Cubism was a well-known artistic movement which happened in 1907 in France. It has expanded to inspire various different artists, and motivate different forms of this type of art such as photo joinery.

The movement featured surfaces of geometrical planes and allowed paintings to become more realistic ironically, as this type of art can be described as abstract. Because the artist can draw the subject from different angles they are able to make it appear more 3-D and life-like. The key concept of cubism is being able to capture the essence and narrative of the object by seeing at different angles and points of view simultaneously.

Two very well-known artists associated with Cubism were George Braque and Pablo Picasso as they developed this movement.

Cubism was a massive influence to the more-modern movement of photo-joinery. Both art forms allow the viewer to sense narrative and a change in time. The artist’s capture changes through the different angles and view points that are positioned together and create a simultaneous perspective. They differ as one is painted and the other is printed but they share the same aspects.

Pablo Picasso born October 1881 was a Spanish painter who was most well-known for his development with fellow artist George Braque (a French artist and sculptor born 1882). They used monochrome brownish and neutral colours. Pablo’s most famous Cubist work was the painting called ‘Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (The Young Ladies of Avignon- 1907) which depicted naked prostitutes shown from different perspectives through the use of geometrical shapes. Braque’s most famous piece of work was ‘Woman with a Guitar’ (1913) which showed geometric shapes creating a simultaneous perspective - much like photo-joinery.

The artist then furthered the development of this genre which was called synthetic Cubism and consisted of collages made from paper fragments (newspaper, magazines) and positioned and pasted into composition. In photomontages this is exactly what is done except the paper used is made up of your own photos. I believe this is where photo-joinery came from and how photographers found inspiration.

This is a cubism portrait of Ambroise Vollard (art dealer). From first glance it looks as if there is a floating head amongst darkness, when we look closer we can see he has a body, it just blends in with the murky background. The man is looking down and this is unusual as normally in a portrait you can see people’s eyes. He looks sad and as if he has no confidence or power. The geometrical shapes have been very effective in creating a 3-D perspective and allow us to see the same person but from several different angles – simultaneously.

The rule of thirds within photography would not apply to this portrait as there are too many and don’t really lead you to anything. The picture is cluttered however because of the colours the main subject is clear The lighting is effective as there are highlights up against the dark shapes which creates an outline – even if it’s not obvious straightaway.

I believe this portrait suggests that this man isn’t particularly happy or confident within himself. This picture shows weakness and the dark colours I believe reflect the mood of the person. He was once described as a: “large, gruff, boorish fellow" with "downcast eyes”.

In my opinion this portrait is really effective as it suggests mystery and is different from the typical portraits; it’s quite dynamic.

This image shows a disjointed woman playing a guitar (this is not obvious but the name and the lips suggest this). The colours are quite neutral but the outlines are very prominent especially the strings of the guitar. This painting differs from Picasso’s as this is more abstract and concentrates on shape rather than features and the likeness.

The black shapes really stand out against the light background. There is good contrast which makes the picture appear less cluttered, even though at a closer look there are lots of things going on. Lines similar to Pablo’s Ambroise Vollard don’t lead your eyes to anything as there are too many of them.

I think this painting represents sadness likewise with Picasso’s as the expression on the person’s face is gloomy. The colours also signify eeriness, as in other paintings of Braque’s such as ‘Le Viaduc à L'Estaque, 1908’ the bright greens and yellows represent happiness.

In my opinion I think this is effective in showing a simultaneous perspective all different angles but I do not like the sad impression it gives, and I don’t think that it is very dynamic or interesting.

Stephen Cross is a professional photographer who has worked specifically with joiner

photography since 1997 and tries to seek new ways of escaping conventional photography, by

experimenting and testing different styles of encapsulating space and time.

Stephen Cross’ interest in this type of photography was inspired by the Cubist movement and specifically the surrealist – Pablo Picasso. He discovered that it allowed him to create unconventional images that captured simultaneous moments. This style of photography like cubism could capture a sense of time, space and colour as the 3-D format allows you explore the layers. Cross uses montage and collage techniques to create visually engaging photographs.