Development One-Still Life

My first development photos are based on the work of John William Keedy. He uses still life within his work to portray mental illnesses such as anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. After analysing his work and completing responses to his work, I then did a shoot, using inspiration, to take images that also represent disorders such as anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. I used subjects such as notebooks, that have sentences such as 'be better' and 'don't be ill' to show the mind-set behind someone who has a mental illness, without actually featuring them in the shot. I then used food, to try and show the mind-set behind someone with OCD. I wanted to show how some people can't help but present their food in orders and lines to then eat it. 

I used the repetition of the words 'Be Better' and 'Don't Be Ill' within the open notebook to try and represent the thought process of someone who suffers from a mental illness. I used still life to capture the emotions of a mental illness without having to use a real life model, therefore exploring the idea of keeping the identity a person protected. This image was shot in the natural light, creating a contrast between the cream coloured paper and the dark blue background. 

In these images I wanted to experiment with both words and objects to create a still life image that represents both the effects and the thoughts behind a mental illness and someone who has a mental illness. Even though I have experimented with the form of post it notes and words, I don't think I will be developing this further in my project as I feel it doesn't carry enough depth to emotionally portray the struggles of a mental illness. Furthermore, I think I would be extremely limited in what I would be able to do with the post it notes, limiting my project.

I took this photo in a house that was previously occupied by a group of people who had mental illnesses. When walking around, I found writing on a wall that had clearly been neglected over time. I found this interesting enough to photograph because I felt it summed up the actions of some people who suffer from mental illnesses in the style of John William Keedy's style of work. He explores the effects of a mental illness and the routine that accompanies it through the use of objects and writing, just as this image does.