I promoted the fact that I'm running this project on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr to engage in the social network side of the project that I mentioned in the very beginning (the purpose to see how our identity changes on social network sites with the option to hide behind a computer and even be anonymous).The way the account works, you can disclose as much or as little information to me as possible. You can submit a wish anonymously meaning I'll never know who submitted it, where they're from or even their gender/age. They can also submit it by being signed in meaning it links me to their profile and thus I'd know more about them, they can leave something as simple as name or email address or even a nickname. I did this because i thought the range of options might lead me to getting more responses and I'm intrigued to see whether people will give me more in detail wishes anonymously or under their actual name.I've started to screenshot the responses I'm getting so that you can see the images I'll be making and I'm trying to do the postcards and photos every other day so that I keep on top of it all.
Already, in these few responses, you can see the variety I'm getting. Some people are answering in a serious manner and several have submitted lyrics, taking the more humerous, fun approach. When I started this, I had ideas of what I might achieve and what sort of wishes I get, but it's interesting to see if I'm right and hopefully I can discuss this more and have some surprises as the project progresses.The next job is to start getting people to write them onto the postcards for me, so it's not always my handwriting, and then photograph them. I've decided that I won't take the over obvious approach for each postcard and will try for subtle meanings or more random backgrounds.
I actually discovered this website last year while researching for one of my projects. I was looking at incorporating text into the project and ended up stumbling across this website. It caught the eye immediately as the front page is very in your face, but still relatively mysterious and got me wanting to know more.The idea is brilliant. It requires participants to send in a polaroid of themselves with the answer to the question "What do you want to do before you die?" written beneath their photo. The creators, Nicole Kenney and Ks Rives state several reasons for starting it. They were inspired to do so around the time that Polaroid announced plans to discontinue production of their cameras and film and they also wanted to conduct an experiment. To see how different people would respond and whether it would make more people want to achieve their aims or desires. It's a fascinating concept and the response to it has been amazing. Like I'm already finding with my wishes project, some people take it so seriously and others have a much more fun response or a less serious one.Perhaps my favourite part is that the pair ask for an email address from all participants because in a few years time, they want to get in touch with these people and ask them if they've achieved what they wrote on the polaroids or why not. That follow up will be brilliatn and I can't wait to see it. Although the project started in America, it has taken on a life of its own, with Polaroids being sent in from all over the world and specific sections on the site now for Asia, Europe and India. The pair became interested in how different cultures reacted to the question, with Americans often not being so happy to discuss mortality and death as other countries where both are discussed and welcomed more.The project has a lot of press and has had lots of press and exhibited all over the place. There are books avaiable and the best part is that it's still an ongoing project with people just wanting to join in. It's the variety of responses and how people have chosen to make the images that interests me.
The three above are just some of the many that I looked through. I put them in for the variety and one because it made me smile. Part of doing a project like this is that you never quite know what you're going to get and I love the process of reading through the responses and being surprised. Perhaps some make you smile, make you sad, make you wish you'd thought that. But one thing that is constant is that every few responses there are some you can relate to. Any viewer will be able to find at least one they can relate to and understand as well which keeps the process going. I just find it all very interesting and it's a look into a person's identity.
I'm trying out one of the ideas I said I would which is to set up somewhere where people can finish 'I wish...'. Although I only set it up a few minutes ago, response is already going much better and people seem more likely to participate.I've set an account up on Tumblr where people can submit what their wish is and then I'll write the wishes onto postcards and make photographs and then post them onto the blog so they also see the images being made. Obviously, I'll also post them here and hopefully it can create a nice series. I'd also like to make screen shots of the wishes as they come in.This is what the Tumblr page looks like and if you're reading this and want to contribute the link is:- http://iwishproject.tumblr.com/
The responses I get can be anything from anyone. I'm interested in how people respond to the rather open statement. I think I'll get the less serious responses but all of the responses will tell me something about us as people. I might be able to guess some of them as I know my friends are taking part, but ultimately that barrier of being behind a computer and having the anonymous title offers the chance for total honesty. I think it's a way of expressing something and I hope the project can turn into something fun and interesting.So far I've only taken a photograph of one wish and that was more to put on the Tumblr so that participants can get a general idea of what I'm going to do with them. To vary things, I'll ask friends and family to write the wishes onto postcards so it's not always the same handwriting and I haven't decided yet whether I'm going to go for a location or item that relates to the wish or something a little more ambiguous and less connected, such as the image below. 
Martina Mullaney is an Irish born, British based photographer. I looked at her series 'Turn In' when I was doing A level photography and I feel it was relevant to go back to and research again. It's taken in hostels and shelters for the homeless and basically photographs the various sleeping quarters provided.Mullaney's work varies in the way it covers identity to most of the research I've done thus far. It almost conceals the identity as you see little more than the wall and part of the bed. What you learn about the person who slept there the previous night is actually very little but the photographs are evocative in terms of colour and the texture of the bed. This absence of identity actually means the viewer is more likely to construct one from what they see and what they imagine.When I look at the images, i wonder why the person's life has come to them being so desperate for a roof over their head and a bed that they ended up here. I create a narrative in my head or try and imagine who it was that had that bed. Some of them were neatly put back together, others had the covers thrown askew and the sheets crumpled. This says a lot about the people too and the engaging aspect that it creates with the viewer is powerful. She could have photographed more of the room, perhaps of the items in it and she could even have photographed the subjects in the beds. But this wasn't her aim and I actually think the project is much more beautiful for not being so cliche or doing any of this.A bed is such a private, intimate place but does that lose all meaning in these hostels and shelters? We think our most private/intimate thoughts in bed, perhaps we voice them, perhaps it's the dreams we have. Perhaps it's where we panic, or maybe just go to forget everything. Sleeping and the bed is a crucial part of a person's life and creates a part of their identity. These rooms see so many people come and go, does it lose its meaning here or does it just adapt and hold more identites in one. The memories and the identity of the people before linger in the room.It's sort of the same situation as when you go into a hotel room. I'm sure i'm not the only person whose wondered who stayed here the night before, what were they like, where were they going. I've also sometimes found an item left behind that the cleaner missed, be it something as tiny as a receipt or wrapper.Below are several of Mullaney's images:-
Tom Hunter is another British photographer that I found out about from looking through old copies of Portfolio. I could feature quite a bit of his work as most series have something relevant that I could link in but I'll just focus on a couple.The series 'Persons Unknown' is the one I saw first. He says he uses everyday folk, no celebrities and no-one extra special. The photographs come across as capturing a private moment and as though the subjects were totally unaware of his lens, which is effective, but I doubt this is the case. Something I noticed straight away with the series is the use of windows. There is a window in most of the images and in a lot of cases, the people are gazing toward it or out of it. I like the symbolism and that the viewer can decide whether this is a gateway into exploring the person or a way of showing the person is trying to view and understand the outside world. Perhaps the window symbolises a sense of being trapped or the stare is a search for a way out.Insignificence and a feeling of being lost seem to be two of Hunter's interests when making the series. The subjects are people that ordinarily wouldn't require a second glance unless you knew them and this is the case so much with people and the way society is going. When I was viewing the images and then reading text about the subject, I started to think that perhaps it was exploring that fear and anxiety about our impact on life and 'leaving our mark on the world' that I think all of us worry about at some point. These kind of worries and fears are something most of us can identify with and a suggestion that although we vary in our likes/dislikes and personality, we all share things.The project largely explores the feelings that we all share even though the hows and whys may vary:- Fears, hopes, desires, anxeties and so on.
Another one of his series I also like. It's similar to the last research I did in the sense that it doesn't feature people. It's called 'Empty Towerblock Series' and it's more like the ghosts and memories. Abandoned towerblocks of flats that people once called home are now nothing but shells, though all carry evidence of life and of being lived in. Some it's the decoration, some the items left behind. All imply an identity once which has since moved on. It's the air of leaving something behind.I seem to be evolving with areas I'm looking at rather than where my initial ideas were when I started the project. The theme is still identity and exploring personality, but perhaps how i want to achieve this has altered. This project I really like because I looked at each image and started to imagine who lived there and where they are now. It's open to the viewers to decide this and that element of mystery I like. With some, the narrative was helped by some of the items still in the flat or the decoration. This goes with stereotyping, something we've all been brought up around and do almost without meaning to. It's the need to label something and have to know about it.
Hunter has several more relevant series. Most look at people and identity. Sometimes that identity has been given to them by the media (in the case of the series Ghetto Series) and sometimes it's one that people want to have. I like his approach to exploring it and I find it very inspirational.
Veronica Bailey is a fine art photographer based in London. I came across her work in Portfolio magazine and the use of text and the exploration into the life of another person made it relevant to look further into.The project 'Post-script' is a beautiful one. It explores the love letters and correspondance that Lee Miller (best known for her photographs and model) had with people, though mostly her husband, Roland Penrose. The images form a photographic essay that explore these letters, mostly from the second world war when Miller was an accredited photographer with the US army.I personally think that it's a gorgeous project. Such an intimate look into one of the most private parts of a person's life. The art of letter writing might be dead in favour of texts or emails, but for those in the army, the concept of notes and letters still exists and so the project is a touching one. The images are so tastefully done as well. They don't give away too much and are often named after the first or last line of the letters.Besides the intimate interactions and loving messages in the letters, Miller also described a lot of the experiences and things she saw. She witnessed some of the crucial moments and times of the second world war and it's an insight many of us cannot even imagine. It's a look at a different era and the way she describes it and her feelings are a look into parts of her identity I'd know nothing of otherwise.I like the mystery surrounding the images. As a viewer you feel very connected to the project, but that's without every really seeing any of the letters. The titles alone though and the way the images are shot suggest a powerful relationship and some honest, passionate letters. It also approaches the element of saving things that people consider important, such as letters and relationships even when the people involved have passed on. Memories connected with identity is something I hadn't thought about. I know my Grandad wrote letters to my Grandma during the war and it might be interesting to see if these still exist.It's a series I wish I could have seen exhibited because I imagine it would have made the series even more powerful. Bailey listed the title, who it was to and even the date and time that it was sent which helps you follow a story.While not directly a portrait series, it does explore identity and you get a sense of the person in a more unique (and I think) interesting way. I think I actually like this approach more than using actual people. Items, objects, photographs themselves and letters could be another way of making this investigation into identity for me. Here are some of Bailey's images from the series:-
This British photographer has been scribbled in a list of 'Photographers' I keep at the back of my notebook for a while. Whenever I start a new project, or simply need some inspiration, I consult this ever expanding list and just refresh my head on what it was about them or their photographs I loved. I remembered him having some relevant imagery I could research for this project.His project 'Obama's People' is the one I'm interested in the most. He is primarily a portrait photographer (though I found him because of his landscape work) and a very good one. That said, his portraits of celebrities don't interest me anywhere near as much as the series like this.For me, it challenges stereotypes and looks at identity. The 52 portraits were of the people surrounding Barrack Obama in his election campaign. His advisors, his employees and those who were part of his party and administration. The proejct itself had a lot of work behind it. Kander had help and also sequenced the images in a certain order, but it's more the portraits that interest me.Without seeing the backstory or doing any research, I presumed they were all people who had voted for him. The closer inspection of the project gives a much more interesting approach. Those surrounding him who know him better than anyone except his family. I looked at them in a different way, trying to gage what sort of people he hired and could I learn anything about him from looking at them and his choices. One thing that is quickly apparent is the range of people. Of age, race, gender, style. He clearly didn't discrimate in any way when picking those to surround him for anything except whether they were capable which is how it should be.I also find it interesting because most of these people are not used to the limelight. They'd be use to it all being about the man they work for and this oppurtunity for them to be the centre of attention particularly interests me because does it change how they pose or approach the portraits.Something else that's brilliant is the varying approach that I and the photographer who made these have. To quote Kander, he says "I don't believe all that shit about 'capturing the soul. It (photography) is about accuracy of portrayal. It is about who these people are and who they want to be." I find that statement fascinating. I think a portrait can be exactly that, but I disagree that it can't capture the soul.However, these images give the person behind the lens total freedom to present themselves how they wish, which is great. I'm looking to explore the way that people wish others would see them and the idea of first impressions or changing parts of yourself for special ocassions, like a portrait or a job interview. To create the series, Kander had each of them shot on a white background and asked each person to bring along an item that gave away something about their personality. This range of response is brilliant and gives the people an oppurtunity to be exactly who they want to be for the camera, even if that representation of them is not 100% true to their everyday life.Below are some of the images from the series:-
Muzi Quawson is a British photographer who I wasn't familiar with until I was going through the Portfolio back issues and saw some of her work and was instantly intrigued to find out more. She had a chance meeting with Amanda Jo Williams who, when the pair hit it off, invited her to stay with her family in Woodstock, USA. The place obviously made its name because of the famous music festival but it's legacy lives on as the hippie lifestyle has long been continued and Williams' family practice it too.Quawson is very much a fine art photographer but the focus of her work is on identity and this particular project looked at a side of American Culture that isn't photographed so widely. This is something she is interested in, people and communities that almost adopt the title of 'outsiders' that society gives them. It's an approach and area that I haven't even considered looking at, but I really like her style of portraits.The project entitled 'Pull back the shade' documented Williams' relationship with her partner and daughters in a very candid approach. I like this, because even if some of the images were staged, they still seem very natural. Presumably from living with the family, Quawson's camera and presence started to go more unnoticed and it probably became normal so there wasn't any posing or acting up just for the camera.A quality of honesty flows from the photographs and the family seem very comfortable and happy in their own lifestyle. As a viewer, the Woodstock lifestyle isn't one I can relate to but I like that Quawson's images don't attempt to put a spin on it. She just documents it. No angle, no trying to make the viewer presume the worst or the best, she just wants you to see it the way she did. This is an approach I want to take in my own work.The fine art the images have to them is also lovely, the textures and the focus are very effective and I really like the series. Below are some of my favourites from it, I think all of them tell you something about identity and the people you're seeing even if it's just a tiny snippet:-
This last one is my particular favourite. I feel like it's the one where I can learn the most about the subject. I'm not sure what it is, because technically there's no engaging with the viewer, no eye contact and no dead giveaways, but the pose, that concentration and thought, I think that says a lot.
I really can't put my finger on why because despite plenty of research and ideas, I'm really struggling to get this project off the ground. It's even more frustrating because my other module is going so well but I have a plan to try and work through this:-Although some of the ideas for photoshoots that I'm going to try aren't my original idea, they are ways of exploring identity and right now, I just need to be making work. Whether it's brilliant or part of my original vision or not. So I'm going to carry on researching and actually found quite a few relevant artists in journals in the library. As well as that I'm carrying out several photoshoots over the next day or so which should hopefully kickstart the project more. The first idea I want to try is using postcards. I have several blank packs and I want people to write on them and finish a sentence for me. The sentence will be "I wish I was..." and I'll get people to fill it in for me. I'd like to do it on a wide scale but will start off with just a few people and trying out different ways of displaying and/or photographing the results first before taking it to a wider scale.Another idea is to get people to complete the same postcard but display it beneath a grid of 6 photographs taken in the person's bedroom. They'd keep their identity relatively secret as the items would only give a rough idea of the person or one they want to project. I'm hoping I can find a way of getting more people to take part in providing me answers using social networking, though my first experiment wasn't so successful. Similar to the image of me holding the postcard with the text on it, I'd like to try this idea and keep the theme of the postcard being the focus and the slight background, using a mirror, to provide all you get to know about the person. I'm interested in including a mirror as the only snippet of someone as it's about the reflection and the gaze. I remember reading a quote about mirrors being the gateway to someone's true identity and soul and I'll do some research on these theories and experiment more with photographs.
While researching for something earlier, I got a phone call from my friend who's an immigration officer at an airport and in talking about various things, I was reminded about identity cards and it gave me an idea. As a civili servant, he was given one and uses it frequently, but it was more the inspiration that came from talking about this that got me thinking. Would it be worth making a digital mock-up of such a thing and using the passport style portraits I originally planned to take, and use them, putting the text of their own perceptions of themselves (limit subjects to 3 words describing themselves).
The idea is quite interesting. There was a lot of debate about whether they were necessary or not and how it would make it easier to travel. Some saw it as another 'big brother' concept and an invasion of privacy, but I'm not sure I agree when you look at how impersonal they are. They're meant to be used as ID and the whole idea of identity to me seems so personal yet these cards are so generic and as much as you learn basic facts about the people on them, you learn so little about their actual identity. What makes them tick, what they like, what they don't like.
By experimenting digitally with the format and creating my own, I could put a twist on it and make them much more personal to the individual on the card. It's definitely an idea I should think about and make at least one experiment of. For now, I've just collected various ideas for mock-ups I could make. The biggest challenge is finding a large version or being able to make an authentic looking one.
Looking at these different formats of identity or citizen cards, led to me finding this website. Here, for a small price, you can create your own identity. You can have whatever details you want on the card and subsequently create your own person so long as you have a photo. It's that idea of changing things and wanting a new identity. I found this fascinating if not slightly disturbing. The idea that people will do anything to doctor their age or last name says a lot. 
So far, a lot of the project has involved me doing research and looking at methods of portraiture and also ways of exploring self identity and the human nature behind it. I've only done one brief experiment and one shoot so far, using only myself. I've been struggling in terms of making work but I'm determined to turn this around and start producing much more work.The frustrating part is knowing what I want to achieve, and having so many ideas, but not being to put any of them into practice and make the work. The next areas I want to look at are:-Making portraits of others, using the postcard method like I tried myself. I will experiment with using the studio environment and also bedrooms. Though the latter presents more of a problem as total strangers are going to be unlikely to let me into their personal space. It's a problem I may have to confront or try and work around. Conducting an experiment somewhere around campus, getting people to fill in postcards that will ask them two questions, likely to be... "When I look in the mirror I think..." and "When I look in the mirror what I wish I saw was..." as part of my look at beauty and self-image. This strays away from the original idea but is something that interests me. I'm hoping doing it anonymously will get me more responses.
Sophie Calle is an artist come photographer who I have long admired and it suddenly occurred to me how interesting she might be to look at. She has worked with text and imagery as well as exploring human nature, identity and challenging perceptions. There are various projects of hers that I can look at, but one that first came to mind was one she conducted in the 80s. She got residents of The Bronx in New York to take her to a location of their choice and then made a portrait of them there. She exhibitied with the accompanying text explaining why they'd taken her there and what it meant to them. 
Another project that intrigues me is "Prenez soin de vous" which translate means "take care of yourself". The project started when her boyfriend of the time sent her an email that basically ended the relationship and had that at the end of it. She didn't know how to respond so she made a series of work based around it. She got over a hundred women to analyse the email and then made portraits with them.
It's an interesting project because it challenges self-perception and understanding of humans and our nature. She chose the women based on their profession which adds another dimension to it. It's a relevant project for my research because it shows that the boy obviously wanted to say these things, but opted to take the easy way out and do it online, thus not having to face a possible confrontation.
It shows a downside to the internet and the way our society operates. Her project emphasises both of these things. She exhibited it by putting the highlighted, written on, analysed email beneath each woman's portrait showing their response to it. It's an exhibit I would have loved to have seen. I'm actually going to get the book out of the library for further research on presentation and what she learnt.
The portraits from the series interest me as the subjects are usually holding, reading, or marking the email from her lover. It adds that personal touch and is different to the portraits I've looked at previously where the text element only comes into it beneath the work. Here, it is actively in the portrait too even though usually you can't see the work as it is facing them.
In terms of presenting my own work, I imagine I will come back and look at her work again as she has tried different ways of presenting it. Another one I saw, and apparently was there when she exhibitited this at Whitechapel, was to overlay the email on top of the portraits. It builds up that relationship and I love the look. The subject is reading it and you as a viewer get to do the same.
This might be an alternative to using an overheard projector to put the words onto people. Perhaps doing it in post-production, digitally, would be the easier option and means I can do portraits in places other than the studio.
Already, in these few responses, you can see the variety I'm getting. Some people are answering in a serious manner and several have submitted lyrics, taking the more humerous, fun approach. When I started this, I had ideas of what I might achieve and what sort of wishes I get, but it's interesting to see if I'm right and hopefully I can discuss this more and have some surprises as the project progresses.
