Week 9

Elspeth Diederix: "drijven"

Blog post written by: Hannah Zimmerman

For my ninth blog post I am writing about a photograph by Elspeth Diederix titled “drijven”.

This photograph is of a river, with greenery on both sides. Power lines can be seen stretching across its horizon. On the river are eight teacups floating on individual saucers. The surface of the river is completely calm. A reflection of the power lines can be seen on its surface. It appears to have been taken in early morning based upon the early blue of dawn. Additionally, there seems to be fog up around the power lines and at the very furthest point on the river.

Everything seems to be a natural part of the picture, except for the teacups. But the way Elspeth was able to arrange this photograph; the teacups partially seem to belong there. Like they are a natural part of this calm river that winds amongst the land with floating teacups like it is a normal part of the river’s cycle. That is what I love most about this photograph. Elspeth Diederix arranged for these teacups to float down the river, but because of the time of day she took the photo, she was able to make them seem like a natural part of it.

There is a certain sense of peacefulness and calm to this photograph that attracts me to it. The floating white teacups further emphasize these factors. I like how the photographer was able to subtly manipulate the scene and create such a strong sense of calmness.

This is the first week we do not have a photography movement. Instead we are supposed to start thinking about what we want to do for our last project where we photograph whatever we want. I have a lot of ideas about what I want to do. Some of my ideas include a sculptural element or the idea of projecting onto a photograph. This picture really started to spark some new ideas and elements in my mind while starting to think about it. I also started to think about how I can continue to include objects or making objects out of my photos while observing this picture.

This photograph can be viewed here: 

http://www.elspethdiederix.com/ 

My photo of  the week: