Photoscenography

Photoscenography is an ongoing research 'meta' project investigating the relationship between photography and scenography. The project has multiple elements, loosely interlinked, each of which approach the intersection of photography and scenography from a different perspective.

At present, photoscenography has three elements - click the image or link to go to the relevant part of the dedicated photoscenography website.

woman walking a dog amongst trees with houses behind
Cuddington explores the multiple natures of the suburban public park, at once a constructed, idealised and utopian landscape, a rural-agricultural landscape, and an extension of the domestic suburban garden. I see the park through the lens of classical landscape painting, and scenographically as a place of performance. Residents enact their leisure activities, while the park’s boundary connects the public realm with the private ‘backstage’ space of the rear gardens that back onto the park.
close up of part of two metal tins of paint from above, dramatically lit
In Which the Quotidian Becomes Heroic investigates through macro photography how our perception of everyday objects can be transformed by light and closeup perspective, so that only a small part of the object is revealed on a sub-miniature stage. Paying close attention to the materiality of the objects – their surfaces and textures – mythical, heroic qualities are suggested and narratives emerge. IWTQBH has been shown in my miniature art gallery for one person: What's the Small Idea?
close up of the legs of two chairs under a table, dramatically lit
Small Spaces investigates how miniature, found or constructed interior spaces may – through the transformative power of light and photography – be seen as scenographic spaces, in that they have a sense of place and/or of interiority, with the potential to contain action. My project seeks to discover conceptual, aesthetic and technical strategies to make such miniature scenographies that suggest possible narratives or dramatic worlds.

I have given presentations about aspects of the project to the Scenography Working Group of IFTR in São Paulo (2017) and Belgrade (2018), and exhibited images at Rose Bruford College's annual Symposium (2015). For more details of how my photoscenography work has been made public, see my academia.edu page.

You can learn more about my ideas on the relationship between scenography and photography in this video presentation for the 2020 conference, Connections: Exploring Heritage, Architecture, Cities, Art, Media.