hannahsommerbaphotog

[hannahsommerbaphotog]

Major Project Proposal

BA (Hons) Photographic Arts

MAJOR PROJECT PROPOSAL

This should be a clear, focussed and coherent proposal for the major project that you intend to produce in Semester 2 and should give the reader a clear sense of what the project will involve when read alongside the pilot project.

Please extend boxes as required (500-1000wds)

Name

Hannah Sommer

Project Title (or working title)

Portobello Road (subject to change- giving a literal title for now)

Subject / Concept

This project is a documentary photo project dedicated to the residents of Portobello Rd area and the lives they carry out. Portobello Rd market in Notting Hill is a unique location that welcomes the rich and poor and nationalities and occupations from all over. I cannot say they coexist in peace due to its history of racial turmoil (i.e. Notting Hill Race Riots) and economic imbalance that exists within the community (i.e. Grenfell). Despite this, a wonderful, close knit and eccentric community exists and comes out to thrive every weekend during the Portobello market. My images follow different people in the area who live unique and incredible livelihoods and how that comes together as a community and on their own.

Aims

Many have written and photographed Portobello Rd residents before, so I am certainly not the first to create a project like this. I find my experience and my background, having come from a small hippie mountain town in North Carolina, gives me a unique perspective on the area and allows me to connect to my home. I have much love and appreciation for the community as I have lived and worked on the marker since I first moved to London. This project is not only a reflection of my experiences and views on the area, but a communal look as well. I plan to include some artworks and poetry by locals so that their work and legacy can be recorded during this time in history. Since Grenfell, the community has been stronger than ever and I personally have been searching for a way to give back to the community who has suffered so much over the past few years. My overall aim which will extend beyond this project will be to create a book that serves as a contemporary chronicle of the neighborhood that residents and non-resident can look upon and enjoy. I would eventually like to use this project to help raise money for victim restoration of Grenfell.

Context / Audience

For someone who doesn’t know of the neighborhood and its conditions, I want them to see how colorful and diverse this community is that struggles to maintain autonomy of the unique identity it has created over its long history. I want it to be a political commentary that shows the imbalance of wealth and council interference in the lives of many who have called this area home for decades. I find its history so rich and complex that many people, especially young generations like me, may have never known what existed before. It is a celebration of the people and the community for the immediate and global community. My stance as a young American girl who has been a part of the Portobello community gives me a unique perspective, as I intend to take what I have learned and share it with my community back in Asheville that reminds me so much of Portobello Rd. I am very cautious of my background and privilege on documenting my subjects, especially those that have experiences such hardships and traumas. This is why I have been very deliberate and thorough with my subjects and give them my genuine friendship and trust. I don’t see them in any ways as victims of a failed and unfair system, but pioneers of their own destiny and lives. The people I have chosen to photograph inspire me in many ways and bring so many precious talents and perspectives to the table that I wish nothing other than to celebrate and admire.

Proposed form, medium, presentation

To document and entire neighborhood, especially one as chaotic and intricate as Portobello Rd/ Notting Hill is quite a daunting task. Using a large and diverse collection of images and subjects from the area, I plan to compose it all into a mixed media book that combines my images and some selected artworks and narrative to tell the story of the area. I want it to be multi sensory to embody how complex my general subject is so the viewer can understand from different perspectives. I plan to have at least five selected prints to accompany my book in its final presentation.

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Research Report

BA (Hons) Photographic Arts

Major Project 1

Research Report

This should be a summary of and a critical reflection on your research process so far. You should try to give the reader a sense of the process you have been through - your journey, your thoughts and decisions along the way and what has informed the choices you’ve made. Try to be as honest and as critically reflective as you can.

Please extend boxes as required (length 1000-2000 wds)

Name

Hannah Sommer

Major Project Title

Portobello Road (subject to change- giving a literal title for now)

Research Methods

As this is a documentary project, my primary research has been engagement with people who have had first hand accounts of the neighborhood. I have gained much of my information on the history of Portobello Road/ Notting Hill through BBC documentaries and books such as Julian Mash’s narrative and visual anecdote to the area, Portobello Road: Lives of a Neighborhood. I have conducted interviews with my subjects which I have recorded on video and tape. I do not plan to use these recordings in the project as I intended in my original film concept, however I refer to them as references for better understanding the history and dynamic of the area through first hand experiences.

Pilot Project

My pilot project has changed aesthetically but has remained close to the original concept. I originally planned to make a documentary film as the primary visual product with a book on the side. After tutorials and careful consideration, I decided against that approach as it did not seem plausible for the allotted timeframe and my budget. I instead shifted my focus to gathering materials to make a multi media book, combining my images of the residents and landscape of Portobello Road / Notting Hill area and select narratives and artworks contributed by some of my subjects. My book plans to be hardcover bound using matt duo inkjet paper.

Audience and Context

I have thought a great deal of my audiences and how to present this project, especially given the fact I am not from the area, let alone the UK, and am aware of my outsiders perspective. I try to envision how someone who is a resident of the area would look at my images and comprehend versus someone who has never heard of it before. I now bring myself to the topic of Grenfell, as it is the silent elephant in the room. Since the wounds of the incident are still so fresh, I find it difficult to approach it but feel it absolutely necessary to include as it has changed the community like nothing else. I personally was not there for Grenfell. I had gone home to the USA the day before it happened and returned two months later so I only heard through others experiences about how the community came to help. I feel a sense of a regret personally that I wasn’t physically there to help in its highest time of need, as it has affected so many of the people around me. The mere vision of its skeletal remains (which are now finally wrapped and covered in a green heart) haunts me every day as I leave my house and find it looming over the street. You can see the building from all different angles of the area and it serves as a consistent reminder of all the lives that were lost and and disrupted, not to mention the mass of communal graffiti in memory of the victims and ridicule of the council. My approach to photographing this will be to document the building from all the different angles one can see it from in the area to symbol how we are constantly reminded of what happened and will never forget. I want to record all the graffiti and community art to show the mass of support for the community. My eventual plan for the final book will be to make copies and sell so that the proceeds go to victims and their families. I feel as if this is my way of giving back when I couldn’t at the time. It is important for me that this community is chronicled and commemorated for all they have done.

Production and Presentation

I spent the initial months of project speaking to my subjects and developing relations. I was able to develop a fair amount of portraits. As the Portobello Road depends heavily on tourist traffic, the winter months have effected my image production as many people and shops stay inside for the cold months and heavy holiday decoration fills the streets which makes for an obnoxious image. I have had to conduct my historical research through the winter by reading and viewing documentaries as I continued to make images, however I expect to have the majority of my images finished in early spring. The neighborhood and its residents are so multifaceted and diverse, I felt it most appropriate to present in book form that can have accompanying narrative to provide more context and understanding for the subjects I photograph. I plan for my book to be an extensive index of all the photographs I have taken and accompanying texts of stories of the residents that I write and they write themselves. I have befriended a local street artist named Ricasso who has drawn many of the residents and the shops around the area. I plan to make scans of his work and take photographs of the sites he has drawn. I want the book to have input by the residents which is why I will exhibit some selected artworks and poems (with proper credit of course). I have tried to keep from being too voyeuristic, as I do live in the area it makes it easier for me to form better relationships with my subjects and photograph them more genuinely. I want a book to act as an archive for the community to reflect and for others to appreciate.

Visual References / Bibliography

I have studied up on how other photographers have captured and executed photo projects of the are in a similar manner, such as Sam McConnell and Lorenzo Griftantini. Their approaches are similarly documentary but in black and white and focuses more on the candid scenery of the market. My approach is a bit more direct as many of my images are staged portraits. I look to a few films that were produced in the area as aesthetic visual reference. I am very drawn to the soft toned, gritty era of the seventies and look to films such as Withnail and I and Performance for inspiration on the visual aesthetic I am trying to accomplish in my photographs.

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TIMEPLAN

As of January 2019

Now that I have my ‘test’ images completed, I have a greater idea of what I need to rephotograph and add to my collection. My priorities from now until mid February are this:

1. Re-shoot night time images with better technical precision

2. Arrange shoot dates with female subjects I listed in one of my previous posts

3. Photograph Grenfell in black and white from all angles

4. Conduct interviews with chosen subjects to add narrative and experience to the history and present circumstance of the area re Grenfell and the council

5. Gather images from Moses and Ricasso to archive alongside my photographs

Once I have all of these accomplished, I will have the bulk of my images taken and the next step will be to edit down and assemble into book form. After mid February is when I will begin to create my mock book. I cannot do this yet as I do not have the majority of my images I will present. Once I have all of my images taken I will do a selection of 5 that I will print in medium size (TBD based off of my costs) and bring using digital printing from negative scans. 

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Revised Budget (Using Template)

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Research: Lorenzo Grifantini

Italian photographer Lorenzo Grifantini is another photographer I reference that has done extensive photowork on the area. Like McConnell, he photographs street scenes in black and white. Again, this is not my approached and my portraits are a bit more curated and posed but I greatly appreciate the grittiness and eccentricity of the area and the small quirky scenes that take place. 

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Research: Sam McConnell

London photographer Sam McConnell has been an artist of reference and research for my FMP. I first came across his work while it was showcased at a small gallery on Portobello Rd in October. His portraits are heavily contrasted black and white images of residents in the area. We have very different aesthetics but I appreciate his body of work and the way he has captured the area. I have noticed many other photographers who work in black and white portrait style in the area. There is a bar called Ukai which exhibits black and white headshots made by another photographer who’s name I could not find around the area. It is important for me to look at how other photographers have captured the area so I do not repeat the same image and learn a new perspective. 

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Research- Portobello Road: Lives of a Neighbourhood

I have found this book to be a great resource for my project. I am trying to get my hands on a physical copy but for now I am using the online version (found here https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=vEbYBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT82&lpg=PT82&dq=portrait+project+portobello+rd&source=bl&ots=X669xPTsJt&sig=-JlA8-aSK_QUMhiJ2yP13aVC8M0&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjoitXE-ODfAhUhRxUIHd_vC4kQ6AEwD3oECAEQAQ#v=onepage&q=portrait%20project%20portobello%20rd&f=false)

This book, published in 2014, combines drawings and photographs with an extensive narrative detailing the history of the neighborhood, including Notting Hill Carnival and the Notting Hill Race riots. Some of the people I have seen in the images I know in real life. I would be interesting to re photograph them as they are now. It gives me great insight in understanding the neighborhoods history and dynamics over time. Mash’s anecdotes on the are are poetic and observant of small obscurities and quirks which is what I intend to capture in my book. This book performs more as an informative narrative on the neighborhood with supplementing visual reference. My book will have more visual reference than narrative, but will have thoughtful and respective narrative nonetheless. The author seems to have a similar experience to mine where he began working on the market and the community took him in as their own. I can relate this work to my project and use it as a great source of inspiration to how I will conduct my narrative pieces and assemble them. 

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Here are a few test prints I have made in the darkroom. They are not the size or images I plan to use for my final selection but just tests to see how they print. I will continue to make darkroom test even though my book images will be from digital scans. My goal is to have at least 5 of my best images printed an mounted alongside the book for the final display.

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BUDGET

My estimated budget for the entire project is £525 max. I am working as cheaply as I can as I am having financial struggles and will try and use inexpensive and sustainable materials to make my book. 

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Misc. Images of some of my subjects. I am continuing to photograph the same and new people so I have as much as I can to choose from in my final book selection. 

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My friend Fei who lives nearby and is an artist and activist. She is assembling an art show on Portobello rd that I will include this project in in June and has done community activism for Grenfell. Here she is photographed in my haunted hallway on Ladbroke Grove. 

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WHERE ARE THE WOMEN?

They’re coming!! Saving the best for last (kidding). I am aware so far it looks like I have photographed mostly men in the area. If I’m being quite honest, it’s quite a patriarchal neighborhood where you see more men hanging around in the same spots than the local ladies. I know quite a lot of remarkable women I plan to photograph, its just time that has been my issue. Most of the women figures I know work indoors on the market so I have shoots planned in the next two weeks to capture them in their environments. 

I plan to photograph my friend Liz who is a nomad vintage seller of Afghan furs and exotic fabrics and lives in a van she has built herself. She has been in Spain so I’ve just been awaiting her return, as she’s one of the youngest market vendors and a very interesting individual. 

I plan to photography my friend Francesca who sometimes sells Crystals on the market and used to work at the smoke shop/tattoo store. She has a Reiki practice and extensive crystal collection in her home in the area. I plan to photograph her in her home. 

I plan to photographer my old flatmate Claire who has lived and worked in the area since the 90s. She has a very strange house that I used to live in but had to leave and plan to photograph her in there. 

Plenty more women to come, such as many immigrant market vendors and well to do fashion ladies. In all my subjects- male or female- I want to show a diverse range of social and economic backgrounds to show how the community coexists with such diversity. 

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Sheldon

I got to know Sheldon just by seeing him around all the time and we finally spoke and became friends. He is one of the kindest people I’ve met and on the weekends runs a Jamaican food stall on Goldbourne Rd which is out of this world. He has lived in the are for a very long time. 

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Test images of market scenes- I’m trying to capture images that establish the setting under a cinematic lens that shows the full scale as well as the subtle abstractions of the market. I haven’t found the right images yet and am still shooting scenes like these (don’t take these seriously- they’re tests). There is so much to look at that I want my images to reflect the chaos of the market without being to overwhelming for the viewer so I will focus more on gathering more simple, abstract images to rest the eye. 

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Vijay / MOG (Man of God)

Mog hangs around Portobello rd and Meanwhile Gardens park/skateground where I sometimes hang out at. He’s a very spiritual man and has been able to guess mine and other’s people’s blood type accurately. I seek to know more from him and his shamanic practices that I have grown up with. Last image is with my mom :)

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These are test images of long exposure night time landscapes I took around the area on CineStill 800 film. I like this film for night photography has it has an eerie grain and tone and makes red halation on tungsten light which ads a surreal effect. I need to rephotograph these as many are poorly exposed. I am not very familiar with long exposure night photography so this aspect is a learning experience for me. I’ve learned that overexposing is better and plan to go out and rephotograph these. The significance will be explained later, as I am basing many of these off of Ricasso’s drawings and plan to do side by side comparisons of the photographs and illustrations. 

The image showing the Santos bar will be important as I have a drawing Ricasso made of it (yet to be scanned). The venue has since closed down and used to be a place where locals would party and eat, serving as an important place for the community. 

The truck might look like any old vandalized truck, but the story I know is that it is the local fishmonger’s and he keeps having it cleaned but the teenagers always come back to paint it each time. I think it ads a nice colorful touch to Goldbourne rd where it always sits. 

Walking portobello rd at night is very silent and eerie compared to the busy market during the day. I want these night images to show the gritty loneliness that can be found at night. 

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Keith Wizard

Befriended him when I was a barista on the market. He’s a local and hangs out on the market sometimes. We have really funny conversations and I give him dating advice.