We try to harmonize each issue of Bleached Bleached with the present moment, be it during a shift of seasons or a bend in thought. Now with spring moving towards summer, the tone of light is stirring up the contrasts of surface and palette and light becomes a major influencer on the temperament of summer months. It is here that we arrive at our pick for issue 11, a new series of black and white photographs by artist Vivian Joyner.
Much of her work explores topics of femininity through both the interiors and the protagonists captured. She is exceptional at catching subtle details in a gaze, a gesture, a hanging mirror, a staircase. There is often an exploration of place and mood, specifically that of her native south.
This new series entitled You smell clean, you smell white, like sunscreen on a hot summer day, replaces an exact geography with a seamless backdrop. The effect is a tight focus on how her subject moves through a minimal space, her action or non-action. The postures seem interpretive, translating definitions of femininity and character.
And, the light. She captures this seasonal light of late spring, the brightness, the clarity and the shadows created in contrast. Extraneous details are removed from the picture plane so that appreciating each image on a formal scale is straighforward. The grayscale accentuates the details in line, the textures of the costumes, and perhaps this sense of present time.
Vivian Joyner lives and works in Los Angeles. She received her MFA at CalArts. To see more of her work: www.vivianjoyner.com
For a downloadable pdf version: http://ikoikospace.com/bleached-bleached/issue-no-11/
