The aim of this portrait project by Rineke Dijkstra was to show the awkwardness of youth and coming of age for young people. She posed her subjects on the beach standing in their swimsuits. She has lit the subjects with artificial light to bring them out from the back ground which fades more into darkness. The photograph bellow is often compared to Botticelli’s ‘Birth of Venus’ due to the lighting and the pose of the girl.
The reason I have decided to include this work in my research is because I have always been drawn to the photographs, and I realise it is the use of the beach as a setting that I am drawn to. I am often drawn to work that contain water or the beach and I think that it is because I grew up in Brighton this setting feels like home to me.
I have included this work in my visual research because of my own connection to them and their setting and the way in which i love the technical aspects of the images, such as lighting, and the way in which the subjects stand. I would like to shoot on the beach, as I have a strong connection with the location in association with my family, and would like to use these images as visual inspiration for my lighting and composition for the beach shooting.
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