Jan grew up and was born in Plain field, New Jersey. Groover was an American photographer who spent the last part of her life in Montpon-Menesterol, France, with her husband, a painter and critic named Bruce Boice.Groover studied painting and drawing at Pratt Institute. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1965 from Pratt Institute, and a Master of Arts in Education in 1970 from Ohio State University. Her first large-format camera was bought immediately after winning a 1978 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. From there she started to take still life photos of kitchen utensils.
STYLE
This artist poses still life mainly through photographing kitchen utensils or kitchens in general. Her photos use the exploration of space and volume that was steeped by her interest in the Renaissance works. The Renaissance was a period in European history, covering the span between the 14th and 17th centuries. This movement marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity. Her still life photos reflect the history of the Renaissance and include techniques used during this movement by different artists.
PHILOSOPHY
The major ideas behind this artist work was personal. Jan started photographing her kitchen utensils to show her personal life and her kitchen. She used Formalism and liberating as a technique in her photos. Jan admired the reflective surfaces of utensils. She focused on the utensils and mostly captured the photos up close. She took photos up close because it allowed the viewer to see the detail on the silverware and the reflection in the silverware.
INFLUENCES
This photographer has influenced my life by allowing me to include her techniques in my photos. I was influenced by the way she incorporated the renaissance movement into her artwork. She has created visual appeasing photos with using objects as simple as kitchen utensils. Her photos are unique, simple, and easy yet tell an inspirational story with thoughtful meaning behind them. Jan Groover was inspired by many different artist for all different reasons. I admire how she found a way to reflect each artist in her work to show who she was influenced by.
SOURCES
Title: NA https://www.moma.org/artists/2358 COMPARE AND CONTRAST
In these photos there is one spoon that is placed on top of a knife with another knife underneath it. On the right side of the photograph there is a fork and in the left bottom corner there is another fork that goes over top of the knife. Both of theses photos have equal spacing and are well balanced to create a visual appeasing photo. However these two photos differ because the angles are different. When I was copying this photo I did my best to capture the same angle but it did not turn out the same. These two also differ because the set up of the forks, spoons, and knifes differ from the original photo. I like these two photos however I do not like them enough to hang them up in my house.
Title: NA http://locomote.org/jan-groover-photography/ COMPARE AND CONTRAST
In these photos you can see a plastic tub that the silverware was placed in. This photo contains a spoon, 2 forks, and a knife. The knife is placed behind the spoon and one fork is placed to the right and the other to the left. These photos are similar but also very different. When I was creating this photo it was difficult to keep the silverware in place. The silverware set up differs from the original photo because you cant see all the silverware. The angle of this photo also differs from the original one because I couldn't quiet figure out what angle the photographer took it from. These photos also differ in contrast and shadow. The original photo has a dark shadow on the left side and there is no dark shadow in my picture. I don't like this photo because of the way it turned out. I think it is similar to the original one in balance but other than that it is completely different.
Title: NA http://locomote.org/jan-groover-photography/ COMPARE AND CONTRAST
This photo has a knife placed in the right corner and next to it is a fork. The fork closest to the knife is overlapped by another fork. In the left corner there is a spoon that sits next to one of the forks. These two photos are similar because the set up of the silverware matches the original photo. My photo also shows equal balance and spacing to the original photo. These photos differ in filter and in contrast. When editing my photo I couldn't figure out how to make the silverware darker without making the whole picture darker. The original photo also shows more contrast then my photo does. I like this photo because it is very similar to the original however I don't like it enough to have it in my house.
Title: NA http://locomote.org/jan-groover-photography/ COMPARE AND CONTRAST
In this photo you can see 6 spoons, 3 forks, and 4 knifes. In my photo you can see that the set up is the same as the original one. I was able to match the same movement that Jan created in her photo. The movement that she created allows the viewer to follow the silver ware around the photograph. These two photos differ in texture my photo shows more texture than the original one. If you look at the original one you can see that a table cloth was used as a background. When I was creating this photo I could not find a white table cloth so I had to use napkins. When you look at my photo you can see the napkins create more of a rough background then the original one. These photos also differ in angles because I cold not figure out what angle was the right angle to take it at. I like this photo and I may consider hanging it in my house when I'm older.
Title: NA http://locomote.org/jan-groover-photography/ COMPARE AND CONTRAST
In this photo you can see 6 spoons. The spoons start in the top left corner and make there way down to the mid right corner. My photo is similar to the original photo because it demonstrates the same movement. When the viewer looks at this photo their eyes move along the line of spoons. These two photos are also similar in texture, balance, and spacing. This photo is different from the original photo because of the shadows. in the original photo you can see that the spoons create a shadow but when you look at mine you can't see any shadows. When I was creating the photo I tried to make shadows but the lighting was different so I wasn't able to. I like this photo and I would hang it in my house when I'm older.
PERSONAL ARTIST STATEMENT
In the photos I took I wanted to capture Jan Groovers style in them. I wanted to show my viewers what her style looked like and how she used space and balance to create a picture. Although I wanted to demonstrate her style I also wanted to include something of my own. To include something of my own I photographed our old silverware. The silverware I photographed was given to us by my grandparents. We used this throughout most of my childhood but then stopped using it to keep it cleaner and nice.