Artist inspiration and artist influences. No biographies, dates or scholarly research here - this is a personal response to the work of photographer Francesca Woodman by Australian artist Fiona Morgan.

When I first stumbled on a little exhibition at The Photographers Gallery in London I had no idea I was about to discover an artist who would tip my ideas of photographic and artist possibilities into another dimension.

I loved most of the images I saw, and there were more than just a few. My friend sensibly bought the book accompanying the exhibition. I didn't. Later when she came to stay I asked her to bring her copy along as I wanted to photocopy a few pics for my scrapbook of ideas & influences. It was only when I had earmarked nearly every page in the book that I realised I had to have my own copy. Which I promptly bought next time I was in London, down from Edinburgh. I spent weeks waiting until that next trip, terrified that the book may have sold out.

Why do her images make me swoon? They are playful. Sensuous. Ephemeral. Mysterious. Possibly deep and meaningful. They play with light, texture and pattern. They use natural light. They are driven by ideas. They use simple props and spaces. They are about seeing what is there lying around in new ways. They feel as though they each contain a story or a metaphor. They are unpretentious. They are undeniably an entirely individual voice.

Many people try and deconstruct the meaning and intent of her work, conjuring up long winded explanations and truly complicated motives. I like to think that her images are much simpler than many art critics suggest, more like beautiful photographic poetry. Why? Due to her down to earth approach as shown here - when asked by a friend why she obsessively photographed herself, Woodman replied: “It’s a matter of convenience, I am always available.”

I still have a stupidly difficult time picking my favourite Francesca Woodman images. Below is, believe it or not, an edited selection. Some of these may be NSFW:

All images are copyright the Estate of Francesca Woodman.

There is finally a film with her as the subject, 'The Woodmans'. Here is one review. Naturally I am keen to view it.

More Francesca Woodman links

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesca_Woodman

The Creative Cauldron series of posts explores and showcases the visual styles, techniques, attitudes, ideas, artists and paintings that have had the most impact on me. 

The rest of the series is accessible via the Creative Cauldron page. Have a meander if you please, and remember to check out my artworks on Flickr, and have an insider peek at life as an artist on Facebook.