Ankie - STEVEN R. TABOR

Ankie

How do we construct an image?

This series was inspired by the joiner photography of David Hockney. In the late 1970s, David Hockney developed a pioneering photography concept---his "joiners". Hockney believed that people observe a scene from different perspectives and then join the images together in their minds to create an impression of what they've seen. Initially, he tried to create this same effect by taking and joining together 24 Polaroid prints. Later he switched to photo-lab processed 35mm photographs and created collages that took on a shape of their own.

This series contains images of Ms. Ankie van Kasteren. Ankie is a photographer, art student, and an art-nude model. For this series, Ankie served in three different capacities. First, she helped design and direct the photoshoot. Second, she was photographed as if she was taking the photos. And third, Ankie served as the model for the shoot. In one sense, these joined images could be interpreted as "staged selfies".

The series begins with Ankie posing with a mirror in her hand. These mirror images are designed to illustrate the transitory nature of portraits. These are followed by several collages that join images of Ankie as both the photographer and the subject of the photograph.

If you'd like to see the full series, download the PDF catalog here.