PROJECT PROPOSAL

PROJECT PROPOSAL

Centre name: Camberwell College of Arts

Student name: Amber Charlton

Project title: ‘Exploring the female experience of sexual harassment’

Date: 22/03/21

Pathway: Photography and Time Based Media

Section 1: Rationale

Before Camberwell I saw photography as a somewhat confined medium but during the past six months I’ve become more aware of its diversity and the ways in which traditional boundaries of photography can be challenged.

During the second unit of the course I did lots of artist research / online gallery visits which fostered a concern with the exhibition of work. I’ve since become very interested in the way photographs exist in spaces and how this can impact the way they’re received by audiences.

Undertaking the course in lockdown encouraged me to look to new ways of making imagery. Artists Chino Otsuka and Christian Boltanski were key inspirations for my work using family archive imagery.

The course’s progression has allowed me to understand that photographic art can be personal, sad, humorous, incredibly considered or quick and reactionary. In my Constructing Realities final piece for example I aim to engage and entertain my audience while also provoking thought about the roles men and women occupy in society, and the power such roles can hold.

I’d like to continue creating work that is focused on and explores issues affecting women. Laia Abril, whose work is particularly concerned with female issues, has been and will be a key inspiration for this project. Her book ‘On Abortion’ was especially eye opening, not only to the horrific history of abortion but to the way one can approach the medium of the photo-book. It is text heavy which, alongside the photographic imagery, works to thoroughly inform her audiences on the topic of abortion.

Section 2: Project concept

My project aim is to explore the topic of sexual harassment, with a focus on the female perspective. This decision was influenced by the recent murder of Sarah Everard which made headlines and raised wider concerns about the safety of women in public spaces. During this time UN Women UK released a survey that found that ’Among women aged 18-24, 97% said they had been sexually harassed’.

Inspired by the diverse range of imagery within Laia Abril’s ‘On Abortion’ I hope to work in a variety of ways and with a number of different mediums. I’ll use film and digital photography to create my own imagery but I’d also like to continue working with found imagery. I’ve been looking into setting up a home studio and so definitely want to incorporate some form of portraiture into my project. I also want to look at using text with my imagery. While I have a photo book in mind as the final outcome I still hope to experiment with film, sound and installation.

Besides from artist research, I intend to thoroughly research the topic of sexual harassment and its role in today’s society. This won’t be straightforward but I hope a mix of qualitative and quantitative data will help me better understand its history and what’s being done to fight it. Because of lockdown much of my research will be online using websites such as BBC News, The Guardian and TED. I also intend to use Camberwell’s click and collect library.

In order to really ‘push the boat out’ for this project I need to do things outside of my comfort zone, welcome mistakes and understand that I will eventually learn from them.

Section 3: Evaluation

I intend to use workflow to record and evaluate the development of my project. I may also use some sketchbooks. I will use the feedback from tutorials and crits to continuously develop my project.

FINAL MAJOR PROJECT

FINAL MAJOR PROJECT

Project proposal

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