Steve Pyke:
Steve Pyke (1957) is a British photographer who resides in New Orleans, Louisiana. Pyke is a renowned photographer who is best known for his intimate black and white portraits of various types of people from artists, philosophers and WW1 veterans. He has been honing in his creative journey for the last 40 years.
"The human face signals our emotions, suggests our cultural background. It is the naked part that we present to the world. Our faces speak realms about our identity. Our faces anchor us to our histories, our stories, and the stories of our ancestors. Our faces change with time and our faces absorb the passage of time. We tell our stories through our faces: how we present ourselves, how we use this personal canvas to convey not only our emotions, but also histories and identities." (Pyke, n.d.)
"When taking a portrait I rarely look into the ground glass of my camera except to momentarily check composition. I engage my sitters—we speak for far more time than I photograph. At certain points in our conversation I will photograph. It must be instinctual by now, but also I hope it creates spontaneity. Most of my frames are made looking at, and interacting with, my sitters." (Pyke, n.d.)
"Never stop seeing and opening yourself up to to the unexpected with strangers. These chance encounters are beautiful." (Pyke, n.d.)
From the quotes above taken from Steve Pyke's Bio on his website, it can be seen how important the human face is of revealing a persons true identity, feelings and their history. This can be seen in the opening line, "The human face signals our emotions, suggests our cultural background." (Pyke, n.d.) Everyone's faces present a view to that person to the world, whether that be the true representation depends on the photographer's creative interpretation. Pyke says, "Our faces anchor us to our histories, our stories, and the stories of our ancestors. Our faces change with time and our faces absorb the passage of time. We tell our stories through our faces: how we present ourselves, how we use this personal canvas to convey not only our emotions, but also histories and identities." (Pyke, n.d.) This quote explores how a person's face connects to various aspects whether it be the subjects personal or professional history and the view of their life throughout time. The stories behind each frame, each portrait, each person. Primarily how it is up to the person, in this case a photographer, to express the true representation of their subject.
"I engage my sitters—we speak for far more time than I photograph." (Pyke, n.d.) This quote creates a connection to my work as I havespent time building a relationship with the Stockport veterans at the produce hall. I spoke to each individual that I was attempting to show an intimate side to. By speaking to them, by learning, listening and trying to understand their history and fundermentaly the type of person they are, is the basis for the portrait. My second collaborative project with the veteran community was to showcase an intimate side to each veteran. I decided to focus on this prospective after I engaged with the group, when they felt comfortable being around me as a photographer and most importantly a fellow person. By having the relationship between myself and the group being already established, it made the process of taking intimate portraits easier for myself and primarily the subjects. To tell their story through the simplicity of removing aspects that distracted the viewer from the subjects face.
Pyke's work is shot in square format while in black and white. His work presents controversial aspects such as having the frame of the image cut of parts of the members face. By removing the use of colour it becomes more refined. The sole focus becomes on the subjects face, with this added with having a blank backdrop results in aanstory being formed within the frame.
Justin Watrin, a French veteran of World War I, Verdun 12th June 1993. He fought at the Battle of Verdun in 1916. (Photo by Steve Pyke/Getty Images)
John Norton, a veteran of World War I, on Long Island, USA, 1993. (Photo by Steve Pyke/Getty Images)
Harry Halford, a British veteran of World War I, Leicester 16th March 1996. ©Steve Pyke
Images Steve Pyke 2021 | Getty Images Archive
Steve Pyke's Artist Statement:
The work of Pyke's will be the main inspiration for my project entitled 'Veterans: An Intimate Prospective.' It was discovering Pyke's work that lead me to which creative path to take my work.
References:
www.pyke-eye.com. (n.d.). STEVE PYKE MBE | Photographer | PYKE - EYE [online] Available at: https://www.pyke-eye.com. (Accessed 8th April 2024)