Carousel 2008
Giclee prints
120 cm x 120cm
Paauwe’s award winning series Carousel explores the effectiveness of her medium as a tangible substance, morphed into images of beauty, sentiment, metaphor and timeless universal values. Restricting her subject matters to young adults enable a tight boundary to be drawn around the subject matter, Paauwe’s forensic inspection of the ‘specimen’ resembles that of peering quizzically through a microscope. The purposeful act of obscuring the faces of her subject matter’s inaugurates a sense of mystery; as reinforced by the meaning swirling behind the title; the unknown and a possibly unknowable secrecy, additionally this technique coerces the viewer to scrutinise the camera’s account of the hands, feet and fabrics. Shot from a high angle, the viewer examines the frail girl who is entirely denied personal differentiation, drained by the decolouration of the light and the enveloping related tones of creamy cotton, satin and chiffon. Free from digital manipulation and studio based shots, Paauwe utilises costume and the soft effect of lighting to accentuate her subject matter. The model is presented as either adamantly pointed away from the camera or with an array of brunette hair meticulously concealing an enigmatic face that the audience yearns to see. As is common with Paauwe’s works, the vibrancy and freshness of youth is purposely veiled, bared necks, exposed shoulders and vulnerable expanse of back are susceptible to view. The various positions adorned by the subject matters are indicative of a certain secrecy and the complete vulnerability depicted when the arms are stretched to either side of square confines such that the viewer is compelled to uncover the fathomless depths of what constitutes Paauwe's ouvere. The choice of costume evokes societal values of previous decades, the incongruous manner in which the dress is adorned amplifies an underlying sense of peculiarity that is how the subject matter the remains and almost in a constant state of self-awareness, this portrayal is typically aligned with the childlike action of dressing up and innocently play acting for the sake of enjoyment is absent in this series. The catatonic stiff movements of the Carousel series are suggestive of modesty and highlights the flawed beauty of shorn finger- nails, ill-suited gowns and stained frocks which is consequently reflective of societal expectations of emerging young women in archaic aristocratic society. The subconscious act of suppressing emotions that is yet another of Paauwe's recurring values is stemmed from her partial Chinese heritage, the subtle concealment of feelings from society's piercing glare is what that Paauwe encapsulates. Paauwe intertwines the universality of this prevailing value in young women in contemporary society as an ongoing issue yet to be addressed.
The form of the photographs of ‘restless mystery’ grooms the young women into almost faux-beings, as each is aesthetically geometrical and symmetrical nature of the photographs adds a slight unsettling quality to this series; a solitary circle enclosed in a square. The extensive employment of the rule of thirds emphasise the focus on the subject and the compositional reminiscence of the centralised orb of the eye adds to the scrutiny effect, which seemingly stare back at the viewer. This fixed gaze is indicative of the endurance of the print and notion that the camera cannot measure to the eye, as the art of photography is a merciless act of scrutiny and perceiving imperfections. Paauwe ultimately manipulates tenuous link between reality, image and memory through the piercing lens of the Carousel series.
Giclee prints
120 cm x 120cm
Paauwe’s award winning series Carousel explores the effectiveness of her medium as a tangible substance, morphed into images of beauty, sentiment, metaphor and timeless universal values. Restricting her subject matters to young adults enable a tight boundary to be drawn around the subject matter, Paauwe’s forensic inspection of the ‘specimen’ resembles that of peering quizzically through a microscope. The purposeful act of obscuring the faces of her subject matter’s inaugurates a sense of mystery; as reinforced by the meaning swirling behind the title; the unknown and a possibly unknowable secrecy, additionally this technique coerces the viewer to scrutinise the camera’s account of the hands, feet and fabrics. Shot from a high angle, the viewer examines the frail girl who is entirely denied personal differentiation, drained by the decolouration of the light and the enveloping related tones of creamy cotton, satin and chiffon. Free from digital manipulation and studio based shots, Paauwe utilises costume and the soft effect of lighting to accentuate her subject matter. The model is presented as either adamantly pointed away from the camera or with an array of brunette hair meticulously concealing an enigmatic face that the audience yearns to see. As is common with Paauwe’s works, the vibrancy and freshness of youth is purposely veiled, bared necks, exposed shoulders and vulnerable expanse of back are susceptible to view. The various positions adorned by the subject matters are indicative of a certain secrecy and the complete vulnerability depicted when the arms are stretched to either side of square confines such that the viewer is compelled to uncover the fathomless depths of what constitutes Paauwe's ouvere. The choice of costume evokes societal values of previous decades, the incongruous manner in which the dress is adorned amplifies an underlying sense of peculiarity that is how the subject matter the remains and almost in a constant state of self-awareness, this portrayal is typically aligned with the childlike action of dressing up and innocently play acting for the sake of enjoyment is absent in this series. The catatonic stiff movements of the Carousel series are suggestive of modesty and highlights the flawed beauty of shorn finger- nails, ill-suited gowns and stained frocks which is consequently reflective of societal expectations of emerging young women in archaic aristocratic society. The subconscious act of suppressing emotions that is yet another of Paauwe's recurring values is stemmed from her partial Chinese heritage, the subtle concealment of feelings from society's piercing glare is what that Paauwe encapsulates. Paauwe intertwines the universality of this prevailing value in young women in contemporary society as an ongoing issue yet to be addressed.
The form of the photographs of ‘restless mystery’ grooms the young women into almost faux-beings, as each is aesthetically geometrical and symmetrical nature of the photographs adds a slight unsettling quality to this series; a solitary circle enclosed in a square. The extensive employment of the rule of thirds emphasise the focus on the subject and the compositional reminiscence of the centralised orb of the eye adds to the scrutiny effect, which seemingly stare back at the viewer. This fixed gaze is indicative of the endurance of the print and notion that the camera cannot measure to the eye, as the art of photography is a merciless act of scrutiny and perceiving imperfections. Paauwe ultimately manipulates tenuous link between reality, image and memory through the piercing lens of the Carousel series.