This is a black and white photograph showing Ewan Crosby. Looking at his facial expression, it shows no emotions, both his eyes are staring at the camera suggesting to the viewer that they need to do something – this emphasises himself not the image. Considering that Ewan’s clothing is formal, it is likely that he is wanting the viewer to support him. The photograph was taken on a diagonal vantage point, framing Ewan’s whole head, and including the upper half of his body, showing his coat and tie.
The image was taken in a studio as Ewan is brighter than the black plain background. Artificial light must have been used as well because Ewan’s right part of his face is brighter compared to his left face which has a lot of shadow covering it. The photograph is a close-up; this camera shot shows how grainy the photo is as well as Ewan’s sturdy posture. Also, looking at the lighting of the image, you can see that Ewan’s face is much lighter compared to the dark coat he is wearing. His light shirt enables the edges of his coat to form a vertical line, pointing to his light face.
Ewan is a strong adherent to Communism; he especially admires Vladimir Lenin (also known as Vladimir Ilʹich Lenin) – the photograph is inspired by a Vladimir Lenin portrait. Lenin founded the Marxist-socialism system called “Communism” in the former Russian Empire (which tried to redistribute wealth, abolish the aristocracy, impose control over the means production, and make a more equitable society); he did this through violent means according to Britannica. Communism is a type of government and economic system that involves people not owning any land, machinery, or factories. The government/whole community owns them. In communism, everyone is expected to share the wealth they create.
What catches my eye in the portraiture is Ewan’s gaze at the camera. What stands out emphatically is the portraiture’s tone (black and white), which symbolises authority and dignity. My eye first looks at Ewan’s eyes, his glasses, lips, then clothing – my eye keeps coming back to his eyes. The emotion, authority, suggests to the viewer that Ewan is a well-respected figure in a formal job. The emotion, dignity, suggests to the viewer that Ewan is hard-working in his job and that he desires to excel in it.
My portraiture features a vertical line that extends from the edges of his coat to his face (the strongest visual force). The viewer could read the vertical line from up to down: The strongest
parts of the frame by quadrant are the first and third quadrants. The emotions elicited by the vertical line are number 1, authority, and number 2, stability. The emotion, authority, suggests to the viewer that Ewan is a well-respected figure in a formal job. The emotion, stability, suggests to the viewer that Ewan desires to excel in his job by his reputation and that he strives to be stable in his job; his gaze encourages the viewer to support him
