Module Work

A post-modern self-portrait created by first year Aleena Hurst.

It is often stated, ‘the company we keep influences the choices we make’, if this is true does the people we meet in our lives influence the way we see the world.

Post-Modernism looks towards other forms of art and culture and take aspects into their own work. In this series of work, I was drawn to images that are distorted and imbalanced. Mainly focusing on Post-Modernist photographer Richard Hamilton. Hamilton had the ability to distort the main focal point of the subject and contrast it against a straight forward image. Stripping down each element which Hamilton does, makes the photo have a more self-reflexive view which was an area I wanted to explore.

Using different elements, I created a narrative behind the portraiture which is something Hamilton includes in his editorial pieces. Focusing purely on the eyes, it provides an opportunity to view the ‘window to the soul’ which influenced my vision of the world. This was often amplified in the abstract construction which Hamilton used by making collages instead of using just one individual image.

In my research of portraiture, I was motivated to create my own unique interpretation ‘the status of a signature and declares itself as an authentic presence of the individual’. This informed a link between my work and Hamilton’s by using two different elements (traditional and past portraiture) and layering them together to create a whole piece.

The limits within Post-Modernism are infinite. The development of the new world has enabled us to combine art sources making a platform for new interpretations of Post- Modernism which is a platform we need as artists to inspire each other.