Jenni May
Born: 23/10/1989
Lives/Works: Glasgow
Digital Photographer
HNC Applied Design
HND Public Art
BA Art and Design (Merit)
BA Hons Visual Arts (pending)
Through my journey so far with photography I have come to understand, appreciate and enjoy its qualities as an artistic medium. I find myself fascinated with the modern irony of the fact that with such drastic and high speed development of digital software and digital cameras, the camera now has the ability to lie, and does so on all to regular an occurrence.
I find myself interested in the social and philosophical implications of this, do we like that it lies? Has this transformed a documentary medium into a fantasistic tool that can be yielded much like paint or moulded as if it were clay into louring the viewer left, right and centre into believing whatever the artist intends?
Through this I look at the modern mindsets of consumers, the almost unswerving and unquestioning acceptance we seem to bestow upon commercial advertising and popular imagery. The comparisons that can be drawn between modern and past cultures are interesting to me, the change that we see in all aspects of life including social, work and family situations are, more often than not, quite stark and therefore create a very intriguing platform for me to draw inspiration from.
Although I take a fairly dim view towards modern commercialisms use of power and visual impact to influence the public in an altogether too brainwashing manner, I must admit to having being gradually influenced by its aesthetic. Although I mainly try to use this aesthetical reference to poke fun or juxtapose the genre I am becoming very aware of the draw to jump on the ‘image for the sake of image’ bandwagon. This then leads me to think about the viewers connection with modern artworks, are we desensitised to complex and conceptually interpretational art, or is it the case that we just prefer to take a break from thinking and simply appreciate an artwork that bluntly ‘is what it is’, no subtext, no implication, just a concept laid bare that requires no negotiation, just acceptance or rejection from the viewer. It is this simplification in an era of aspiration towards complexity that drives my practice, I have no intention to dilute my thoughts and open up my artwork to others interpretation, I have a concept, so I photograph it.
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