PHOTOSHOP WORK
Staged
The Editing Process
Before & After
Extravagant musical numbers, flamboyant dance routines, dramatized acting, these are all structural elements we associate with musicals. From Phantom of the Opera to Mamma Mia to Wicked, one thing they all have in common is that they adopt this similar framework. So what exactly differentiates each performance from the next? Why do they not all merge into one? The answer to this would be the subliminal messages and themes hidden within the narrative. This project ‘Staged’ analyses this subject matter, by exploring it in terms of the everyday. Photoshop has been used to combine elements of different musicals such as theatrical lighting, props and symbolic characters, within the everyday landscape. This is a way to bring to light the concealed themes within the story; themes of segregation and feminism as well as outward appearance and independence, which are all still present within the world today. After all, as Elphaba says in ‘Wicked’, “some things I cannot change, but until I try, I’ll never know”.
Moonlight Sonata
I am investigating the communities of Coventry’s past and combining them with elements of modern day Coventry. The message I am trying to portray within my imagery is that as a community we wouldn’t have what we have now without the people and events of the past. My research solely focuses on the Coventry Blitz, specifically the night of November 14th 1940, which was Coventry’s most destructive raid. My images are created using only Photoshop in order to combine the past with the present, experimenting with the colourisation of the archive. I wanted to give a voice to the people of the Blitz, which is one reason why I chose to present my montages with the newspapers, as this allowed me to incorporate different people’s stories and experiences.
The 'Perfect' Lifestyle
The images above are a set of Photoshop manipulations. They are all montages, including images of myself and the background image being screenshots from Google Maps. This is to fool the eye and show how easy it is to fake this 'perfect travel lifestyle'.