The largest part of our lives are spent sleeping in our beds, the second could be argued is spent in our workplace. Like it or not the jobs we hold form a significant part of our identity. Some of us shift about in varying career environments, whereas others are happy staying put in one place, and perhaps with one role for a lifetime. I have shifted around and returned to the job I trained in on leaving school – that of a plumber. My diary entries mainly focused on aspects of my job; the toll of manual labour, dissatisfaction of chasing payments, the bond between colleagues, the freedom of self-employment. I guess my diary entries are reflecting a shift in thinking with respect of my future and how I wish to progress.
For a while I was confused as to how to progress with the assignment. I had varying ideas but couldn’t settle on an outcome; whether to follow one strand or multiple. I knew I wanted to pursue a still life approach to show the unseen aspects of my work with a leaning towards abstraction or something visually appealing. I also decided early on to complete the assignment with my phone camera as this was the best way to make workplace still life’s.
On seeing Tom Sach’s Rockeths installation I also realised that the best way to convey the physicality of my work and to emphasise the labour required would be to make some more still life’s of the tools I use. I have a love hate relationship with this equipment, they enable me to maintain a level of pride in what I do, but, also, they are beginning to exact a toll on my body and I have become weary of them.
The final piece of the jigsaw was me. I felt it was important to show a little of myself, to allow my imprint on the story. I wanted to show signifiers that enable the viewer to understand the environment without spelling it out. I also wanted it to be reminiscent of snapshot images from old family albums, so I went in close with flash on, to give a stark shadow or highlights off reflective surfaces.
Context and Narrative 