Google Reader Response 2

This week I decided to discuss the blog post about Heidi Romano from Lenscratch. Before I even started reading I thought that the aesthetic of her forest images were mesmerizing. Romano transforms a simple tree or a hillside into atmospheric emotive compositions. With each photograph, she draws the viewer’s attention to something so simply beautiful which may have otherwise passed unnoticed. When I began reading about the work, I gained more appreciation for the content. The photographs have a sense of fleetingness which made more sense as I understood the artists interest in time passing. Her interest in continually changing light reminded me of impressionist paintings. Initially I felt a sense of wonderment at the beautiful vast landscape. Upon understanding that one of the photographs unintentionally depicted a crime scene, the photographs became menacing and quiet. I thought of the romantic concept of the sublime and considered the rarities of finding such astonishment and fear in our contemporary world.

Moving onto her imagery of water, Romano mangers to create something both familiar but strange. While most of the photographs clearly depict water, there is something out of this world about them. Using a black background calls to mind the dark abyss of space flickering with stars (or water in the case of the photographs). They almost don’t seem to be situated within a particular place or time. These photographs are their own type of landscape hinting at a similar awe and fear as provided in the forest images. 

Reading Response Post: Chapter 1

I have always found the struggle between photography as scientific or subjective an interesting dichotomy. While most people today recognize that photographs do not convey the simple truth, the way we use and talk about photographs suggest that we still trust images more than we might initially realize. On page 17, the author emphasizes the use of photographs as documents to prove something had occurred/ someone had been somewhere. Later Wells mentions our continued confidence in the medium perhaps stemming from the complex ways we interact with photographs.

I loved the section discussing the different realist theories. From page 28 – 30 Wells discusses the visual aids Sontag and Kozloff’s use to help the reader grasp the different ways we reading a photograph. Sontag’s idea of photographs “tracing” reality and Kozloff’s concept of “witnessing” leading to natural misinterpretations really clarify the confusing realm that photographs inhabit between art and science. I also thought Barthes use of semiotics to explain the photograph as “signifying reality” very interesting.

I am currently taking Modern European Art and it is interesting to see the affect photography had on the destabilization of art. As the author mentions on page 23, the concept of an ‘original’ vs. a copy’ is challenged, opening up questions about what art is and more specifically how does photography fit in to this definition? Furthermore, on page 61 the author challenges the reader to question how to interpret a photograph removed from its original context. Just by moving something from a newspaper to a gallery the viewer’s focus is drawn from the social context to the aesthetic. I think this point really emphasizes the author’s point that meaning is not static but organic and finding new relevance in changing social and political climates.

Discussion Questions:

Do you think that by putting a photograph in a museum, it looses its connection with other discourses i.e. evidence documentation etc. (pg 63)

What do you think the best method of compiling a comprehensive history of photography without perpetuating the idea of certain ‘genius’/ ‘master’ figures. 

Artist Selections

1. Eugene Atget
2. Cindy Sherman
3. Sam Taylor Wood
4. Robert Frank
5. Gregory Crewdson
6. Candida Hofer
7. Jan Groover
8. James Welling
9. Henri Cartier-Bresson
10. Richard Billingham

Google Reader Response 1

http://www.lenscratch.com/2013/01/photonola-dennis-church.html

I found the blog on Lenscratch about Dennis Church particularly interesting in correlation with our first project. His photographs captured my attention because of his keen eye towards color. His latest exhibition called Florida Moments were captured right here in Florida which is really inspiring as I move forward with the project. Frequently, Church captures everyday scenarios: houses, cars, building sites etc. However, he looks for repeated colors sometimes threaded throughout the image in subtle ways and other times strongly visible throughout the image.

Here is one example where Church found the perfect monochromatic composition. By including the man and the bike in the frame standing out from the surrounding, Church adds an element of narrative. I really like the photographers documentary style evident in the tilted horizon line. It appears both stable because of the symmetry but unstable because of the diagonal lines. On one level the photograph seems candid, like a snapshot, but his careful details hint at his careful decision-making. His photographs have really provided some inspiration as I take my own photos. 

Chapter Selections

Top 3 Chapters for Discussion:

1. Chapter 3: 'Sweet is to scan...' Personal photographs and popular photography - I am eager to learn about the ways personal photographs have developed. Also, I am interested to see what the author defines as personal and the difference between popular photography and art. Some of the old personal photographs are so interesting that I could easily view them as art.
2. Chapter 4: The Subject as Object - I think this will be a challenging chapter dealing with issues that I still struggle with. For example, should certain images be censored? Images of war and death can commodify the devastating loss but would it be right in a free country to censor these photographs? There will be many challenging questions to be raised and I think the discussion will be very interesting.
3. Chapter 5: Spectacles and Illusions - this chapter interests me because I have briefly worked in the fashion industry and I have seen some of the darks sides to commercial photography and the affect it can have especially on women. I am interested in learning more about the photograph's role in our commodity culture.