For our first project of 3rd year we were given a list of classic literature novels, of which we had to pick one, research and design for the story and create a photoshoot of 3 tableaus to put in our portfolio. I chose to do Sarah Waters Tipping the Velvet. I analysed the BBC series from 2002 and analysed the book to decide which scenes I wanted to use for my tableaus. I decided to change the era of the novel from the 1890s to the late 1950's, and I even managed to email Sarah Waters and get her advice on this idea. I researched he attitudes towards homosexuality in both time-zones and the fashions of the late 50's to get a basis of how I would show the main character throughout the story. I chose three scenes that showed her progression from unaware closeted girl to out and proud lesbian, this was a really interesting journey for the character to take as homosexuality was still shunned and even illegal for men at the time. Lesbianism in the 50s was split into different roles, you were either a butch; meaning you dressed in male attire and were the one who did the pleasuring in the relationship, or the femme; meaning you dressed in female attire and were the one who was pleasured in the relationship. It almost mimicked a heterosexual relationship but in doing so showed its difference too. From the novel I worked out that Nan (main character) would be a butch as throughout the story she is the one giving pleasure to her partners, and also she discovers that she feels more comfortable and herself in men's clothes.
I decided that for the first image Nan would be in a girly 1950's circle skirt dress, as women wore at the time, this scene was where she fell in love with the performer Kitty so first realised that a women could have romantic feelings towards another woman, thus she would not yet be dressed as a butch and would be in the attire her family/society found appropriate. In the second image she is with a new partner who 'keeps' her as her companion in return for pleasure, she dresses her as a man and parades her around on her arm in fine clothes, for this look I chose a Teddy boy aesthetic as Teddy boys were a youth movement where their main concern was looking good. For the final image I chose a scene from her final relationship as in this one she is finding her place in the lesbian society and is finding her freedom to express herself how she wants, instead of being controlled. For this one I chose a casual greaser look, more practical in her new domestic duties but still a butch style.
One done with the research I went to the costume store and also vintage shops to source the costumes for the shoot. I bought a ling line jacket and added velvet trim to the lapel, pocket and cuffs to make it look like a Teddy boy coat. I also bought a gold waistcoat with roman motif trim as this foreshadows the demise of that relationship which happens as Nan is dresses as Antinous, a roman page. In the costume store I found a 50s dress with roses on which foreshadows the moment in the photo where Kitty gives her a rose, and Nan's admiration spills over into love. I bought the t-shirt, neckerchief and jeans for the final image from the high-street and styled them on the model to reflect the greaser look I wanted, I then used my own yellow tea towel to have the colour to symbolise the hope and happiness she feels in this relationship and the freedom she now has that she's found her place in this world.
In this unit we detailed our own project outline and time plan, giving us near total control of our schedule and content. I found this enjoyable as I got to do exactly what I wanted with the story and I found I was less stressed by being able to plan my own time, but also I felt I could maybe have benefitted from more input from other so it maybe backfired on me there, which I will keep in mind for the next unit.
Due to scheduling difficulties with my model I chose to do the photoshoot myself at home. This made me feel more comfortable as I was in an environment I had control of and was comfortable in. I set up a little home made studio in my living room and took the photos myself, this didn't seem a problem as I've done photoshoots in college therefore knew what I was doing. I was nervous with the prospect of finding a model and MUA for this project as I get nervous around new people but the ladies I worked with were lovely and we actually had a nice time doing the photoshoot. I chose poses that reflected the attitude of Nan in that moment, I chose a private, admiring pose in image one to show her falling in love with Kitty as she gazes at the rose she received. I chose a quite confident, direct pose for image two as she is being shown off as the companion for the first time in her new 'coming out suit'. The third image has a direct but relaxed pose to show she is comfortable in her new relationship. I also made each image's lighting reflect the moment in the photo, I used a desk lamp to make a spotlight in the first image to reflect tha she's in a theatre seeing her crush perform, in image two I used daylight (using a reflector to even the light) as she is coming out for the first time in this relationship, and I used indoor lights for image three (made even with the reflector) as her last situation is a domestic environment. In the final edits I made each photo black and white to show the vintage style of the era I'd chosen, and left only the symbolic element of each image in colour to highlight them.
I completed final design sketches in black and white to show the vintage style of the project.
I enjoyed the freedom I had in this project and I feel it went well but for the next unit I hope to be more detailed in my work and for my work to take on a more professional feel and aesthetic.
Model; @dagbjortlilja95- Instagram
MUA; @lisa_hagart_mua- Instagram