As Van Gogh would have told you, getting exposure when you're an artist is a nightmare. So the Oxford Mail has teamed up with Modern Art Oxford to exhibit the work of up-and-coming artists from Oxfordshire.
To kick off the series, these photographs by Clare Fisher, 24, of Cowley, Oxford, demonstrate what happens when you combine a good sense of humour with a strong social message and the most domestic of settings.
I have worked in many mediums including painting and film, writes Clare Fisher, but it was during an exchange programme to the University of Ottawa, in Canada, that my passion for photography really developed.
My initial influence was in the Museum Of Modern Art, in New York, where I viewed an amazing photography exhibition.
I viewed an image called Dorothy True by Alfred Stieglitz (a picture of a women's leg and high heeled shoe) and my obsession with shoes took off from there! My ideas come to mind when I am in public places, or from magazines. My works are usually set up in real life situations people can relate to, but with a hint of humour and a disturbing nature.
They capture real life with a comic element, vibrant and captivating yet sending invaluable messages about the state of the world we live in.
The main image on this page, Trolley Dolly, was shot in a supermarket after the shop had closed. I set up the scene and placed everything exactly where I wanted it.
The idea behind this image was the lady couldn't cope with the expectations she was being put through and collapsed in the middle of shopping in the supermarket.
La Boucherie: The red handbag, red gloves and red colours of the meat in this photo are all linked together. The ideas behind this piece was about what we eat, wear and where it comes from. The blood red colours of the leather bag and leather glove were all chosen for this scene.
Again this image has a subtle sense of humour but the idea here is the link between the materials where all of the subject matter comes from. Cow's Pigs blood etc and its gruesome link with fashion and items that we buy.
Dyson: In this shot, the colour of shoes match the colour of the hoover, which gives us a comic link to how we organise our fashion accessories. Have we really got to the stage where we match our cleaning products? I think it shows a powerful statement of women in society today.
Pot: Pot again is portraying a task in a simple form. I have again set the image up and purposely chosen small details like an amazingly clean kitchen, plant and pink nail varnish on the models nails. She delicately pours water onto the plant like a doll. There is a surreal feeling in this photo of perfectionism, however the tap is running which distorts the idea of her being perfect.
No Spill: This is an image captured with humour in mind. She is cleaning the toilet with such dainty legs and shoes and yet her position shows otherwise as she scrubs the toilet. It's another idea of how the world has developed around us today. What is expected of us and how we should react. T My images overall are almost like adverts.
They invite the viewer to familiarise themselves with the situation but portray a funny yet compelling story of how we have developed our everyday life into a mass of consumerisation.
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