Blog 23 - March 2023
You can’t know what’s behind you, you can only believe - or not
In order to better grasp the relationship between the viewer, myself, and the sights that are in front of me and behind me but never at the same time, I collaborated with an incredible Suffolk-based photographer, Bob Foyers, on a photoshoot.
Bob has expertise in both the arts and the technical aspects of photography. His most recent work, recreations of Diego Velázquez's Rokeby Venus (also known as The Toilet of Venus) painting, supports body positivity and starts a conversation on what constitutes nudity and what does not.
The original of this picture is on display at The National Gallery in London right now. Check out the link at the bottom of this blog post if you're interested in learning how Bob recreated this image.
Diego Velázquez, The Toilet of Venus, oil on canvas, 1.22 m x 1.77 m, 1649-51.
https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/diego-velazquez-the-toilet-of-venus-the-rokeby-venus
We can only believe something is behind us based on the knowledge gathered before; we are never aware of it. For instance, if I walk in front of you and keep looking forward, I might think you are behind me, but I can't be sure because I can't see you. The sight is constantly changing, and we can only see a small portion of it.
The same way we experience landscape.
We can only clearly focus on what is in front of us; otherwise, the whole of our vision is blurry. Landscape is constantly shifting, according to artist and curator Simon Carter, who was born in Chelmsford, Essex. As a student, I had an opportunity to get a landscape drawing session guided by him and Jane Watt in University of Suffolk last week.
This lesson has helped me to approach landscape in a different way. Instead of focusing on horizon, while walking in Waterfront, Ipswich, I have noticed my vision shifting as I was moving along. Inspirated by Simon’s presentation before the walk, I made marks on paper while taking into consideration the surface itself and the materials I used.
Bob Foyers Photography
https://foyers.photography/homage-to-the-amazing-diego-velazquez-and-the-rokeby-venus/
Simon Carter
https://www.simoncarterpaintings.co.uk/
