Robert Mapplethorpe

I was looking through the most recent issue of Vogue last night and read an article on Patti Smith talking about her relationship with Robert Mapplethorpe. I loosely covered Mapplethorpes work while studying a couple of years ago but never got deep into any kind of research about him so was unaware that he had a relationship with Patti Smith. They had met accidentally in a bookshop in New York in the late sixties, their main bond was work, art and love. The article briefly mentioned Mapplethorpe taking up Polaroid photography which to be honest untill last night I had no idea about! I'm ashamed. So today I've been looking up some of his earlier work with polaroids, and less naked men, and found them quite refreshing and some amazing! I'm a little sad I didnt delve deeper into Mapplethorpes work while studying Photography, but theres always time for that now. I've collected a few of his early Polaroids which I love and are really inspiring so take a look.

^my personal favourite^

middle and left Patti Smith, right Marianne Faithful.

You can buy a book which has a collection of his Polaroids and essays by Sylvia Wolf on around 300 of his Polaroids!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mapplethorpe-Polaroids-Sylvia-Wolf/dp/3791338358

You can also buy 'Just Kids' by Patti Smith, it is a tribute to her love and relationship with Mapplethorpe, as well an incisive account on being young, ambitious and artistic in Seventies New York.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Just-Kids-Patti-Smith/dp/0747548404/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266944519&sr=1-1

high tide

I met up with my friend Karley on Saturday morning for a little photo sesh on the beach for her Uni Exhibition, I took a couple photos with my Spectra while standing around...

You can see a couple of the images taken by Karley Knight here - www.flickr.com/photos/karleyknight

w h i t e - o u t

Fifty Two Weeks 2009

Last year I started and completed a 52 week project, where I took at least one photo per week for a whole year! I documented this on my Flickr, here are a few of them and here is a link to the full set...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/leannesurfleet/sets/72157612711875236/

I have started a new 52 week project for 2010, heres a sneak peek at the first few weeks of this year...

Check more out here - www.flickr.com/photos/leannesurfleet

Miss Woodman

I have to pay a bit of a tribute to Francesca Woodman, she is one of my biggest inspirations.

I've never been so in love with black and white images as I am with Woodman's work. Theres so much I want to say about her but I can never find the right words that would do her work justice.




I love how she dominates almost every one of her photographs but at the same time blends in with the soft grey tones and backgrounds. The movement and motion paired with slow shutter speeds makes her and the other female models almost invisible and speaks volumes about females in society, not being seen or heard, blending in with the background.


I find it heartbreaking that such a talented young woman ended her own life after problems with her relationship, depression and not being noticed with her work. And it makes me more angry that it seems that people only take notice once your dead. Her books are rare and out of print and the ones being sold second hand are in the 100's of pounds. If only she had this kind of exposure when she was alive. She achieved so much by the age of 22, I'm 22 now and dont think I could achieve such amazing and meaningful images in all my life.

Beginning

I have started a new blog. This will mainly be used to document my inspirations for photography and lots of my own work. :)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/leannesurfleet