial Portraits'. He 'collaborated' with a number of Canadian politicians in making their portraits -- he set up his camera, lights, etc in their respective offices, then handed them the long cable release to trigger the camera, and he left the room. Then, the politicians were free to pose and position themselves however they wished, and they shot an entire roll of film of themselves. So while there was some imposition of camera angles and lighting on the scene by the photographer, the subjects chose how they wanted to present themselves and essentially took their own photos. A self-portrature of sorts.

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Why not ask anyone here if they have any kind of interesting philosophy or techniques as well? Perhaps one would do a write up for you.
 
Lee Friedlander published a book of self portraits. Sherman's work, while photographs of herself, are not really self portraits as they are deliberate attempts to represent societal types for which Sherman is merely the model. Goldin's work is more a portrait of her community in which she also appears. Woodman's work is perhaps too complex to be limited by the self portraiture rubric. Of the three, Woodman was by far the more gifted, with vision sadly unrealized due to her suicide.
 
I think it could be a one word course. DON'T. Unless you're Cindy Sherman, and hers were more about documented performance art than self portraits. Her portraits obscured her "self" in fact. I have seen very few self portraits that really worked well, in painting or photography. Better to let another photographer do it, as they'll see things that others will miss.
 
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Steve M. said:
I think it could be a one word course. DON'T. Unless you're Cindy Sherman, and hers were more about documented performance art than self portraits. Her portraits obscured her "self" in fact. I have seen very few self portraits that really worked well, in painting or photography. Better to let another photographer do it, as they'll see things that others will miss.
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I think Rembrand may have disagreed. It is true that it is a lot easier to be self indulgent than to produce something that is artistically relevant, but that is no reason not to try.
 
CNNY said:
It is true that it is a lot easier to be self indulgent than to produce something that is artistically relevant, but that is no reason not to try.
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I'd have to agree with this... and throw another name into the mix. Duane Michals.

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thanks robbeiflex, "levitation" is interesting...It reminds me a few years ago when my wife and me were on a journey in NL and decided to take each other picture in front of the various touristic spot jumping (just to change a little, no artistic intention). It was quite easy when I was photographing her or when she was photographing me, more difficult when we ask somebody to take a picture of ourselves (sometimes in the main square of Amsterdam) and when he was shooting we jumped !
robert
 
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