Artist Research 5

Research and Preparation for the Exam

Thomas Leth-Olsen

The photo shown above is of a tramway in an urban district of what seems to be a very traditional city. The photo itself follows the lines of the tram as they converge on another, while someone is walking across, giving good contrast to the middle ground. The depth of the image is solidified by the flurry of buildings as well as the leading lines through the centre of the photo, seeming infinite. Furthermore, Olsen has used a very high contrast upon the photo to make the people silhouettes, and focus the eye on the foreground. It also seems he's used a low F-Stop to get that feeling of depth, with the eye solely focusing in on the diverging lines of the tram line. I believe the photo itself might signify that of moving forward in life, or diverging from the norm. The tramlines also might signify how one might end up doing the opposite, transitioning to the norm and becoming another statistic. This is further improved because of the amount of people upon the path. However, if we focus on the people, that could also link to divergence as you can see the man in the centre walking right over the tram line, signifying his passing from the status quo into being a unique individual.

Taken it what seems to be a dilapidated building, we see two chairs sitting parallel in a hallway connector. It creates a variety of textures within the image by using high contrast, which also increases the amount of depth we can see in the image. The texture is very vivid in the photo, with wood boarding, brick, plaster and metal. Furthermore, there is a lot of meaning behind the image. For example, the two seats might link to how partners used to live in this place, but they've long disappeared. However, what they've left behind has remained intact and stood the test of time. I like it because it links to the connection between people, and how it can last longer than we can, ourselves. So not only is the photo great when it comes to composition and quality, it is also rife with inner meaning and connotations to symbolic things.

Finally, this photo is of a quiet backstreet in one of the many cities and towns of Europe. It contains a wide variety of different pieces of context and content building up the image to what it looks now. The artist seems to have taken the picture in sync with a cat moving through the street, which adds personality to the photo, as well as connoting to things I will explain further in the description I'm providing. Moreover, the photo has been taken so a shadow contains the majority of the image in relative darkness, while there is a brief shine of extreme light between the two shadows. This is perfect in creating depth in the image when paired with the curvature of the buildings. It's quite an aesthetically pleasing photo in that light. In relation to the meaning behind it, the cat might signify one travelling from light to dark (shadows), and vice versa. It also could be something related to Olsen's childhood, as if they saw their-self as a sort of loner, and this photo scene was a good link into their past.