Creative Research Final Year

Maria Dowsett

Fashion Communication at the University of Brighton

Skull and Still Life Test Shoot

Firstly Damien Hirst I was looking at Damien Hirst’s work on memento mori as it’s not photography or fine art based but still encapsulates the theme in its own way. Like everything Hirst does, the piece doesn’t shy away from what it is. It revels in it. It is meant to be expensive and it…

Looking at Vanitas

A still life artwork which includes various symbolic objects designed to remind the viewer of their mortality and of the worthlessness of worldly goods and pleasures. The term originally comes from the opening lines of the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible: ‘Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities, all is vanity.’ Vanitas…

‘Danse Macabre’ Test Shoot

The Danse Macabre, also called the Dance of Death, is an artistic genre of allegory of the Late Middle Ages on the universality of death: no matter one’s station in life, the Dance Macabre unites all. In the Danse Macabre, skeletons escort living humans to their graves in a lively waltz. Kings, knights, and commoners…

Looking at Memento Mori

Memento mori, Latin for “Remember that you must die,” is a genre that draws upon the melancholic character of the biblical book of Ecclesiastes. Eat, drink, and be merry if you must, the objects suggest, because death is right around the corner. The point of this reminder isn’t to be morbid or promote fear, but…

First Studio Test Shoot

My first test shoot went surprisingly well. My main aims were just to get used to using the Grand Parade studio and the lights and experiment a bit with movement in my photography. I also wanted to test out using my medium format camera with the flash unit as it isn’t something I’ve ever tried….

Antony Gormley at The Royal Academy

Antony Gormley was my favourite exhibition out of the three that I went to. Like Tim Walker, I went with very little knowledge of Antony Gormley’s work and I’ve never particularly had an interest in sculpture. So it surprised me when I found it the most interesting out of the three, I think it was…

Tim Walker: Wonderful Things at The V&A

I really loved the Tim Walker exhibition more than I was expecting to, before going I didn’t really know that much of his work and I definitely wouldn’t have been able to recognise it as his own. The way the exhibition was curated with differently designed rooms and spaces to match the themes of the…

Mary Quant at The V&A

I decided to go to the Mary Quant exhibition while I was the V&A, mainly as I’m just interested in the sixties in general, the fashion, the photography happening at the time and I thought this exhibition may inspire me on those terms. In turned out to not be so helpful for my project but…

The V&A Photography Centre

I decided to actually explore a bit more of the Victoria and Albert Museum when I went up to London to see the Tim Walker show. I went up to the photography centre seeing as this is the specialism that I want to pursue within the course. It was far more interesting than I had…

McQueen by Ian Bonhôte (2018)

“A personal look at the extraordinary life, career and artistry of Alexander McQueen. Through exclusive interviews with his closest friends and family, recovered archives, exquisite visuals and music, McQueen is an authentic celebration and thrilling portrait of an inspired yet tortured fashion visionary.” – Rotten Tomatoes The whole idea for my research project started off…

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