Tutor feedback for Assignment 2 BOW

Main Points from Tutor Report

·        He likes the softer muted lighting of, particularly, the early shots and the elevated one looking down from Boston Church tower (The Stump). Number 26 and also 19.  He feels the rest are postcard views.  He felt that those he mentioned were the start of a personal voice.

·        In order to avoid the charge of 'snapshots' with the picturesque it's especially important to evidence criticality, hence the reading he sent over. (Liz Wells, David Bate, Ian Jeffry and a scanned extract from the picturesque section of the current L2 Landscape course which Jesse wrote and seems to be out of his book);

·        He liked the link to other artists who have portrayed the Witham in another blog post.  He suggested trying to drill down a little more into my own ideas for representing the landscape in the way I have chosen in these panoramas and include a line or two in my commentary;

·        It was suggested that I explore in my notes why I have chosen the metaphorical idea of the river representing life as a journey rather than a sacred place or a resource for commerce, industry and leisure;

·        By including Tennyson's poem and the picturesque you seem to be situating yourself uncritically within the Victorian worldview.  It's OK to include Tennyson but contextualise it.

      I also showed this assignment to my Hangout Group of fellow photography students. They, unsurprisingly, largely agreed with my tutor's comments and, if anything, were even harsher in their criticism, whilst remaining very supportive.  They agreed with my tutor that Tennyson was a Victorian poet with a particular view of the world and wondered whether that view was valid today.  It was felt that it was fixedly romantic and if I had set it 100-150 years ago there had to be a valid reason for doing so and that I should not be trying to justify Tennyson.  If I intend to use picturesque imagery and the word picturesque it was felt that it should be explained why and justify it.  Be critical.  It was also felt overwhelmingly that my accompanying notes were far too long and were just a potted history of Lincolnshire which could be obtained from any tourist brochure.  One member suggested that after reading the notes all the information had been provided and there was no need to look at the photographs; it left nothing for the viewer.  All the history could go was one comment as it was not relevant.  It was felt that the pictures looked like a tourist guide.

     In retrospect I feel that I made a mistake including Tennyson.  Whilst I agree that the imagery is picturesque, I do not feel any special empathy with the Victorian romantic world view, in fact I am rather critical of it.  I used the poem as Tennyson is the local poet and I know the actual Brook that he was writing about and thought that possibly, but erroneously, the words could be used to illustrate the photographs.  The Hangout Group also pointed out,correctly,  that the poem describes a brook rather than a river.

     

      When I revise the assignment I shall cut out the reference to Tennyson and also shorten the notes considerably, removing the historical content.  I intend to largely leave the images as they are, although I shall take out an early one of a bridge over the young river as my tutor felt that the transition was rather sudden.  I shall also change the final overtly romantic sunset for a more muted picture.  Having recently submitted my Contexual Studies Literature Review, which included references to the picturesque, sublime and topographic, I feel well armed to both be critical of, but at the same time defend my use of picturesque imagery.