Garth's Photo 2 Proposal

This semester I would like to continue with a concept that I started to develop late last semester, that of isolation and obscurity. While last semester my work with this concept was confined to self-portraiture, I would like to develop this concept further this semester and work within the scope of urban landscapes and, to a lesser extent, portraits.

The work itself will focus on a three key areas. First, some photographs will attempt to illustrate the ways in which people isolate themselves from others, either physically or metaphorically. These images will consist either of people interacting with their environment or portrait work.

Another group of photos will examine the physical elements of our urban environment and how the design of that environment works to prevent, rather than promote a sense of community. These images will be cityscapes and other outdoor images with a focus on the mechanisms that separate us.

Finally, I will also look at the ways that neighborhood “renewal” serves to divide existing communities and break down ties between friends and neighbors. These images will also be cityscapes, but on a smaller scale. Here I will be working in “up-and-coming” areas where new building is destroying older, working-class neighborhoods.

From a technical standpoint, I will be working strictly in 120mm, medium format film. I will be experimenting with different filters during shoots and multiple filters during printing and I will also work with print toning.