Eleanor Hardwick Essay ...

Eleanor Hardwick

By charnee smith

Introduction

In this essay I am going to concentrate on the work and look at life of Miss Eleanor Hardwick. I am going to discuss some of her favourite pieces and also look at what she has achieved in her life with the work which she has produced. There are many photographs that I love which she has created but I am going to only concentrate on the photographs that stand out to me the most and the ones that catch my eye straight away. I am going to talk about 5 of her photographs that I love and which have inspired me.

About Eleanor Hardwick …

Born in Oxfordshire, England in 1993, Eleanor became interested in photography at the age of twelve when she began to take photos of collectable Japanese fashion dolls, leading the hobby to progress into a passion for portraiture and fashion. When researching for information on this wonderful photographer I noticed that she called most of her photographs dreamscapes, I also found an interview with the artist herself and one of the questions was … why do you enjoy photographing people so much and what inspired you to take portraiture photographs ?. Her answer to that question was “Ever since I was little I have loved to draw people, I never seemed to have much interest in sketching landscapes or still life. I guess I am very drawn by how versatile people are; everyone is different, and every photographic situation is something new and never been done before. I suppose a famous landmark, such as the Eiffel Tower, can only be photographed in so many ways, but a single person is constantly changing both physically and mentally.” I have found her very inspiring towards the work that I want to try and create.

Jack wills

Eleanor Hardwick has been involved in the fashion makers of jack wills to help create there handbook for 2O1O. In there I found some lovely imagery which really caught my eye because they were very strong but at the same time very serene.

When I took my first look at the photographs I could tell straight away that they were for a famous clothing range like Jack Wills. I love how they’re very un-original they are and something extra-ordinary. With the photograph on the left I love how serious the model is and I also love the location of the photograph. I love how you’ve got a beautiful old glasshouse in the background with the old fashioned water fountain which looks like the photograph has been taken from an old derelict grand house. And then you’ve got the colourful ducks in the pond makes your eyes drawn to lower part of the photograph and then you get brought to the model herself in the simplest outfit. Altogether the photograph come together very well it makes it look like a typical old English photograph with the outfit and location all you need is the rain to go along with it all.

With the photograph on the right I love how it’s the opposite of the photograph on the left.  With this photograph it looks like a beautiful sunny day in the summer of playtime. Where as in the other photograph it looked like the spring where it’s not too warm to be wearing shorts. I really like the simple location which has been chosen to shoot this photograph in. It looks like a teenage pool party which is so much fun and laughter, which gives this photograph its best qualities.

Self on Bicycle with Balloons

Ever since I first laid my eyes on the photograph I have always loved it. I love how soft and how old fashioned the photograph is because of the way the photograph has been composed.  It just looks like a classical photograph which is very unique seeming as it is a self-portrait of the photographer itself. I love the colours which have developed in the photograph there very easy on the eyes and also very pastille. I love the shadows on the road from the trees I think it gives the photograph more depth and a lot more texture. When you first look at the photograph the first thing your eyes get drawn to is the bicycle with the balloons tied to it and then your eyes draw to the road to see where she is going and then you get to see the shadows on the road and then you look up and see the trees in the beautiful sunlight. I absolutely love this photograph and there is nothing I would change, it’s just a great all round photograph which will always be loved. 

Elies 

With this particular photograph I love how very mystical it is because you can only see the outline of the model and then you can only see a light floatie dress which is just falling elegantly off the model. What I really love about the photograph is how you have got the balloons which look like there just floating around on their own and then you have the light shining through the balloons them self. What I really like about this photograph is how it resembles a circus. It’s just the way it looks like you have got a massive show light behind the model and then you’ve got the balloons which makes the photograph look very theatrical which is what I love about it. With this photograph there’s not just one thing you can look at it keeps your eyes busy and also makes your imagination go wild because it could resemble anything. I love how simple this photograph is she has thought the photograph out pretty well and kept all the colours so simple with the plain, white floatie dress and then the colourful balloons so it’s not too over powering on the eyes. 

Butterfly catching

What I love about this photograph is how magical and theatrical the photograph is because of the way it has been composed. With most of her photographs when you come it, it looks like they’ve come out of a

fairy-tale children’s storybook which I love because of the imagination she has used with each photograph and what great deal of thought and imagination has gone into each photograph. What I love about this photograph is how simple it is because of the colours which have been used and because of the location on which it has been taken. Again like most of her photographs, this photograph is very old fashioned because of the soft and light, pastille colours which have been developed within the photograph.  Even though when you look at the photograph you can tell the butterflies have been edited in, it hasn't put the photograph at a great down fall because it’s still a beautiful and lovely piece of work yet again by the lovely Eleanor Hardwick. 

Conclusion

So to conclude this essay, my aim was to concentrate on look at the different pieces of work that Eleanor Hardwick creates and what I like about them. To help me do that I talked about 5 pieces of her work which really stands out to me the most. Another one of my aims was to get to know her a little bit better which I think I have completed. Since I first laid my eyes on her work I have been so inspired which is what I have tried to put forward towards this essay because her work is so beautiful. I just can’t wait now to see what she can put together in the future because I can’t wait to see the final photographs and to be inspired with that work more in my photography because she really inspires me with ideas to put forward and it also makes me want to try more daring ideas with my photographs and also brings me out of my comfort zone.