Retro grade By Roxanne Owen
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Retro grade 3
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Retro grade By Roxanne Owen
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Contents Introduction by Roxanne Owen......................8 Cerulean...................................................................10 Ivory............................................................................16 Tangerine..................................................................22 Mahogany..................................................................28 Emerald.....................................................................34 Hazel...........................................................................40 Violet...........................................................................46 Daylight.....................................................................52 Rose.............................................................................58 Golden........................................................................64 Aquamarine.............................................................70 Ebony..........................................................................76 Scarlet.......................................................................82 Quotations.................................................................89
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Introduction
This book contains a collection of the work I produced for my Final Major Project titled Retrograde. It showcases interesting objects, most of which are either antique or made by small businesses, in ways which are not often seen in advertising photography. I have been influenced by Formalism and Gestalt theory, which highly inspired me to approach still life in a much more calculated and thought out way. I have also taken inspiration from many different eras throughout history, such as “The Swinging 60s”, “The Fighting 40s” and The Roaring 20s”, and used common design trends from those periods to inform my more modern approach. The book is made up of thirteen compositions, each using 8
a different monochromatic colour pallet, so no matter what colours or styles you like, there is something for you. Antiques are something which have been around me all my life, and because of it, I find myself attached to things others would overlook. I have been influenced greatly by my mother and her love for all things vintage, and created my own collection of interesting things over the course of my life. I think there is a greater wealth to objects which are hand picked by you, over buying something from a department store which thousands of other people have as well. Another reason I chose to work with second hand items is
because I have spent a lot of time researching the climate crisis for my Dissertation, and finding out more about it encouraged me to start thinking more about what I buy. But it is not just me who is leaning more about my carbon footprint, many people becoming more informed about how things get made and by whom, and it is more important than ever that we start to meticulously pick out our things, rather than conforming to trends and impulse buying, and exchanging our things each season. Often people forget that it is not just clothing that goes out of style. This journey has made me appreciate objects and the way they look far more than I did before, by paying attention to each different
colour and shape of the objects. In this book, I hope to inspire you to look beyond “just” a glass or “just” a teacup, and see how everyday objects can become part of something special, if you are willing to see them for how beautiful they really are. - Roxanne Owen
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cerulean: (a.) deep blue in colour like a clear sky.
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Cerulean
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“The sky above is always cerulean.”
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Wedgwood glass candlestick designed by Ronald Stennett-Willson
3D printed statue of “Venus de Milo” by Alexandros of Antioch
Valued at £40
Valued at £20
Vintage Meggeson glycerine lemon & honey pastilles tin
Vintage blue Delfts porcelain miniature pair of clogs
Valued at £10
Valued at £10
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i vo r y : (n.) the creamy-white colour of ivory.
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Ivory
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“Even ivory towers need central heating.”
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British Military Hospital Drinking Cup 1941 Valued at £22
White ceramic candle stick holder Valued at £3
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Fluted White Vase Valued at £4
Raw fossilized coral Valued at £20
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tangerine: (n.) a deep orange-red colour.
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Tangerine
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“Mom would never say it, but I bet we were thinking the same thing. What else has dad overlooked about Tangerine?”
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Vintage letters Valued at £5
Marmalade orange Terrazzo candle holder Valued at £10
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Wills’s Whiffs cigarette tin Valued at £15
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m a h o g a ny : (n.) a rich reddish-brown colour like that of mahogany wood.
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Mahogany
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“The gentleman is solid mahogany; the fashionable man is only veneer.”
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Beswick horse ceramic figurine Valued at £25
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Vintage smoking pipe Valued at £29
Vintage wooden apple Valued at £10
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emerald: (n.) a bright green colour.
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Emerald
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“No matter what anyone says or does, my task is to be emerald, my colour undiminished.”
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Vintage Beswick lettuce cheese or butter dish Valued at £10
Green glass poison bottle Valued at £5
Pair of green stemmed glasses Valued at £10 38
Vintage green menthol and eucalyptus pastilles tin Valued at £15
Small enamel decorative tea pot Valued at £25 39
h a ze l : (n.) a reddish-brown or greenish-brown colour, especially of a person’s eyes.
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Hazel
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“Take away my days and nights but leave me forever m o r n i n g s w i t h t h o s e h a ze l eye s. ”
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Wooden children’s toy
Bone Spoon
Valued at £15
Valued at £12
Wooden pear
Vintage pastry cutter and rolling pin
Valued at £15
Valued at £20
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violet: (n.) a bluish-purple colour seen at the end of the spectrum opposite red.
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Violet
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“Stars will blossom in the darkness, Violets bloom beneath the snow.”
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Royal Kendal 'Majestic' English cup and saucer Valued at £6
Set of silver cutlery Valued at £10
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1840 Queen Victoria commemorative cake plate Valued at £10
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d ay l i g h t : (n.) the natural light of the day.
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Daylight
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“Outside, daylight was bleeding slowly toward dusk.”
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Mojave glaze yellow vase Valued at £10
Vintage tape tin Valued at £12
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Brumaire Tin Valued at £10
Brown and yellow striped jug Valued at £8
Buttercup tea cup Valued at £5
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ro s e : (n.) a warm pink or light crimson colour.
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Rose
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“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
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Vintage tea cup Valued at £12
Retro pink tinted glass jug Valued at £15
Pink paperweight Valued at £10
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Vintage Cutex Cake Polish tin Valued at £8
Royal Doulton figure Valued at £150
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golden: (a.) coloured or shining like gold.
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Golden
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“Sweet life continues in the breeze, in the golden fields.”
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Golden tea set Valued at £20
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Set of gold cutlery Valued at £15
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aquamarine: (n.) a light bluish-green colour.
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Aquamarine
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“What exists beneath the sea? I’d always pictured it in colors of emerald and aquamarine, where black velvet fish with sequined eyes swim among plankton.”
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Royal Stafford English teacup and saucer in duck-egg blue Valued at £8
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The New Game Of Sky by George Wright & Co. 1904 Valued at £200
Jesmonite mint & pink Terrazzo candle holder Valued at £8
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eb o ny : (n.) heavy blackish timber from a mainly tropical tree.
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Ebony
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“And the life of the ebony clock went out with that of the last of the gay. And the flames of the tripods expired. And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all.”
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3D printed The Farnese Atlas Valued at £10
Small black vase Valued at £5
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Vintage set of dominoes Valued at £12
Ceramic cat figure Valued at £8
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s c a rl e t : (a.) of a brilliant red colour.
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Scarlet
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“When I am dead, I hope it may be said: His sins were scarlet, but his books were read.”
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A single 70s cup, part if a set of six colours Valued at £40
Halfords Repair Outfit tin Valued at £15
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Cufflink box Valued at £5
Vintage candlestick holder Valued at £20
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Quotations “The sky above is always cerulean.” - The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune, 12 “Even ivory towers need central heating.” - Breyten Breytenbach, 18 “Mom would never say it, but I bet we were thinking the same thing. What else has dad overlooked about Tangerine?” - Tangerine by Edward Bloor, 24 “The gentleman is solid mahogany; the fashionable man is only veneer.” - “Plain Talks on Familiar Subjects” by J. G. Holland, 30 “No matter what anyone says or does, my task is to be emerald, my colour undiminished.” - Marcus Aurelius, 36 “Take away my days and nights, but leave me forever, mornings with those hazel eyes.” - Atticus Poetry, 42 “Stars will blossom in the darkness, Violets bloom beneath the snow.” - Julia Caroline Dorr, 48 “Outside, daylight was bleeding slowly toward dusk.” - Stephen King, 54 “We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.” - Abraham Lincoln, 60 “Sweet life continues in the breeze, in the golden fields.” - Book of Sketches by Jack Kerouac, 66 “What exists beneath the sea?I’d always pictured it in colors of emerald and aquamarine, where black velvet fish with sequined eyes swim among plankton.” - Kelly Easton, 72 “And the life of the ebony clock went out with that of the last of the gay. And the flames of the tripods expired. And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all.” - The Collected Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe by Edgar Allen Poe, 78 “When I am dead, I hope it may be said: His sins were scarlet, but his books were read.” - On His Books by Hilaire Belloc, 84 89
Retrograde First Edition Copyright © Roxanne Owen. All Rights Reserved. All Photography © Roxanne Owen Design and sequence by Roxanne Owen and Shanine Bartlett All valuations accurate as of 2021. First printed in the United Kingdom in 2021 by Bobs Books. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by other means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. Printed and Bound by Bobs Books. To order books and signed prints please go to: www.roxyphoto.co.uk
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“Retrograde” By Roxanne Owen www.roxyphoto.co.uk 92
