Tierney Gearon, The Mother Project

Tierney Gearon has not enjoyed as much success as other famous photographers in America, but she gained much success in England as a contemporary photographer after her appearance at the Saatchi Gallery in London. Before taking up photography, she studied ballet and then became a model. After working and traveling as a model, Gearon began to take interest in the photography aspect of modeling. After seeing some polaroids of her fellow models, a Parisian agent encouraged her to continue photographing. It was then she started her career as a commercial fashion photographer working with acclaimed fashion companies and becoming very successful. It was only after she raised a family and divorced her husband that she began the I am a Camera project that gained her much fame.

Similar to Sally Mann, this project was focused around family life. The subjects were her young children, yet somehow an uneasy or strange feeling seems to emanate from the photographs, such as those that featured masks over their faces. Others seem to be more reminiscent of daily life at home or on vacation—but the lighting, composition and interactions between subjects make them highly interesting. Unfortunately most of her press came from the controversy of pictures of her children in the nude (also like Sally Mann), but she continues to make work today.

What impressed me was the project highlighted by the film of the same name, The Mother Project. This was a highly personal project documenting the life and relationships of her mentally ill mother. These photographs held the same uneasiness of before, one sometimes seeing charm and light-heartedness, then quickly witnessing the chaos and trauma in her life. Tierney Gearon is successful because she controls the emotions of her photographs with expertise, and their simplicity turns out to be a visceral and complex narrative.

Sally Mann, What Remains

Sally Mann is one of the most influential photographers of the twentieth century, and her work is known internationally. Sally Mann began started to take interest in photography after her undergraduate and MA in creative writing. She quickly began to pursue photography seriously and created bodies of work which were involved in both galleries and publications. However, the work that brought Sally Mann to the public eye was unquestionably her Immediate Family series. This body of work consisted mainly of portraits of her young children. I remember when I first saw her pictures years ago, I was astounded by their emotional complexity and brooding atmosphere. When one thinks of child portraits, one does not expect such a high level of maturity and intricacy—but these photographs seem simple on the surface. These photographs were indicative of the reality of family life, yet transcendent. The compositions are carefully crafted, yet seem effortless in their execution. It is no wonder as to why this collection gained so much recognition, despite the controversy concerning her children in the nude.

It was also fascinating to see the range of her works in the film What Remains, because I had not previously known photographs other than Immediate Family. Despite the tendency to lose momentum after such success, Sally Mann continues to create interesting and meaningful work. It focused on one of her most recent exhibitions, Body Farm, which focused on death and decay. It is refreshing to see an artist who is constantly reinventing herself, proving herself over and over again as deserving of her reputation. Sally Mann is a remarkable photographer with both technical ability and conceptual complexity and relevance, one who will surely continue to create awe-inspiring photographs.

B&W versions

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Assignment 4: Time

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Assignment 3: Self-Portraits