Alec Soth Research

Alec Soth is a is a photographer born and based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Soth makes "large-scale American projects", mostly based in the midwestern United States. His photography has a cinematic feel with elements hinting a story behind the image. He has published over twenty-five books including Sleeping by the Mississippi, Niagara and Songbook. Alec Soth has had over fifty solo exhibitions including survey shows organized by Jeu de Paume in Paris and Media Space in London. He has received many fellowships and awards, including the Guggenheim Fellowship in 2013. In 2008, Soth created his own business - Little Brown Mushroom. This is a multi-media enterprise focused on visual storytelling.

This image is from Soth's ' Sleeping by the Mississippi' collection. I like how the whole of this image is red, apart from the woman herself who is dressed in blue and white. The solemn look on her face makes her appear lonely and disheartened. We can assert from the hearts on the wall and the red banner on the window that says 'day' that it is valentines day. This could possibly be the reason why the woman looks so alone. 

This is an image from the 'Songbook' collection. It is intriguing that this image is in black and white as the model appears to be fun and high-spirited. Most images that show the model with this kind of emotion would be in colour to add to the fun and lively elements. However, I like that this image is in black and white as it allows you to solely focus on the model and take in her expression of happiness. As she is wearing a cheerleading costume, when you see her expression you can tell that she is doing something she loves.

This image is from the 'Dog Days, Bogota' series. I find this image to be very captivating as it is so unique. Whilst the image has quite muted and dull colours, the assortment of toys that are hanging from the wall make the image seem strange and makes you wonder why they are hung in this way. The person in the image appears to be sat on a bed with a large pile of blankets next to her. It seems to be the persons bed, which adds to the uniqueness of the image as it means that Alec Soth would have been invited into the persons house to take the image.