PHOTOMONTAGEMeaning, History, & The New Project

WHAT IS PHOTOMONTAGE?

Photomontage is a kind of collage that is composed primarily of photographs or fragments of photographs in order to direct the viewer's mind toward specific connections. 

GRETE STERN MAY 9, 1904 – DECEMBER 24, 1999

The German born artist Grete Stern is probably one of the most influential figures in photography in Argentina.

Grete Stern studied graphic arts in Stuttgart in the 1920s, and

afterwards she decided to move to Berlin in order to begin taking classes

in newly established photography department at the Bauhaus school.

BAUHAUS SCHOOLThe Bauhaus was founded in 1919 in the city of Weimar by German architect Walter Gropius (1883–1969). Its core objective was a radical concept: to reimagine the material world to reflect the unity of all the arts. Gropius explained this vision for a union of art and design in the Proclamation of the Bauhaus (1919), which described a utopian craft guild combining architecture, sculpture, and painting into a single creative expression. Gropius developed a craft-based curriculum that would turn out artisans and designers capable of creating useful and beautiful objects appropriate to this new system of living.

Photography of Bauhaus

Paintings from Bauhaus Artists

Products from Bauhaus Artists

GRETE STERN MAY 9, 1904 – DECEMBER 24, 1999

Grete Stern was born in Germany to a Jewish family, and in Weimar Berlin, she and Ellen Auerbach had a photography studio called ringl + pit that specialized in advertising. She emigrated to Buenos Aires in 1935. From 1948 to 1950, Stern was hired by a womens’ magazine to “illustrate” the dreams that readers of the magazine (mostly Argentine housewives) submitted. She made 150 photomontages, called Suenos (dreams), that comprise perhaps the most brilliant and telling psychological document ever made of the inner lives of women of that era.

GRETE STERN’S PHOTOMONTAGE

Grete Stern – Dream Nº 38, 1949

Grete Stern – Dream Nº 5, 1950

Grete Stern – photomontageGrete Stern – Dream Nº 1, 1948

Grete Stern – photomontageGrete Stern – photomontage

Grete Stern – Dream Nº 31, 1949Grete Stern – photomontage, 1949

Grete Stern – photomontage

Grete Stern – Dream Nº 28, 1951

PHOTOMONTAGE BY OTHERS

JERRY UELSMANN

Man Ray

Dora Maar, 1936

August 27, 1890 – November 18, 1976

Justice, 2000The Major Arcana, 2000

Dave McKean

Place Furstenberg, Paris,1985Pearblossom Highway 2, 1986

David Hockney

Mother 1, 1985

Still Life Blue Guitar, April 1982  

Scott Mutter (1944–2008) 

LibraryEscalator Chandelier

Time Travelers

ADRIAN BRANNAN

ADRIAN BRANNAN

Casa Batllo

Piccadilly Circus

Duane Michals

Rene Magritte

Shirley Berman and Madison Grammar School Demolition, Chicago, (1938)

Edmund Teske

"The Constructor (self-portrait)" (1924)

El Lissitsky

Self Portrait

Jerry Uelsmann

THE PROJECT: PART 1• Part 1: Use new Photoshop Techniques with photos you already have to practice different techniques. This practice work is due Tuesday, February 10th. You’ll start this on Thursday.• Combining a minimum of 3 photos• Using Layers• Layer Masks•Merging Photos Together• Clone Tool• Deleting, Scaling, Distorting, etc.• No obvious editing should show

THE PROJECT: PART 2

• Part 2: Choose a photomontage artist that you would like to mimic (style). Then brainstorm dreams and choose a dream & take new photographs that you will create a photomontage from. A minimum of 3 photos must be used in your final work. Photomontage photos for final project due no later than Tuesday, February 10th. •May be in color, black & white, or a combination • 15 sketches of different dream/photo ideas with explanations due February 6th.

• You will be given Wednesday (tomorrow) to work on the sketches during class. The sub will be collecting sketches on Wednesday so I can see your progress.

IF AT ANY POINT YOU HAVE NOTHING TO DO…

• There are a lot of fantastic photographers to learn about! I have a giant list of photographers and you’ll start at the top and will be writing a 1 page biography (handwritten only) every day that you do not have what you need to work on the CURRENT project. You’ll receive some participation points for doing this.• After 3 days of essays, you’re parents will be notified of your poor efforts.• 3+ will result in a referral to administration.

SO, BASICALLY…

TAKE PHOTOS FOR PHOTOGRAPHY CLASS. What a concept, right?