By the Canal

The first picture is an image of a rusty fence part, I really like this photo because of how the rust really attracts attention, and brings out the bronze like colors.
Similarly I like the second image, because of the colours of the brick wall. They are very warm and almost copper-coloured. The old wooden door in the background, with the chipped of paint, also adds an rustic effect to the image.

I think in this image there is a lot going on. There is the barber wire, wooden bit, chipped off paint, rust and a padlock. Yet they do all combine nicely together and fill the space. Also the padlock is still in the center of attention, and really grabs the eye.
This goes really well with the theme because it's something old and with traces of age.

 I don't particularly like this image, I find it a bit tedious. The only reason I am putting it one, is because the rock wall, looks all old and worn out. The way it's texture is rough and the colours don't match.

This is an image of a wooden post. I think there used to be papers, maybe adds, stapled onto it. This is clearly seen by the "traces" of the staples and paper bits, still attached to the post. I am unsure weather I like this image or not. In a way it does stand out quite nicely, however it seems slightly dull and unexciting.

This photograph I really like all because of the angle it was taken from. How all the attention is on the rusty little patches in the front, and then the rest of the pole of the metal fence, kind of fades away. It is definitely an interesting image as a whole. The colour composition is engaging too, with the copper-brown rust emerging from the  cold blue rough surface/

The two graffiti images are my two favorites, especially the bottom one. It really catches the eye. The bright colours used on both, make the dull surrounding look bright and lively. Some people may not like the idea of graffiti being drawn all around places, as it makes the town look unappealing. Yes I can agree with that. Not completely thought. I don't mind there being graffiti under bridges etc.
It is after all street art of some kind, someones statement of expressing themselves. Also it is a most definite trace. In my mind map I actually noted
                                                                                                        down graffiti under traces as an                                                                                                                     option, because yes, I like it.

To take these images, I used an Ipad, and then edited them on befunky.com, as usual.

Meaningful things at home...

This is a handmade decoupage box I got as a gift from a family friend. It may not be that old, but I adore how objects can be made to look old and have a vintage style to them. In a way this is a trace and memory of the person who gave this to me.

This is just a random book i found in my room. I believe that books are one of the most important thing that contain stories,memories and life experiences of other people. It's like books go through everything. It is easy to tell if a book is good by just looking at its state, if its ripped and scruffy, it has probably been in the hands of many people, and defiantly shared many stories with them. Books also have traces of smells, depending where they have been. Sometimes there are traces of pen marks, especially on books from library's.  They surely have a lot of memories in them.

Although there are some photographs on this wall, I want to concentrate on the post cards. I think they fit into the theme, because all these post cards are from places i have been to. I  pretty much collect them. Personally I dislike getting post cards with boring landscape pictures on them, I find them too typical. For me they have to be something that grabs my attention, so that when I look at them I straight away remember the time I got it and where from. For instance the two owls are from my holiday at France, and the card above it is actually a new years card given to my grandmother in 1955. So yes they do bring memories to me.

This is a cat mask I got from Venice as a souvenir ,around 6 years ago. Maybe it does not mean anything truly special to me, or have a interesting background story of how i got it . However it still makes me remember the time when we went to Venice and how I had a fun time there. Also i really love the design of the mask, not only that its shaped as a cats head, but the golden swirls with little music notes inside them, it's just beautiful. It can almost be classified as something old, as it is intended to look that way.

This last image is of my cat Kissie. She may not be and object or anything like that. Yet she is very important to me, I guess like most pets to their owners. She is something in my life that I have many memories of, both of the good and evil things she has done. Overall I believe everyone preserve memories of their pets, and even remember them latter on in life, when they are gone. They may be casualties in our everyday life but they do participate in it a lot.




To take all of these images I used an ipad, and then edited the photos on befunky.com

In my garden...

Here is the dull original of the photo above.

Here are some images taken simply from my garden. I tried looking for objects that were old, rusty and didn't look the best. Mainly even though i tried taking images of natural objects, most of them were man made, such as medal etc. Out of these photographs my favorite one is the very first top one. I like it because i took it in a interesting angle, making the sunlight in the background add an effect as well as the blurriness. Also the composition is nice there and the whole frame is filled. I find the white lamp photo quite interesting too, because of the way it looks, elegant yet very scruffy and worn out, almost as if falling apart. The reason why the last image has only the yellow pot in colour, is because I thought with colour the image was very dull and lifeless. So to make it more interesting,stand out an grab a little bit more attention , I only left the yellow pot in colour, I personally think it looks more lively this way. Overall all I'm happy how all these objects clearly show texture, like for instance the brick wall is all rough. I took these images using an ipad, and the edited them on on a web site called befunky.com

Tone

This painting is called "New Moon for an Old Landscape" the artist of the painting is Samuel Bak. Contemporary style.
The painting was made in 1933, with oil and canvas.
I Like this picture because the dark toned colours  like the dark blue sky, makes the whole painting stand out, and the little gaps of light in the sky make the whole thing look 3D.
However i when i look at this image, i don't quite understand the scenery  or what it's suppose to mean. Only that it's to do with damage destruction. 








Source from: http://www.artnet.com/artwork/426284373/118441/samuel-bak-new-moon-for-an-old-landscape.html

This Image is called "Abschied" by an artist called Emil Nolde.
The image was created in 1906, and uses etching and aquatint(tonal effect). The style of the image is German Expressionism. 
I like this image because, not only did the artist create tone, but created and added texture to the image by using lines and shape.











Source from http://www.artnet.com/artwork/426248502/423903488/emil-nolde-abschied-parting.html

This is an image called "Child Among the Rocks, engraved by the Dalziel brothers" created by Arthur Boyd Houghton in 1865, and the image uses wood engraving on paper.
I have mixed opinions about this images. I like how the artist used cross hatching technique to create different tones. In spite of that, I also dislike the cross hatching, because I think there possibly too much of it. Even if the image consists of very fine accurate detail, I personally feel like there is too much going on in the image. 


Source from http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/houghton-child-among-the-rocks-engraved-by-the-dalziel-brothers-n04019

                                                                                                    This is an image is called "Fighter" created by an artist called Leon Golub in 1965, with lithograph on paper.
I am certain that in this image, the artist has shown a human figure, possibly a man, maybe the fighter itself. However I don't understand the colour choice. There is clearly darker red and lighter red colour used to show tone. Yet maybe the actually red represents the blood, relating back to the title of the "Fighter".                                                                                                 
Source from http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/golub-fighter-p77249

          








                                                                                                                                                      
This is an image called "Confessions of a Justified Sinner" by an artist called John Bellany, created in 1972, with etching on paper. In person I find this image very amusing, because it is interesting and quite unexpected. I like the way the artist uses lines to create tones, and how the work is almost messy on purpose. As that creates a specific style to it.
Source from http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/bellany-confessions-of-a-justified-sinner-p78018

Old Treasure

These are some images that I took today, of the still life objects in S1. They just about go with the whole memories,traces and faded theme. The objects are old, some damaged and worn down and they hold a meaning to each single one of them. Every object possess lots of detail and texture or has an interesting shape etc to it e.g. the shell.  As a whole i think  these photographs have a good composition, the whole frame is filled, everything looks very warm and nice and captivating, with the mixture of both natural and man made materials. To take these pictures I used a Nikon D3100 then uploaded the photos to my ipod throgh my PC and used an app called whitagram, to compress down the sizes of the photos.

Loved but forgotten...

Today I went out and took some photographs in the cemetery. I think this places is full of memories of those who were loved. There is also a great amount of forgotten history, that beyond doubt is seen by the worn down gravestones as well as the church itself. Even though the cemetery is deserted and somewhat neglected, with gravestones coated in layers of moss, consumed by the years, altogether not looking particularly great. It on the other hand does not make it feel nor look like a scary and tense atmosphere. As a matter of fact, it's the opposite way round,reasonably restful and calm. The reasons why I took these photographs, and why they are related to the art theme are; Here lie the remembrance of those who were once alive. Undoubtedly these graves have been here for a long period of time, so as time passes further and further, the memories of these people vanish away, and they turn into just "graves" and fragments of people left behind, but the traces keep on adding on each time, slowly building up.
I took the photos using a Nikon D3100,  then I had to upload my photos onto my ipod through itunes on my PC, so that I could use them on an app called instacollage, that let me put all the photos together. Then I simply posted it on my blog!

Photo of my dad as a young boy. I simply adore this photo, because of it firstly being black and white, as it is so retro that it straight away gives a curious twist to it. The second reason why included this for the project is, because it is something of a memory that is precious and personal to me. In a way this is a happy memory. Once again photo retaken through a Nikon D3100 and then simply cropped out to look nice.

This is my photo, of an old prison called “Lukiske” in Lithuania. I took this photograph when I was back there for the summer holidays, I simply took it out of curiosity with a Nikon D3100. However I then added some effects to it, through a web site called befunky.com, and made it look rather scary and old.

This is an actual photo of my mum in 1978, age 3, on holiday at the sea side. I'm not quite sure what exactly in this photo makes me smile every time I see it. Perhaps it's because it's weird seeing someone I know as an adult so little and cute. Maybe it's the fact that I find the retro "old day" stuff very impressive, or possibly it's just the setting of the photo. Either way, I am really fond of this picture, this is why I am including it in my blog, for some it may just be a photograph of a little girl, but for me it's something more.  I just simply found the picture and re took the photograph with a Nikon D3100 and then coped it out, so that it would fit and look nicely.