Working with Photography in Context

This is the major research project for the final year of my photography degree. Regular and in depth research will take place from this time forward, and this project will culminate in a presentation, as part of a larger symposium, in March. 

When trying to answer the difficult question of what to research, I decided to pursue the ideas and theory that had most enthused me from the course so far. This came from the 'Picturing the Body' module from the 2nd year, when I conducted work on photographing the human body with a macro lens and in an intentionally ‘unflattering’ – and potentially regarded as ‘gross’ – style, see Body (own). I found that I needed to use my own body as the subject for fears of exploiting or mocking another person’s. This unease was explained in a following lecture - 'The Politics of Ageing' (see my thoughts on the subject there). The main points are:

• the notion of a three way relationship in a portrait photograph, between photographer, subject and viewer, 
• the responsibility therefore placed on the photographer, as they hold the power over how the subject is presented, and hence judged by the viewer. (the source of my unease)
• how this relationship changes when subject and photographer are the same - a self-portrait.

I resolved my dilemma by using myself as the model. I then became quite interested in the self-portrait, the consequences of it on the viewer, altering the relationship through a photograph. In a subsequent post I attempted to examine what was going on in this situation:

It comes back to this idea of a photographer holding power over their subject, and power over the judgement the viewer makes of the subject. But when the photographer is also the subject, it's like that judgement has already been made, or the option for the viewer to judge has been removed. The photographer presents herself, judges herself, and the viewer can only ponder on that, on why.

These queries into judgement, and the control of that judgement, through a self-portrait, are what I will carry forward as a starting point to this research.