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Research Post

Erwin Olaf (1959-2023) was a Dutch photographer born in Hilversum, Neverlands and visual artist known for his provocative and styled work. He studied journalism at the Utrecht School of Journalism. Throughout his career, he photographed the human experience, Exploring themes such as identity, social taboos and marginalized communities (such as people of color and the LGBTQ community) through staged photography. Often combined elements of portraiture, fashion and concept art to create a narrative. His style was infused by cinematic storytelling and Old Master paintings. I can definitely see how his words were inspired by old master paintings, as my initial thought when I saw his work was how painterly it looked. a lot of his work looks very 'simple' yet fascinating and tells a narrative. I also just adore the 'look' of his work, its so beautiful and very reminiscent of renaissance paintings I love.

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Research Post

Amy Lombard is a documentary photographer based in Queens, New York. She graduated with a BFA from the fashion institute of technology in 2012. She is known for her dramatic flash photography and vibrant colors making mundane scenes feel alive and exciting. Lombard explores and documents internet culture and real life niche communities that are often unrepresented, reflecting her own feelings of being an outsider. Her work has been featured in major publications such as The New York Times, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair and Wired. What i love about Amy Lambard is how she captures images, her colorful style makes every photo eye catching. Its also interesting to look into the lives of communities that I rarely see.

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Research Post

Justine Kurland is an American photographer who explores themes of freedom, community and the natural world in her work. She was born in 1969 in Warsaw, New York and studied Photography at Yale University School of Art. She then earned her MFA in 1998, mentored by Gregory Credson, her biggest influence on her approach to narrative photography. Kurland is most known for her series Girl Pictures (1997-2002). Depicting young girls in pastoral settings, doing “masculine” things, challenging traditional notions or what femininity should look like. These photos evoke a dreamlike/nostalgic feeling in me personally. They also relate to a deep part of me. I grew up in a very strict Christian household, and ever since I was young, my parents instilled in me what a god fearing Christian woman should look like, and what being a Christian wife would hold for me in the future. Obviously, little me did not give a single fuck about these sexist rules and ideologies and saw right through them. In my teenage years especially, I rebelled against what I was expected of by my parents and the church. That's why when I see these photos, it's like looking into a window of my past, into core memories that shaped me into the person I am today. Not every photographer is capable of evoking such feelings but Justine Kurland did it exceptionally well.

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Research post

Brian Ziff is a Los Angeles and New York based musician, photographer and digital artist. He combines a variety of art mediums to create complex imagery. 

Brian Ziff’s subjects are always Women, he photographs them in a way that is visually creative and interesting (unlike most male photographers who photograph women.) Whenever there are men in his photos, they are faceless and completely unidentifiable. Because of this, I interpret his work to showcase the woman experience and complexities of female sexuality. I really enjoy his strong use of colors and composition in his work. I also love that his work is very dynamic, he doesn’t stick to one single method of creating art, which results in some of his work looking very different to his other work.

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Research post

Marilyn Mugot is a French graphic designer and photographer who has been interested in art since childhood. She went to a graphic design school later on in her life and there she discovered her love for photography along since her love for drawing.

Her work is meant to be the way she sees the world. Her work is very atmospheric and dreamlike, looking more like an art piece than a photograph.

I came across her work on Instagram (@mary_wolf) years ago. What I love most about her work is that she often captures mundane things or buildings, yet half the time It doesn’t even look real, it looks more like she’s inside a cyberpunk video game or in another dimension. To me, her work looks more like an incredibly detailed digital painting than a photograph. Because of that, I find her work is visually interesting and ethereal.

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Research post

Andres Serrano is an American artist and photographer. His art is considered transgressive. Serrano became infamous on May 18, 1989, due to Piss Christ (1987) that resulted in controversy. His work represents the politicization of the human body, Focusing on AIDS, drugs, abortion and euthanasia. 

After reading about Andres Serrano and looking through the images in “Andres Serrano Works 1984-1993” I definitely understand a lot more why he does his art the way he does and what it was about. However there were some things that I didn’t like/understand. Such as Piss Christ, 1987. Not because I found it offensive, but because I can’t get over the urine factor. All I can think when I see is, “who’s piss is that? Why is there so much of it? Is it multiple people’s piss? it probably smells awful” So I feel like the urine sort of overshadows the message of the image in a way. But anyway, I can definitely see why this was controversial in the 80's. However, in the year 2024, at least to me, it just seems strange. I love when art depicts religious ideas in non-conventional ways but the piss is just a bit too odd for me. 

But there were many other images that I really enjoyed reading about such as the KKK photos as they described how the members submitted to Andres Serrano for him to take their photo despite him being a person of color. the images themselves aren't necessarily unique or interesting in their composition but the story behind them is.

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Research post

Alessandra Sanguinetti is an American photographer born on 1968. She is a member of Magnum photos and has received multiple awards 

“On The Sixth Day” is about an Argentine farm photographed in the perspective of the animals. The photos are taken very close to the ground showing the many experiences of dogs, pigs, chickens etc.

I personally loved this book and idea. The layout is very clean and beautiful. The photos themselves and what they are meant to discuss is also very fascinating. There are many more simpler photos of a specific subject such as these. 

And then there are photos like these that empathize that perspective of what the farm animals see. 

There are also much more gruesome photos, which while uncomfortable to look at, show the darker and unfortunate side of being a farm animal, which I felt was very compelling and what took the idea behind this book to the next level. Overall I enjoyed it despite feeling uncomfortable with some of the images.

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Research Post

Female Pentimento (on instagram) also known as Nathanial, is an artist and musician based in Brooklyn. I’ve been following her for a long time now. Honestly, I don’t often become interested in a photographer’s work simply because photography, while something I think can be interesting, isn’t something I’m especially interested in. However, this photographer has captured my interest because of the unique look of her photos and the spiritual/religious symbolism in their work. I’m very interested in art that conveys religious and spiritual ideas in a nonconventional way because it’s something that I can relate to and connect with. They use a combination of photography and photo editing to achieve a dreamy and celestial look in their work.

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Atalia's first birthday

Mom and Atalia walking by the pool

Dad, Atalia and brother

Brother eating nachos

Atalia and her grandma

Atalia's mom and dad

Atalia trying cake for the first time

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my name is kayley olivarez, i'm a senior majoring in animation. ever since i was young, art has been something im very interested in. I have been doing digital art for around 7 years now. and i hope to someday be concept artist or an illustrator. aside from art, I enjoy video games and going camping