Week 7: Luis Gispert

During my critique last week I was recommended to look at Luis Gispert’s Cheerleader series. I am very happy about this recommendation because it is exactly the type of work I should be looking at for inspiration for my work. Gispert’s depictions of these cheerleaders are heavily styled. I love the fake nails and large amount of gold jewelry used in the piece.  Although they are stylized there is something slightly off with each photograph. It is hard to pinpoint but it’s either the facial expressions or the actions of the cheerleaders.

The work above are my selected favorites from the series. I like the consistency of the green background. I find it a weird and slightly off-putting photo as opposed to the classic white or black backdrop used in photographs. The first two photographs have a slight type of alien vibe to them. I think this has to do with the position Gispert was able to capture the girls. They seem as though the are floating in space. The photograph of the foot and hand with fake nails is kind of gross. The foot and hand looks almost identical because of the same nails and rings placed on both parts. The photo shows glamour but in a weird way. There's a lot of gold and a red car but since the nails are also on the foot it sort of pushes you away from that idea. The last photo is my favorite. I love the way the girl is styled and her action is very confusing. Why is the gold chain coming out of her mouth? How was Gispert able to capture this? 

As I work more on my work this semester I want to heavily stylized my photo shoots. I have already planned to buy dollar store fake nails for my shoots but I want the shoots to be slightly odd. I want the photographs to feel weird and staged. I don’t want the viewer to completely understand what is going on. Looking at Gispert's work is very inspiring. 

Working with black and white film will be a struggle if I want to create photographs such as depicted above. I do not think I would have the same feeling towards the photographs if they were shown in black and white. In my own work I am going to have to use less colorful props that still depict the same idea. Although what I am focused on is gotti/soprano/mafia style the props still overlap with what I am thinking about. 

Additionally, there is so much going on in the photos that setting really isn't necessary. Although it will be a challenge for me to create settings at school I think that some of my photographs could have a basic background if a lot if going on in the photo. When I do not have enough time or can't find the right place to take my photographs I will definitely make sure there is enough action going on in the frame to still convey and interesting atmosphere and vibe. 

Lastly, I like how you can't really depict the ages of the women photographed. They do not seem young enough to be cheerleader but they also are not older women. I think this also adds to some of the off-putting vibes that come from the series. It makes the outfits feel out of place.