photographers

these are photographers that not only greatly inspire my work, but also i enjoy personally. links to their official websites/accounts will be supplied.

Ren Heng

his photos are abstract, uncomfortable, manipulating the human body in ways we have to look at again and think "...that's a human?" everything that i love in photos. he makes the body unsexual, at the same time bringing out the vibrant colors a body brings. he also wrote poetry, my favorite one being his work Gift. although he has now passed, his emotions and ideas are still present in his work. my favorite series of his is the series 2014.

Nan Goldin

photos that are practically snapshots in the life of nan goldin are turned into cinematic stills. the way she takes photos - the exposure, the saturation, the composition - makes the subject so real to the viewer. she took many photos of everyday queer life in the 1970's such as the series The Ballad of Sexual Dependency, which caused a bout of depression to hit her as many of her subjects, her friends, had passed away. she is seen as not only a monumental photograpgher, but an important historian in queer culture.

Rinko Kawauchi

different from the previous two photographers, rinko kawauchi rarely takes photos of human subjects. rather, she takes photos of the world around her, all warped and twisted through effects and different lens to create this heavenly effect. many of her photos look as if she had taken them within a dream. her series Hanabi shows the contrast of sharp/exciting fireworks and festivites with the airy quality of her camera. i would love to see her unreleased photos, or her process of taking them.

Sally Mann

controversial is certainly a way to describe sally mann, especially after her Immediate Family series. she got backlash for the nudity potrayed in her photos, which while i agree was unnecessary, i do think she meant them in a more kinship way. my favorite works of hers however are her early works shown on her website, which portray her expertise in curves and creases of the skin and cloth. similar to Rink Kawauchi, her use of lights in her early works is also astounding.

Tiffany Sutton

something that becomes apparent almost immediately in sutton's art is the old vintage look to it. in her series A Woman Named Vera, there is a certain grain to the photos that is similar to older film. you see this series and think 'oh, so she's one of those homely candid photographers', but then you look at her other works and find a completely new approach. something double-tripple exposed, something bright and cheery, something dark and vulgar. a common theme in her works (and to be honest, my tastes) is a blantant disregard for the male gaze, where women are allowed to be relaxed and tired. her photos are not something a male critic can click with, but maybe a lousy daughter.