The Photographic Document: Materiality and Form

The visual image takes on many forms, from the fleeting pixels on the mobile screen to the fine print, photo book or the spectacle of large scale public art. Rather than focusing on strategies for producing traditional 'pictures' on a wall, this course explores how images are objects which can be touched, exchanged, exhibited, archived and distributed in different ways. Students will undertake a series of projects which will help them to experiment with different methods of photo-installation, paying attention to questions of tactility, immersion and spectatorship. Studio briefs will encourage experimentation with different types of formats and processes, and introduce historical and theoretical approaches to still and moving images in material culture. A range of contemporary practitioners and their methodologies will be examined, in order to explore advanced exhibition and distribution strategies.