Francesca Woodman
Francesca Woodman (1958-1981) achieved a lot in her short life that lasted only 22 years. No matter how much the older generation criticizes the youth, there are some young people who deserve genuine respect even if they do not meet the demands of society. Francesca did not earn any money, her personal life did not work out and she did not have children, but she was ahead of her time and is regarded now as classic in the art of photography.
Francesca Woodman was born into a family of artists. Her father George taught at the university and was an abstract painter. Her mother Betty was working with ceramics. The Woodman house was crammed with her parents' paintings and Art was always a subject for discussion at home and it was greatly encouraged. Every summer the family traveled to Florence, Italy that was the heart of the Renaissance.
Francesca Woodman was born into a family of artists. Her father George taught at the university and was an abstract painter. Her mother Betty was working with ceramics. The Woodman house was crammed with her parents' paintings and Art was always a subject for discussion at home and it was greatly encouraged. Every summer the family traveled to Florence, Italy that was the heart of the Renaissance.
Francesca Woodman
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«Real things don't frighten me, just the ones in my mind do».
At 13, Francesca told parents that she wanted to take pictures. Father presented her a camera, taught some basic lessons and very soon her first masterpieces were born. After high school the young lady enrolled at the Rhode Island School of Design. There she studied the art of photography. Francesca was the best on the faculty, she was admired and she was envied.
Francesca was already an artist when she entered college, with her own creative system, her own vision, her own unique style. She went to Rome for a year on a student exchange program. During that year she made a creative leap. Francesca became a regular at the Florentine bookstore and the gallery “Libreria Maldoror” which hosted her first and only exhibition in her lifetime. When alma mater gave Francesca all she could take, the young genius set out to conquer New York.
Francesca was already an artist when she entered college, with her own creative system, her own vision, her own unique style. She went to Rome for a year on a student exchange program. During that year she made a creative leap. Francesca became a regular at the Florentine bookstore and the gallery “Libreria Maldoror” which hosted her first and only exhibition in her lifetime. When alma mater gave Francesca all she could take, the young genius set out to conquer New York.
Sadly, but New York was the beginning of the end. The talented teenager sent portfolio to fashion magazines but her efforts fell on deaf ears, no one wanted to give her a job. Francesca worked as a part-time typist, she was also a third photographer assistant. The staff could not shake the feeling that they were helping a mediocre foreign photographer while an unadmitted talent had to drag equipment.
Francesca desperately dreamed of success but could not achieve it. She had relationship issues. She began to suffer from depression. It provoked Francesca into her first suicide attempt in the fall of 1980. She survived, received psychiatric treatment and moved back to her parents in Manhattan. In early winter, Francesca published a photo book entitled “Some disordered interior Geometries”.
Woodman often used long shutter speed and double exposures when filming so that she could actively feature in her own work. It also helped her to capture different stages of movement, in a way that could trace the pattern of time. As a result the photographs are blurred which suggests motion and the transience of the passing time.
Soon two minor events became the final straw – the art grant was rejected and someone stole her bicycle. Her parents suspected that she had stopped taking medication. These small things played a tragic role in the life of a girl who was dealing with depression.
Being overwhelmed by unbearable thoughts and emotions in January 19, 1981 Francesca jumped out the window of a high-rise building. For a long time her body was unrecognizable and it was only by clothing her parents identified their daughter. Francesca was dying absolutely sure of her insignificance.
Francesca desperately dreamed of success but could not achieve it. She had relationship issues. She began to suffer from depression. It provoked Francesca into her first suicide attempt in the fall of 1980. She survived, received psychiatric treatment and moved back to her parents in Manhattan. In early winter, Francesca published a photo book entitled “Some disordered interior Geometries”.
Woodman often used long shutter speed and double exposures when filming so that she could actively feature in her own work. It also helped her to capture different stages of movement, in a way that could trace the pattern of time. As a result the photographs are blurred which suggests motion and the transience of the passing time.
Soon two minor events became the final straw – the art grant was rejected and someone stole her bicycle. Her parents suspected that she had stopped taking medication. These small things played a tragic role in the life of a girl who was dealing with depression.
Being overwhelmed by unbearable thoughts and emotions in January 19, 1981 Francesca jumped out the window of a high-rise building. For a long time her body was unrecognizable and it was only by clothing her parents identified their daughter. Francesca was dying absolutely sure of her insignificance.
«Am I in the picture? Am I getting into it or out of it? I could be a ghost, an animal or a dead body, not just a girl standing on the corner…».
Each photograph of Woodman is a small performance; she is an artist of paradoxes. Masks, mirrors, cracked walls - Francesca paints a theatre frozen in time. Woodman applied some of the techniques of surrealism. She created a mythical atmosphere with interesting and unusual objects and often combined familiar objects in unfamiliar surroundings.
Here is a photograph made in Rome. Francesca peers around the corner of the mirror and regards her own reflection in the uneven mirror with curiosity. Her face is grim and serious. The mirror leans against the wall with a corner. Shadows fill the space in the corners to the right and left. And that's it. A very intimate photograph where pictorial language is kept to a minimum, but it is a true masterpiece.
Here is a photograph made in Rome. Francesca peers around the corner of the mirror and regards her own reflection in the uneven mirror with curiosity. Her face is grim and serious. The mirror leans against the wall with a corner. Shadows fill the space in the corners to the right and left. And that's it. A very intimate photograph where pictorial language is kept to a minimum, but it is a true masterpiece.
There were several creative periods in Francesca's short life. In Providence Woodman studied. In Italy she was happy, surrounded by beautiful interiors and the works of old masters. In New York she suffered.
Woodman's career can be divided into periods only conventionally based on her age and place of residence. We are dealing with a photographic cycle, where all the works – made at 13, 18 or 22 – overlap with each other and speak the same language...
Francesca Woodman made more than 10,000 negatives, which are kept by her parents. Woodman's legacy, which is also managed by her parents, consists of more than 800 prints of which only 120 have been published and exhibited publicly. Her legacy is so complete and substantial that sometimes it is hard to believe that these works were created by a teenager!
After her death, Francesca Woodman became a legend. It is impossible to imagine the history of art and photography without her works today. She had a short life full of artistic victories, discoveries and disappointments.
Woodman's career can be divided into periods only conventionally based on her age and place of residence. We are dealing with a photographic cycle, where all the works – made at 13, 18 or 22 – overlap with each other and speak the same language...
Francesca Woodman made more than 10,000 negatives, which are kept by her parents. Woodman's legacy, which is also managed by her parents, consists of more than 800 prints of which only 120 have been published and exhibited publicly. Her legacy is so complete and substantial that sometimes it is hard to believe that these works were created by a teenager!
After her death, Francesca Woodman became a legend. It is impossible to imagine the history of art and photography without her works today. She had a short life full of artistic victories, discoveries and disappointments.