Final

 

“Beautifying is one classic operation of the camera, and it tends to bleach out a moral response to what is shown.” (P64) I chose this sentence because while she goes on to talk about active response in terms of shock value, I originally interpreted this sentence to mean pictures of people and how they react to seeing an image of themselves. It got me thinking about how people expect a camera to magically make things look good, even if the origin of the photo isn’t beautiful. There is an unspoken expectation from the subject of the photograph that the things the don’t like simply won’t show up in the picture, but that’s not the reality of photography. Photography captures the raw truth of a moment, whether it’s beautiful or not.

 

“I argued that while an event known through photographs certainly becomes more real than it would have been had one never seen the photographs, after repeated exposure it also becomes less real.” (P82) I found this quote to be very impactful. I was inspired by the way she eloquently expressed how I feel about the matter as well. I know she was responding to this belief because it was one she had years before, but I think that it is an appropriate belief for the question of whether exposure of an image determines value of an image. It loses its initial reaction after you've seen it enough times. 

 "That news about war is now disseminated worldwide does not mean mat the capacity to mink about the suffering of people far away is significantly larger." (P90) This is why I believe that images of cruelty should not be censored. Not everyone is exposed to the cruel environments that people in other countries live in. Just because news spreads faster and farther now, doesn't mean that we are getting the news of the troubles of other countries. This form of media hides and monitors things that could potentially scare away viewers rather than just showing what's going on in the world. I think that every person should have an opportunity to understand what its like to live as a person that is less fortunate than them, and this can be done through photos. A person can be exposed to the harsh realities that unfortunately do exist.

 

 

 

 

 

3. Answer each of the following questions:

 

    - What is this obsession and fascination with the depiction of crime, pain and horrors,  

      bordering on voyeurism? Are we becoming immune to shock or at least being

      desensitized over time? Do people want to look at horror or even get pleasure out of it?

 

 

I think it stems from a concept that Sontag mentioned about how these types of photos invite a person in, it gives them the option to either be a spectator or a coward. And over time we become desensitized because we detach ourselves from what is going on in these depictions. People want the possible satisfaction of knowing. (p73)

 

 

    - Has our society become anesthetized by and is apathetic to the horror depicted on a  

      daily basis on TV and in the social media?

 

Yes.

 

 

 

    - Does our incapacity to deal with distant events of horror leave us indifferent when we are not

      directly affected by them?

 

 

Yes.

 

 

 

     - Why do people post images of cruelty online for the whole world to see and think they       

       can get away with it? For example, in 2013, two high school football stars from Ohio posted

       a video on YouTube of the rape of a drugged and unconscious girl. When the crime

       came to light, it split the town in half between people defending the players and others

       who wanted them to be prosecuted. There is a screenshot in the picture section below.

 

 

Sontag quoted Shakespeare in saying that the reason that people were attracted to the villainy on stage during his plays was the “love of mischief,” or as Sontag interpreted it, “love of cruelty.” She said it is as natural to human beings as sympathy. (p77) I think that a part of the boys didn’t see that there was something wrong with their actions (and therefore did not think that there was any reason for them to be punished) and since they enjoyed doing it, they thought people would enjoy watching them do it.

 

 

     - American soldiers photographed the torture and humiliation of Iraqi prisoners at the infamous

       Abu Ghraib prison, and then passed the images amongst themselves. These pictures seemed  

       to the soldiers nothing more than boys and girls having fun, or as the radio personality Rush  

       Limbaugh said: “You know, these people [the US soldiers] are being fired at every day. I’m  

       talking about people having a good time. You ever heard of emotional release?” What do

       these images say about empathy, power and humanity? Look at the images of Abu Ghraib.

 

These images show that it is possible to operate without a sense of empathy. These soldiers tortured people without wondering if there was even an inkling of decency in the prisoners. These war prisoners were tortured because some soldiers didn’t care about other people’s lives. They held power over them. They caused other people pain in order to show off their power. I think that the soldiers were so far beyond desensitized that they had lost their sense of humanity.

 

 

 

 

     - What is the role and responsibility of the photographer in taking and disseminating

       images of war and cruelty? Do they need to censor how and what they photograph?

       Look at the images by Robert Capa, Eddie Adams, Nick Ut, Susan Meiselas, Richard 

       Drew, Ron Haviv, Kevin Carter, Alan Kurdi, James Nachtwey.

 

 

I think that photographers should not censor what or how they photograph. I think that there is no way to fix a problem that you don’t know exists. It may be harsh but those types of photographs educate people from areas that don’t have the same problems that these issues exist and need attention too. I think that the role and responsibility of the photographer is to take the pictures of war and cruelty, not to appease an audience, but to educate an audience.

 

 

 

     - The great photo journalist Sebastião Salgado has often been accused of producing

       “spectacular, beautifully composed pictures” of misery that were aesthetically too pleasing to

       give the subject matter its full weight. Does somebody like him need to forgo his style and

       create conventional looking photographs? Look at the Salgado images.

I think that he can have his style and continue with it because that is how some people handle viewing misery, they aren’t bold enough to take on viewing pictures like Kevin Carter and Alan Kurdi took. His glamorized versions of misery still portray misery. I think that since this is his signature style, the viewer knows to expect the image to not be carrying the full weight of the issue portrayed.

Irving Penn

 

Irving Penn was an American photographer born on June 16th 1917 in Plainfield, NJ. He passed on October 7th 2009 in Manhatten, New York, NY. He had an extensive career working with Vogue Magazine and won the Hasselblad Award. 

I chose this photo because it is similar to the style of photos that I was trying to take. It has vast expression, even in the body language. Her face says so much without her having to say a word. And her slanted back posture defends the statement she is silently making. To me, she is exerting "you did this wrong" sort of vibes. I chose Irving Penn to inspire my self-portraits because of his experience in studio taking images. I wanted to capture the glamour and intrigue that Penn captures in all of his images. 

Judy Dater

Judy Dater is an American photographer. She was born on June 21th 1941 in Los Angeles, CA. She has won the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts, US & Canada.

The inspiration for me choosing Judy Dater was her photo essay in which she portrayed the roles as a woman is supposed to play in her pictures. I did a similar thing in which I portrayed how college student are and are expected to be, but I also decided to add a panel of what results of these expectations placed on college students. 

Alessandra Sanguinetti

 

Alessandra Sanguinetti was born in 1968 in New York, New York. She is a member of Magnum Photos. She has received multiple awards and grants, including the esteemed Guggenheim Fellowship.

I think that this photo is absolutely beautiful. The emotion expressed by this image can be seen through the usage of nature to exemplify the age of this girl. The leaves taped to her nails show a want to be old enough and mature enough to have long nails. This could also be seen as the societal pressure pushing a young girl to grow up so quickly. Another example of this in the image is the flower in her mouth and the way she is pursing her lips to make it look as though the flower is acting as a cigarette. I think that this photo shows a powerful message that is well portrayed. I also think that depth of field is used to discourage distraction from the message that Sanguinetti is trying to show. She chose to have only the child in focus and no part of the background. I think this helps to draw the audience to the child's face and action (of pretending to smoke a cigarette) which helps to enhance this image. 

Yousuf Karsh

 

    Yousuf Karsh was an Armenian-Canadian photographer. He was an Armenian Genocide survivor, then he migrated to Canada as a refugee. He was born on December 23rd, 1908 in Mardin, Turkey. He died on July 13th, 2002. His work was highly regarded and he was considered by some to be one of the greatest portrait photographers of the 20th century. 

    I love this photo because it screams regal and she isn't even smiling. She doesn't have a courteous queenly reaction to having her picture taken, so although I know this is staged, I like that she isn't sitting straightforward and smiling, like I would expect a queen to be. Instead she is looking over her shoulder with a straight face. I like that this photo is black and white, it gives the viewer a chance to see the model without the distractions that the element of color can bring. Without color, there is more focus are her smug expression and pointed posture. I think that everything from the angle to the outfit make this a stunning picture. 

Annie Leibovitz

 

    Annie Leibovitz is an American photographer. She was born on October 2nd, 1949 in Waterbury, CT. She often takes pictures of celebrities. 

    I particularly like this photo because it is inspired by the Disney animated movie Brave. This is a movie that I loved as a kid and still love now. Leibovitz did a great job with it because I was immediately able to identify that this was supposed to be inspired by that movie upon first glance at the picture. I think that the costuming helps to show the culture that meant to be portrayed (Scottish.)  I think that the contrasting between the grey clouds, the silky black horse, the green velvet dress, and the model's orange hair ties together perfectly to set a mood of fierce but still fairy tale-esque. Even the expression on the model's face brings so much to the picture. She seems to have a smug confidence, it makes me think that she can do anything. Another element that plays well into this picture is texture. It looks as though the viewer could touch the horse and the dress. I think that Leibovitz did amaxing with this photo, I don't think that there is any way that this image could be improved. 

Fred Ritchin

 "The digital photograph also can be said to represent a single moment, but one that can be easily lengthened and amplified by joining it to many moments through various forms of hyperlinks and hybrid media, including extending it as a movie."

This quote is important because it shows the complexity to digital photography. It provides an example as to one of the ways that a single photograph can be manipulated  into so much more than just a singular moment. 

"The contradictory "double image" is cubist; reality has no single truth."

I just thought that this quote was interesting. The idea that a photo is more than just what is in the photo is interesting to me. I like the concept. Every photo can be more than what it is made of. A picture could be of an open window but really be trying to symbolize the freedom of the mind. I think that it is fascinating to think that there can so much meaning hiding in one image.

"Rather than be rendered passive and guilty from the latest shocking photograph or suffering from a terminal case of compassion fatigue, the reader could be given a chance to intervene."

I think that this quote is important because it exemplifies the advances made in technology. Technology has made photography so much easier to locate and consume. Now people can just access art online and enjoy it in their own homes. This has also left art more vulnerable to criticism by people who may or may not be educated to place judgement. Artist are also more able to share the message behind their art with these technological advances. I would say that the advances in technology come with their perks and drawbacks. 

Uta Barth

 

    Uta Barth was born in Berlin, Germany on January 29th, 1958. She addresses themes such as perception, optical illusion and non-place. She has won the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts, US & Canada. She went to a couple different universities in California, University of California, Los Angeles, and University of California, Davis. 

    

    I think that this is a powerful image. The use of depth of field makes this image strong. The way that only a few close leaves are in focus when most of the image is a blurred out background gives this image a sense of significance. I personally like this image because it makes me feel that although the leaves in the front don't take up much of the screen, they are still important. I also like that the focus could easily have been on the background because the background has scenery, but Barth made the stylistic choice of un-focusing the background. I think that she made this choice in order to draw attention to the details of the few leaves nearer to the camera, they seem to hold some sort of importance. I also like the contrast in the yellow-ish leaves and the mellow green leaves because the rest of the background seems to follow the same calm, natural color scheme. 

Steve McCurry

 

Steve McCurry was born on April 23rd, 1950 in Darby PA. He is an american photographer/freelancer and photojournalist. He is known to capture the essence of human struggles and joy. 

I like this photo because I think that it portrays the boy's emotion very well. I feel as though I can see the hardship that this boy has faced in the details that McCurry captures. There appears to be dirt on his face and wrinkles in this forehead. Since he is only a child, these things symbolize growth and maturity beyond his years, and hardships that he has not gotten to wipe away (in reference to the dirtiness) yet. The boy is holding a straight face in this image. This is consistent with the theme of unhealthiness as a child of his age should be insistently happy, or temporarily sad. His expression is neither. He seems knowledgeable and lacking contentedness. He seems to have experienced more than a child should have to. This is all shown through the immense detailing seen in McCurry's photo, which draws out the potentially unnoticeable features in this boy's face. 

Inspiration

Photo by Jennifer Rogers

 I look up to the stars for visual inspiration. The night sky is the most beautiful creation in my opinion. I love the way the stars form shapes to make constellations and how the light reflects and makes them appear to glimmer for the bystanders below. As long as it isn't cloudy you can see a piece of space every night. I think that that is beautiful. I use the night sky as visual inspiration because I find myself mesmerized by it. I always want to see it and when I start to look at it I lose track of time. I particularly like the photo above because it exemplifies the lure of space and the simple charm of the rugged rocks and vast ocean of the Earth. I admire the way that they are both pulled together into one image. 

Adam Fuss

Adam Fuss was born in 1961 in London, United Kingdom. He is currently 59 years old, and has written three books.

The title of this picture is The Space Between Garden and Eve. I think that this image is very interesting because at first glance, a person may not know what Fuss is attempting to get across. My interpretation of this image is that there are snakes in the dress. The snakes are likely a biblical reference to when the snake in the Garden of Eden tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. The dress represents a girl/human. That would mean that the snakes in the dress represent the temptation and evil within a person. I think that the choice of a dress to embody Eve is particularly interesting because until Eve made the choice to eat the fruit, her and Adam did not cover themselves at all. So in her making the decision to cave in to temptation a lot of unexpected results followed. I think that this is a great photo because it has such powerful biblical background supporting it.

Ralph Gibson

Ralph Gibson was on January 16th, 1939, in Los Angeles California. He is famous for his photography book, in which he wrote twelve. He has won the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts, US & Canada.

This photo shows the bonding of a person with a child through music. This pictures captures this experience in a unique way in which no identities are revealed. I think that this image is representative of the power of music to invoke a respond from even a baby. The focus of this picture appears to be the bassinet, which I believe drills in the point that even a baby will react to something as powerful as music. My initial reaction to this picture, though, was that it is a bit eerie. A baby's arm with no body to be seen confused me as to the purpose of this photo. I thought it was strange that no other part of the baby could be seen. Aside from my initial reaction, I think that this picture exemplifies the brilliance of Ralph Emerson's photography.

Antonin Kratochvil

Antonín Kratochvíl was born on  April 12, 1947 in  Lovosice, Czechia. He is a Czech-born American photojournalist. He is also a founding member of VII Photo Agency. In 1999 American Photo magazine ranked him amongst the top hundred photographers in the world.  

I found this image to be interesting because it was a part of a photo series called "Haiti Election." What caught my attention is that the line is mostly children, yet it is being guarded by armed men. This photo clearly has a more in-depth story to tell which it why it is such a great photo and what make Kratochvil such a good photographer. All of his photographs draw in the viewer with something that seems out of the ordinary, yet realistic. According to www.alessandroniccolai.com, "Kratochvil’s works are often aimed at giving a voice to the underprivileged, the oppressed and the forgotten, at exposing injustice and atrocities." For this picture, in the center is an armed man, the first thing you see. Looking closer you see that most of the people in line are children, which seems strange because in the US the legal voting age is 18. This picture is interesting because of the questions it raises and the story that hides behind it.

Barbara Kasten

Barbara Kasten was born in 1936  in Chicago, Illinois. She was known for her contemporary art. She won the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts, US & Canada.

This piece uses reflection in an interesting manner. There is more to the artwork than just reflection, yet he eye is drawn to the area with the mirrors. The mirrors appear to be intentionally set up to reflection the same image back into one another. Another interesting aspect of the image is the shadows that can be seen to the left of the mirrors. They bring in an interesting detail that a viewer likely won't notice right away. The color choice in this image also contributes to how this image comes together. The tame blues and pinks contrast with the deep orange. This causes an interesting conflict in where to look. The colors all have a metallic tinge to them, which fits nicely with the mirrors.
Between the reflections, the shadows, and the color choice, I find this image to be artfully composed and intriguing to the eye.

Duane Michals

Duane Michals was born on February 18, 1932 in McKeesport, PA. He is known for his innovative use of photo-sequences, often incorporating text to examine emotion and philosophy.

I think that this photograph has a very interesting use of framing. In most cases that I have seen, framing is done by something angular and dark. This picture portrays framing done with a light colored and rounded object. By making the curtain the frame for the man, this photo become more interesting than if he had just used the window. The rounded shape of the curtain around the man brings a soft tone into the picture. This is enhanced by the fact that the curtain also allows light to come through it. These soft tones draw the viewer's eye to the man. I think that this picture is simple, yet wonderful. If Michals had done any small thing, such as taking the picture at night, differently, this picture would just be an ordinary picture. I applaud his ability to make small changes that drastically enhance the picture.

Sebastiao Salgado

Sebastiao Salgado is a photographer known for social documentary photos and photojournalism. He was born on February 8th, 1944 in  Aimorés, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. This photo is depicting firefighter putting attempting to put out an oil fire in Kuwait in 1991.

The first thing that stands out in this image is the intense contrast between black and white. The oil* and the fire are white, which I find interesting because white is typically associated with innocence and gentleness. In this case, the most harmful parts of this event are lighter (closer to white) than the background. This is seemingly an iconic photo because it showcases a firefighter being drenched in oil and still moving forward toward the fire to try and ease that situation. Even when they were in a dangerous position (being covered in oil) they were trying to solve the problems around them. I think that this image is symbolic of the bravery that firefighters have, especially during emergencies.

*I could not find any research that clarified whether the liquid falling was oil or water, so given the situation, I referred to it as oil.

Herb Ritts

Herb Ritts Jr. was a fashion photographer that was known for taking pictures of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. He lived from August 13th, 1952, to December 26th, 2002. He was born and died in Los Angeles, California.

This image is titled: Versace Dress, Back View, El Mirage, 1990.
I find it interesting because I think that there is a good usage of framing and contrast. I like how Ritts managed to make the focal point of the picture the person's head to waist, yet their thighs are also in the picture. I think that the framing is creative in this picture because material from the dress the model is wearing is what is being used to frame the person. I originally was drawn to this photo because of the contrast. The dress and hair are a dark grey and the background and person are white. I like how the part of the dress that is not touching the body is almost in a triangle from the waist of the model. I find this interesting because most examples of framing that I have seen involve square shapes, so when I saw this photo I liked it. Between the framing and contrast, I think that this is a very artful image.

Lee Friedlander

Lee Friedlander was born on July 14th, 1934 in Aberdeen Washington. He has been married to his wife, Maria DePaoli since 1958. Friedlander has currently has art showing in the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

This photo is from a set called "Lee Friedlander’s Intimate Portraits of his Wife, Through Sixty Years of Marriage." This picture is of Maria in 1959. I admire the concept that Friedlander would want to capture his relationship throughout the years in images that he could later go back through and reminisce. I like the photo itself for several reasons, one of which is that the dress DePaoli is wearing dates the image to the time period. This is not a style that would be worn in more modern days. I also like the unique usage of framing.  DePaoli is framed by the open part of the window while the rest of the window is foggy, making her face (and the background of another building behind it) the focus of the photo. The scraggly plants and long windows give the image a tired look along with the lack of color. Overall, I think that this photo and the rest in the set are a beautiful time capsule of their lives together.

Michael Kenna

Michael Kenna is currently 66 years old and was born on November 20th, 1953 in Widnes, United Kingdom.

I like this picture because of the dreariness that is typically not seen in a playground. Playgrounds are typically associated with lively children and happy memories of childhood. This picture causes the viewer to stop and take a deeper look because of the abnormal darkness where there should be joy and light. A setting that is specifically built for children is a strange place to have a feeling of discomfort and abandonment, which is what this picture leaves you feeling. I think that this photographer is skilled, because not all photos can leave the viewer feeling, but--in my opinion. this photo does exactly that. It leaves you questioning what happened that made it so that the park was so abandoned. I like the disproportionate lighting because it highlights the swing-set and makes the trees look very dark. This draws the eye to the fact that this playground is not in use.

Man Ray: Indestructible Object

Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky) lived from August 27th 1890 to November 18th 1976. He was known for his artwork in photography, painting and film.

I was particularly interested in his piece called Object to be Destroyed. It is a metronome with a picture of an eye on the pendulum. He would tell people that the photograph was of someone who has been loved but is seen no more. The eye in his original version is of his ex, who was also his assistant, muse, and model. This piece of art was stolen when a crowd of students were protesting a Dada exhibition in Paris. After getting the money back from his insurance claim he went on to use the money to buy more metronomes and remake this artwork, re-titling it: Indestructible Object.

I like this piece because it draws attention to something simple, yet inspiring. The eye will always be there, while the rest of the person is no longer with him. I also like that he put the eye on something in motion, making it seem to me like this person will never be dormant in his mind.  I think that the eye represents the memory of this person. To elaborate on that, she loved her, and the thought of her will always be in motion, or never-ending in his mind. I think that that is a beautiful representation of how it feels to go through a break up. I think that it was iconic that it was stolen from him because often times when you're going  through a breakup, you become dramatically upset over it and need a wake up call. The piece being stolen may (unintentionally) represent him being told that he need to get over her. The metronome is known to keep rhythm for music and assists new musicians that may not comprehend rhythm yet. This breakup may have been a new experience for him or may represent new experiences. I think that the concept of the eye on the metronome is a beautiful piece of artistry.

Photography Changes Everything

I think that Marvin Heiferman brings up several valid points about how photography is viewed now that most people have camera phones and social medias to post pictures on. I also think that this essay draws attention to the facts that mundane images can be beautiful too. “Photography resists being shaped by any single set of imperatives or standards.” I agree with this statement not only because any photograph taken falls into the category of “photography,” but also because there can be beauty in anything. A simple photograph taken of something ordinary can mean much more than the viewer may realize initially. The viewer may not notice that a photograph of a flower is taken at a graveyard, or that a picture of a smiling person may be of someone who’s talents are yet to be discovered.  “In my work, I’ve often thought about how to talk about all those other images out there. Not the ones made by photographers and artists, but the less pedigreed ones that play equally important and vital roles in our lives—the photographs that don’t get framed, but which deliver news, sell clothes, get you a date, cause parking tickets to be written, and save lives.” I think that this sentence expresses the value in underappreciated pictures. This is important because most people don’t stop to look at images that are less than extraordinary, which is a habit that I think people should start doing. Even art that is originally not made to be admired, should be. Art is glanced over with the assumption that it is serving its purpose contains unrealized beauty. Overall, I think that this article emphasizes the need to appreciate art in this new digital age.