Contextual Statement

Ceri-Jayne Griffith
Personal Project – B.A Hons Photography 2009
Mishka Henner

City of Echoes
The aim of this project was to give my own interpretation of the city vibe, the one that lurks beneath the cracks of reality.
I have been living in the heart of the City of Liverpool for nearly two years now, I find the City it's self to be a mysterious and enchanting place to be in. As I walk its streets and feel its moods, I look around and wonder if other people feel it too, those echoing moments of hurt faintly presenting themselves.
This body of work contains a pyschogeographic element, Sometimes the city has that familiar and unfamiliar feeling, the other side to it, the side that is not quite there. Through the reflection of the pools of rain water I would look at a cold, sad and ugly place, and feel sorrow for those times yet it would feel almost as a memory of this moment but as I would look up to see the bleak reality of these cold industrial reflections, the reality is made clear.
I respect this City, for all we do to it, it never stops trying, and the glooming mysteries of its past, present and future will always seep through.

Presentation

City of Echoes

This project was based around my own interpretation of my surroundings, I hoped by using the tone of the photographs to reflect the cities echoing moods.

I started out with certain locations and moods in mind around the city; so I needed to create a scene that would fit the mood and location. Inspired in some way by Gregory Crewdsons Twilight series in which Crewdson and his team create what appear to be standard streets but within them they convey a mixture of reality and fiction, depicting scenes of anxiety and dislocation.

I began photographing at night as it was after dark I most felt these unfamiliar and unfamiliar settings around me, however night wasn’t working, as certain scenes were difficult to focus due to lack of light in certain locations as in The Park. I wanted the mood of this scene to be an uneasy moment of apprehension, there were no actually stories to my images, they were moments left unanswered for the viewer to interpret.

I changed my times and started photographing one scene at a time between the hours of 3pm -5pm so I had time to focus before the light faded; The Flyover was one of my first images, with this scene I felt a lot of mystery, who are these people who roam the streets at night talking in hush voices when most of the city sleeps, then my attention is towards what else is going on in the city, with the lights on in the flats be hide our subjects I wonder about the mysterious lives be hide each lit window.

I carried on with the scenes for a while longer whilst also photographing the natural mystery and how I see the city; I was advised to go this way after looking at pairing my scenes with these documents of the streets. I also began looking at Rut Blees Luxemburgs work Commonsensual, which is a journey through her work over the last ten years; it is not a themed body of work but more motifs as this body of work was an unconscious decision. Her work explores the public spaces of cities whilst she shows a different way of experiencing our shared common space.

One comment Regis Durand makes on Luxemburgs work was that “the images take us out of the real world, retaining no more than a tenuous link with the latter”. (Durand,page 81, 2009)

Durand. R, 2009,(when night and day are equal) Commonsensual,London, blackdog publishing,

I decided to put my staged scenes to one side and focus my attention on capturing the city as its self photographing anything I found interesting. I started noticing the reflections in huge puddles; I would then look up to see the bleak reality of these Industrial and cold reflections.

This body of work contains a pyschogeographic element, Sometimes the city has that familiar and unfamiliar feeling, the other side to it, the side that is not quite there. I think there is a certain level of confusion within my images. With the Liverpool image it’s almost a claustrophobic feeling, with Liverpool actually suffocating you. With the second image I can’t decide whether the city is drawing you in or trying to seep out, as if the city is revealing itself, that other world echoing through the bleakness of reality.

Within the puddles the moment feels as though it has passed and he lies only a memory of it, an echo of bleak times gone by, but when I look up the harshness is even more ominous.

I’ve learnt how to work with my surroundings, to go with how I feel and not to worry if it there isn’t a visible outcome at the time. On reflection it has worked out for the better as I feel now the city is helping me speak.

The title came about when I was having a discussion with my manager at work about how some people believe premonitions are echoes of the future that got me thinking about echoes and how through the reflections of its self the city is echoing a past present and desolate future.

My work might interest locals and residents of the city, a different view point o the way the city is being portrayed and a bleak reminder of the past maybe. Liverpool has been through its bleak days with the industries departing and riots these images can be seen as echoing feelings of a time past and also a reflection of the industry heritage

I’ve thought about presenting my images as billboards spread throughout landscapes, or postcards

City of Echoes

Paramaecium

Paramaecium is an Australian band formed in 1991. Classed as a doom mental band with growled vocals they're lyrics focus on Christian themes.

I came across then when looking at echoes.

Echoes from the ground: Album released 1994

The Chosen Land

Over time they ve forsaken that great war crime of the ages
I dig and toil with bleeding hands and recoil
At the thought of mine own sunken faith
My own heart is as hard as this land
Which has been chosen by the Ancient of Days

Over time I embrace all the words sublime of the pages
I rend the soil with bleeding hands and recoil
At the thought of my life

Now as I stand at the edge of the field of Armageddon
I understand warfare that s been
And wars that are yet to be seen now
I understand warfare now

Over time I embrace all the words sublime of the pages
I rend the soil with bleeding hands and recoil
At the thought of mine own sunken faith
My own soul is as dry as this land
Which has been chosen by the Ancient of Days

Over time they ve forsaken that great war crime of the ages
I dig and toil with bleeding hands and recoil
At the thought of these fields of blood turned to dust

Echoes from the ground as a title ?

More of my own

Pairing my images together

Playing around with my images

Park Scene with bouquet.

Flyover with different pairs





If paired together look at matching colours






The Hall

Extra 2: street work no models