Second Take-Home Assignment

Second Take-Home Assignment:

What “Is” and What “Might Be”
Creating Your Own Stories From “Found” Images

Proposal Due: Monday, March 16, 2009
Assignment Due Date: Monday, April 6, 2009

Images can be used to present different perspectives. As a rule, the context in which they are displayed shapes the way we see them. The same image can illustrate a newspaper story or sell the latest fashion; we might see it posted on the wall of a subway station or hanging in a museum. In each context, its meaning is different.

Pictures are frequently used to tell stories, and depending upon their captions or the sequence and context in which they are presented, the same images can be used to tell stories of a very different nature. It is the role of the artist, journalist, media activist, writer and producer to contextualize images, and to cast them within a particular narrative perspective.

Your assignment is to tell two very different stories using the same series of “found” images, culled from a public medium (the street, magazines, internet, television, movies, graphic novels, old Sears catalogues, coupon circulars, newspapers, etc.) and presented in a format of your choosing. If you like, you may also produce your own images for this assignment (photos, drawings, etc.)

Part One: What “Is.”
Choose 6-10 images from a public medium, and combine these images with your own text to tell a documentary-based story, grounded in the language of everyday “reality.” This should be a story of mundane things – it should be focused on talking about a real person, place, thing, idea or event – but should be told in a compelling fashion.

Part Two: What “May Be.”
Take these same 6-10 images and rewrite the story. This time, your focus will be on creating a story that is fantasy-based. Use these same images (not necessarily in the same order) and with a new text, create a highly imaginative work of fiction. This story can be as broad and as far-reaching as you would like it to be. Take this time to explore your creative possibilities.

You will submit the finished product, comprised of parts one and two, on Monday, April 6.

The Proposal:
You will hand in a proposal (1-2 pages) on Monday, March 16. This proposal should describe what you’re thinking about creating, what images you’re likely to use, and what sources you’ll be looking to for images. Describe also what form your project will take when it is completed (for example: a single-page collage, a folded map, a three-minute video, a photo-blog, an animation, a book or journal, etc.) Whatever you do, make sure the format you choose enhances—and doesn’t work against—the visual story you wish to tell. Be equally careful with the text. How much text do you need for each image? Your image choice and context should tell your story without relying too heavily on text. Don’t let your text become a substitute for the eloquence of your images

Tie your proposal into ideas we have been discussing in class. This proposal will serve as a theoretical and practical guideline for your creative project., and while the content of your work may differ from your proposal once you embark on its creation., the overarching ideas should (in most cases) remain the same.

Possible Ways to Begin:

One way to attempt this project is to decide what story you want to tell in advance and then find images to illustrate it. Another way would be to dig around for compelling images, and then create a story to compliment them.

Whatever your strategy of image gathering, you should be very selective. Only use images that will effectively tell your stories. Think about the point of view presented by each image, the way that it offers a particular perspective on its subject matter. Keep in mind the relationship between your collection of images and how it may affect each image’s individual meaning.

Recommendations:

• Be very thoughtful of what images you use – think about how an image works to communicate what you want to communicate. For example: close up images are often used to convey emotions, while factual accounts are often portrayed by middle-distance shots. Think about the framing of the images you choose, the perspective they are shot from, and where their subjects are placed.

• You will want to collect more images than you will eventually use. Give yourself room to try different ideas, or present a similar visual message in a couple of different ways.

• For both parts one and two, one way to approach the assignment is to draw on your own personal experience to inscribe a convincing narrative. The best stories are always told about things you know well, and this is true even if they are fantasy-based. Let your own conscience guide you.

• Think carefully about the relationship between the images and the texts. The text can be serious, humorous, critical or ironic. It can be evocative or poetic. It can add to the story, or promote an idea. It can even sell a product.

• Text should not simply explain or describe the images, it should complement them, work in tandem with them. Be sparing with your text. Let the images do the talking.

• Carefully edit both arrangements of images and texts before you submit your project. Make sure they have focus and clarity and tell both stories effectively. Your overall presentation should have visual appeal. Neatness and design sense definitely count on this assignment. There is no length requirement per se, as projects will vary depending on the format they are presented in, but projects should be as long or as short as they need to be.