For

Senior Years Students

Curriculum

VCE Art/Studio Arts

Aim

To compare photographic practices of Australian artists and to research other artists with a similar approach.

Preparation

To do this activity you will need to:

• Read the information for Theme Eight – Contemporary Art : Constructed Worlds.
• View the work either online or in the exhibition.
• Research through the library or Internet.

Individual Task

Australian artists such as Patricia Piccinini, David Rosetsky and Darren Sylvester have also explored and constructed their own worlds.

Examine the diversity of practice of at least two contemporary Australian photographers.

Research Questions

In the early 1980s Rose Farrell and George Parkin collaborated together to produce elaborately staged and constructed photographs. One of their interests has been to research past medical practices and procedures to depict in large tableaux they create in their studio. Stage sets were completed over a considerable amount of time combining processes of set building, drawing, and sculpture. An intense photographic shoot would follow, documenting and recording often with the inclusion of the human figure in a series or narrative. The props or sets were often subsequently discarded or destroyed.

Compare and contrast the working methods of Farrell and Parkin with Thomas Demand.

Group Task

Consider how you could use photography to construct your own world. You may like to find images from magazines or the internet, arrange found objects, or build your own constructed world from a combination of these methods. How will photography play a role in fabricating or describing your world.

See also: Theme 9 Activity 9.2.

Compare the work of Cindy Sherman and Thomas Demand. Discuss what similarities of approach can be found in both these artist’s working methods.