blackbox imaging by robin austen

Portfolio – Compiled selection of various photographic works.

Projects – Completed and ongoing commercial and personal projects to date. •  Runaway •  Corrpt/Disrpt •  Morning Glory •  90 Years •  In Transit/On the Busses •  Nudes

Contemporary photography by Robin Austen, specializing in all forms of high quality creative portraiture, fashion and beauty imagery. Many other areas and ideas are also explored through alternative, experimental and conceptual photographic personal projects, and commissioned series’. Education: Plymouth College of Art Membership: Royal Photographic Society   Website: www.blackboximaging.co.uk Corporate email: hello@blackboximaging.co.uk Personal email: robinlewisausten@aol.com

Projects •  Runaway •  Corrpt/Disrpt •  Morning Glory •  90 Years •  In Transit/On the Busses •  Nudes

Runaway Commercial commission for: Amica Bridal Boutique

Corrpt/Disrpt By using glitch techniques to alter, modify and destroy the raw code of a digital image, unexpected ghosting, aberrations and colour shifts occur, distorting the image and its meaning. This taps into the idea of the ‘new aesthetic’, and explores a new scopophilic desire to ‘see’ as the devices that are now integrated into modern life. A new sense of truth and authenticity is given by this process, which shows that there is much more present below the surface of digital images. By using typical fashion and beauty imagery as the source material, the viewer is asked to apply this same thinking to the often overly retouched images of the fashion and beauty industry .

Morning Glory This series explores ideas of natural beauty and the effect of the beauty industry, by observing and capturing women in an ongoing set of environmental portraits, before and during their daily early morning beauty regimes. By doing this, ‘imperfections’ that would normally be covered add character, narrative and a greater sense of identity, offsetting the guarded reactions of the sitters. This study allows a frank and stark investigation that demonstrates the effect of our relationship with, the discomfort of, and disconnection from, the natural self that many now feel.

90 Years This short editorial/documentary series documents the difficulties of elderly living for my 90 year old grandmother, shortly before her departure from the home she had lived in for half of her life, to a nursing facility due to dementia, Alzheimer's, blindness and other declining health conditions. It explores ideas of age, time, health, loneliness, and a sense of place, commenting on the harsh reality of living conditions for an ever growing elderly population.

In Transit/On the Busses This ongoing street/documentary project focuses on Plymouth’s Bretonside Bus Station, which has been a local landmark for decades, and is a key hub for transport to, from and around the city of Plymouth. With this Hub now scheduled for demolition, this series serves as a cross-sectional record of those who use and have come to depend on it. ! Through this, beautiful and unusual moments that occur in the mundane act of waiting, are observed and captured, creating a study of behaviour that is exhibited when we are forced to slow down from the fast pace of modern living.

Nudes This ongoing series explores ideas of beauty and the natural body through the study of the nude. By covering a wide range, where every age, size, gender and ethnicity is captured and presented on equal ground, no priority is given to any one 'perfected' form, but the unique and individual beauty of each is celebrated. By removing outside context, form can be observed clearly, and studied rather than judged. This creates a sense of isolation and a disconnection, commenting on the effect the beauty industry has had on our thinking and relationship to the natural body.