Process
Abbas Kiarostami
Abbas Kiarostami is one of my favourite directors. He is known to seamlessly blend documentary and fiction often leaving the viewer questioning. When relating this to my memory work I like to think that memories are also a seamless blend between fact and fiction, our brains have filled in gaps with out us even knowing and as time passes we are more disillusioned from the actual events that have accrued in out lives. His films are gentle and slow, savouring the mundane aspects of life while exposing the hardships of hardships existence. I am particularly inspired by the way he frames his shots. The colours and composition is something that I like to consider when laying out a painting. Here are a few of my favourite scenes from his films & what I enjoy about them:
Close Up, 1990
The scene with the kicked can.
The relation between man and object.
The colours of Tehran.
The pile of leaves suggesting autumn.
The colour of the green Can stands out from its surroundings, but also imitates what is in the hands of the man.
The mystery in these men.
The contrasting bright pink flowers.
The end perspective point of the road.
The visual higherarchy.
the diagonality
the soft lighting
the warmth
The framing and the distance created by it.
The vouyeristic look into this conversation
Where is the Friends House, 1987
The Zig-zag, the journey
The slither of sky
How something steep is made to look flat.
Life and Nothing More... 1992
The rubble - I want to take elements from this and apply them to my paintings
The sunny blue sky hijacking the anguish and despair of the people who lost their homes to the earthquake.
The framing of the car window
The attempt to hide behind the tree while peeing
The Wind Will Carry Us, 1999
The light that draws the viewer's attention
The colour the created by the shade on the mud buildings
The lack of straight edges
The top-down perspective
The gesture of the man and the stature of the chicken - both dressed in black
The weaving architecture that is more suggested than obvious
Reference list:
Close Up. (1990). [Film] World-wide: Celluloid Dreams.
Life and Nothing More... (1992). [Film] Facets Multimedia Distribution.
The Wind Will Carry Us. (1999). [Film] UK: ICA.
Where Is the Friend’s House? (1987). [Film] UK: ICA.