Final Thoughts

I have received criticism for my questioning and reflection of photography as an applied art in the design industry, and in particular, to the role it can play as a design tool. I take this criticism constructively as it offers me the opportunity to reflect on my concepts and practice. Firstly, I would like to state that I am of the opinion that innovation and even inspiration, cannot and should not be limited by narrow-minded views society places on culture. In photography's beginning, the photograph was marked by the stigma that it was not art, but purely referential. Barthes said "it is Reference, which is the founding order of photography".1 While I agree with this, I would like to exercise the idea that reference could be harnessed as a tool for photography to build upon.

If photography is purely referential, and one could not build upon this, then it would suggest that photography is purely a reflection of reality - a documentation of sorts - and that it could not be or do anything else. I call to question this purist view of photography which limits it to the traditional two-dimensionality of the physical photograph, without considering new innovations which have allowed photography to expand beyond the simple photographic print and opened up a platform of new possibilities for collaboration and mixed media. Yes perhaps this pushes the boundaries of photography and maybe even leaks it into other art and design practices, but in this time of consistent rapid cultural change and online media it is constricting and detrimental to photographic practice not to expand, and it is certainly not of my opinion that doing so makes you any less of a photographer.



References:

1 Barthes, R 2010 (1980). Camera Lucida - Reflections on Photography, trans. R, Howard, Hill and Wang, New York. P 77.

Photography as a Paradox?

I recently started reading Theodor Adorno's Aesthetic Theory, an empirical view on "the sublime, ugly and the beautiful" and how these concepts "frame and distil human experience" which "ultimately underlies aesthetics" 1. In the beginning couple of pages, Adorno poses the uncertain question of art's purpose. 2 This is something I have always wrestled with, and, I hope, Adorno will bring me closer to an answer. I think it is relevant to consider this question in relation to photography and it's place within both the fine and applied arts.

Within my own photographic practice, I am exploring the position in which my work can be placed. In one aspect, it could sit within the fine art realm. My current project is conceptualising ideas around Productivism, the role photography can play in industry, and applied art in general. In this sense, one could consider it art. The core concept within this body of work - photography in industry, however, by nature places it in the field of applied art. This raises the question, could photography be both a fine art and an applied art simultaneously? Can the nature of photography maintain a paradox?



References:

1 Adorno, T 1970, Aesthetic Theory, Ed. Adorno, G and Tiedemann, R, Trans. Hullot-Kentor, R 2004, London. Blurb.
2 Adorno, T 1970, Aesthetic Theory, Ed. Adorno, G and Tiedemann, R, Trans. Hullot-Kentor, R 2004, London. P 2.

Joel Sternfeld

Continuing my research of American street/landscape photography, I found a lot of inspiration in Joel Sternfeld’s work. First of all, he is brilliant at weaving these two categories together, blurring the line between what is essentially considered two different genres (although both having ‘space’ in common). This is how Sternfeld summarizes his views on human-altered landscape:

“I’ve worked primarily with the American landscape – my approach has to be look at the landscape to find a kind of beauty as it truly exists. Looking at landscape about what it reveals about the human moment, past, and the present human moment. I mean this is the surface of the earth, and what we do with it tells us an awful lot about ourselves”.

His approach to street photography teaches a couple of important lessons, such as not giving away too much information about the shot or its purpose, since personal meaning that an author assigns to his/her images should not stand in a way of viewer’s interpretation, but rather let it unravel freely.

Another thing that I try to pursue with my own work is sustaining recognizable look of my photographs by color grading them in a particular style. This is something that Sternfeld also pointed out:

“A photographer must choose a palette as painters choose theirs”.

It also appeals to me that you don’t see a lot of people in Sternfeld’s photographs. It is a good reminder that street photography doesn't have to be populated, and for me personally it’s always a real struggle to try and include living souls in my shots as the genre (probably) suggests. However, there are not strict definitions of what is right or wrong in photography when it becomes a form of art.

Sources:

Sternfeld, J 1987, American prospects: photographs, Times Books, NY

Sternfeld, J 2008, Oxbow Archive, Göttingen, Steidl 

Method + Culture = Imagery

In concluding this blog series, we find ourselves considering how all of this research and gathered information is relevant to our own photography practice. I consider myself an explorer, a visual gatherer and collector of that which surrounds me. Through this blog we have had a chance to explore culture through various types of landscapes, which is a significant chunk of my practice. I do tend to cast the genre net wider when creating images, including portraits and food to satiate my culture curiosity. 

Liz is a culture vulture

The photographers and literature that I continue to draw upon maintain that sense of curiosity when it comes to changing culture and its presence and representation in photographic images. Photographers like the New Topographics, who presented beauty in the banal, Sebastiao Salgado – who documents ethnic groups and landscapes with a completely immersive practice, street photographers like Joel Meyerowitz who embody the the decisive moment, Martin Parr – whose critique of present-day cultures enable his images to positively drip with satire! There are so many photographers whose images signify a curiosity and commentary about their society or that which is foreign to them. 

Joel Meyerowitz

Martin Parr

In terms of literature, I have found the writers and articles that most resonate with my practice tend towards a discourse revolving around culture, manifested through landscape, portrait and lifestyle images. The journal Space and Culture 'brings together dynamic, critical interdisciplinary research at the interface of cultural geography, sociology, cultural studies, architectural theory, ethnography, communications, urban studies, environmental studies and discourse analysis. Space and Culture's unique focus is on social spaces, such as the home, laboratory, leisure spaces, the city, and virtual spaces'. Whilst this is not strictly a photography journal, so many of the articles help me to draw inspiration for my practice. 

One article from the journal, by Gillian Rose, discusses 'the framework for understanding and reflecting upon the various that urban scholars have worked with visual representations of city spaces'. Visual Culture, Photography and the Urban: An Interpretive Framework talks about three main approaches: 'representing the urban, evoking the urban and performing the urban'. I think that is such a great way to sum up my approach to photography. Rose has written many other texts about family sentiments, geographics and cultural implications of photography. Whilst much of my other photographic literature research has felt oftentimes hard to relate to what I am trying to achieve with my own bodies of work, she is a Professor of Cultural Geography, and her curiosity revolving around visual media is intrinsically tied to the notions of culture, time and place:

I’m fascinated by some of the things that a lot of geographers have studied for a very long time: place, landscape, space. I find these terms very useful ways into exploring how stuff happens, and particularly how people make sense of their lives in specific locations and times. For me, ‘place’, ‘landscape’ and ‘space’ are particular sorts of understandings about how the world works. (Rose)

And that's all I have to say about that. 

Culture and Space <http://sac.sagepub.com/>

Gillian Rose: Visual/Method/Culture Blog <https://visualmethodculture.wordpress.com/>

John Gollings - Architectural series'

John Gollings is highly recognised and regarded photographer throughout the world, known particularly for his architectural photography.  Having viewed John Gollings’ projects and photographs, his cityscape images resonated with me as well as relate to my current project. I am drawing inspiration from Mr Gollings’ works, particularly his cityscape work such as ‘An eye for Architecture’ among other projects.

Mr Gollings captures everything in a single shot, hardly leaving hardly any room for the imagination. This I believe comes down to his very sound and thorough technical skill when it comes to his architectural photography. All his images have been executed exceptionally well.

His technical choice of viewpoints of structures, along with the lens choice, John Gollings is a great source of inspiration for anyone looking into architectural photography, not only modern but also historic structures.

Any photographer who has had mentoring from the likes of Ansell Adams, is of high respect to myself.

Sources:

http://www.gollings.com.au

 

Architectural Photography - Schulz, Adrian

‘Architectural Photography’ by Adrian Schulz, gives the reader a comprehensive understanding of architectural photography. The chapters detail architectural photography’s history, along with the genres functions and a guide on how to shoot architectural photography. The book discusses photographic equipment and their impact on the different types of architectural photos they can create, as well as handy and creative tips and tricks to this particular genre of photography.  The chapter relating to focal length, zoom and the camera standpoint, was a useful extract of knowledge.  It is an aspect of my shooting that I will have to consider greatly, because it will ultimately affect the aesthetic that I am hoping to create in my final project.

Schulz explains how shadows and reflections are an integral part to architectural photography to consider, they can have positive or negative affects. These components to the photographic genre depend on the weather and the sun, depending on the time of day you decide to shoot. All these techniques and advices mentioned in the book will assist me to execute my final folio project that involves architectural photography.

“The needs and desires of photography and architects unavoidably collide in the world of architectural photography. Although both professions qualify as arts, architects and photographers tend to see things differently.”

Schulz describes the relationship between architecture and photography and how both art forms interconnect. It draws on the similarities and differences of architecture and photography. 

Sources:

Schulz, A. (2012) “Architectural Photography”, RMIT Library, Book.

Making Strange (Literary Review)

The photography of Steffi Klenz and Thomas Weinberger

In this article by Alexandra Stara, the work of contemporary German-born photographers Steffi Klenz and Thomas Weinberger is linked to having a shared interest in 'making strange': a device used for 'bringing visibility to the processes that shape our environment'. Stara states that Klenz and Weinberger are two of the most interesting contemporary photographers who are part of the growing movement 'producing landscapes and cityscapes representing our late-modern notion of place, revealing complex modes of inhabitation, appropriation, alienation and destruction without representing action, focusing instead on the settings within which it occurs'. 

The two photographers have different focal points in terms of subject matter and technique, but their work shows 'common concerns within the topographic sensibility... share an investment in the elliptical, enigmatic and disorientating as mechanisms of estrangement from thinking anew of everyday and familiar subjects'. 

Klenz, untitled, from the series Nonsuch, 2005

Klenz focuses on the 'notion of "non-place"... the homogenous, transient spaces' with little or no means of 'cultural relevance'. The intention that such "non-places" exist I find a little debatable, as does the article's author, but the idea is interesting, that 'alienation to the archetypal "place"', as pictured above, can focus the critique on something more strange, something unsettling about the "home" as being unfamiliar. In one of her series, La Posa, she even blacks out the windows and doors of the buildings in the images, 'reducing the houses to a series of bare walls with sheer darkness pouring from their openings'. The engagement and opinion of the viewer is left open for interpretation, but there are definitely implications of abandonment, as if the 'claustrophobic walls, which are treated as geological elements themselves, map an enigmatic topography'.

Klenz, untitled, from the series La Posa, 2008

Some of Thomas Weinberger's bodies of work have a united key concept: the idea of 'concealment and the denial of action, where the urban fabric itself is made to reverberate with mood and possibility'. These are images that tend towards a more detailed approach, as opposed to his other, larger-scale landscape images. The more panoramic the image, the more the viewer is 'wrenched back to the distance from which we attempt to take in the whole of the scene'. 

Weinberger, Isardamm, 2004

'Displacement, loss of scale and proportion are expressions that work on two levels in Weinberger's images – the aesthetic and the ethical. It is precisely this play of what are effectively techniques of estrangement that succeeds in conveying the fraught relationship between man and nature, building and land, without losing the exhiliration of the work.'

Weinberger, Paradise 1, 2010

I found this article to be a really interesting discussion of how some contemporary photographers are tackling the renewed challenge of finding a fresh way to explore capturing urban landscapes. Both Klenz and Weinberger invite us to rethink environments, 'its modes of construction, consumption and abandonment'. They both ensure there is a distance, or estrangement, for a viewer from an image, to ensure there is space for critical judgement, whilst keeping an entirely subjective openness for any viewer's interpretation. Theirs is a relevant way of looking at our 'built environment that does not attempt to simplify and rationalise'; it remains complex and unresolved.

All images reproduced from article
Stara, A., 2013, 'Making Strange': The Photography of Steffi Klenz and Thomas Weinberger, History of Photography, Vol 37.3, pp 353-359

Rodchenko and a Vision of the New World

Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956) was a hugely influential Russian artist. Originally a painter, he ditched his paintbrush in 1921 in order to produce work which tied into his personal philosophies surrounding art and in order to fulfil his strong commitment to the Russian Revolution. He then worked across an array of media, including photography and graphic design. 

Rodchenko

Rodchenko

Although credited as a pioneer of of Constructivism, he also contributed to the manifesto of Productivism. Often conflated with Constructivism, Productivism arose from a differentiation of philosophy surrounding the role art plays in industry. Constructivist believed in the abstraction of space and isolating art from political or social agenda. In other words, they believed in Kant’s philosophy of art for art’s sake. 1 Productivists appose this concept, worked in the applied arts and believed “artistic still should have a practical, socially useful role as an element of industrial production”2.

Influenced by futurists and perhaps inspired by the change instilled by the Revolution, Rodchenko and his fellow Productivists has a vision. “We had visions of a new world, industry, technology and science. We simultaneously invented and changed the world around us. We authored new notions of beauty and refined art itself”. 3  This quote is one which resonates strongly with me when considering the futurist concepts of today and the move towards to sustainable global development. I question the the role of art of the sake of art. Is it still sustainable? Should we not be dedicating more of our artistic and creative talent to developing new innovative ideas and problem solving? 

Footnotes:

1 S. West & S. West (eds.). Art for Art's Sake. The Bloomsbury guide to art. http://search.credoreference.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/content/entry/bga/art_for_art_s_sake/0 [13 April 2015].

2 S. West & S. West (eds.). Productivism. The Bloomsbury guide to art. http://search.credoreference.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/content/entry/bga/productivism/0 [8 April 2015].

3  The Art Story 2014. Alexander Rodchenko. http://www.theartstory.org/artist-rodchenko-alexander.htm# [7 April 2015]. 

References:

Moore, J 2014. Communist and Constructivist: A Perspective Look At The Work Of Alexander Rodchenko. Available from: <http://www.booksie.com/non-fiction/essay/john_moore/ communist-and-constructivist:-a-perspective-look-at-the-work-of-alexander-rodchenko> [8 April 2015]. 

Constructivism. 1996. [Online]. In S. West (ed.). The Bloomsbury guide to art. London, United Kingdom: Bloomsbury. Available from: <http:// search.credoreference.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/content/entry/bga/constructivism/0> [8 April 2015].

The Art Story 2014. Alexander Mikhailovch Rodchenko. Available from: <http:// www.theartstory.org/artist-rodchenko-alexander.htm> [7 April 2015].

The Art Story 2014. Constructivism. Available from: <http://www.theartstory.org/movement- constructivism.htm> [7 April 2015]. 

Art for Art's sake (1996). [Online]. In S. West , S. West & S. West (eds.). The Bloomsbury guide to art. London, United Kingdom: Bloomsbury. Available from: http://search.credoreference.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/content/entry/bga/art_for_art_s_sake/0 [13 April 2015].

Productivism (1996). [Online]. In S. West , S. West & S. West (eds.). The Bloomsbury guide to art. London, United Kingdom: Bloomsbury. Available from: http://search.credoreference.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/content/entry/bga/productivism/0 [8 April 2015].

Gabo, Naum (Naum Neemia Pevsner) (1890 - 1977) (1996). [Online]. In S. West , S. West & S. West (eds.). The Bloomsbury guide to art. London, United Kingdom: Bloomsbury. Available from: http://search.credoreference.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/content/entry/bga/gabo_naum_naum_neemia_pevsner_1890_1977/0 [13 April 2015].

'Drawing Parallels' by Quintin Lake

‘Drawing Parallels’ is a great book on architectural photography by the photographer Quintin Lake. It includes many pairs of photos from all over the world and focuses on architectural details or concepts which visually weave together unrelated places, such as the corridor between the apartments in France and a metro station in Russia; neon sign in China and glazed tile of 13th Century shrine in Iran; or windows on the facade of State Kremlin Palace and ‘Gherkin’ building in London. 

"The photographer not only recognizes great established relationships between familiar structures and their environment, but also observes the constantly evolving realignments or mutations, which exist between tradition and modernity, as much as between manmade structures and nature".

The author sheds some light on the basic principles of visual associations, and gives examples of how it can enough to just notice subtly similar shapes, from one small detail to an overall impression, to find parallels between two buildings or places.

“...part of the art of photography is seeing and registering the wealth of changing forms and patterns that are created by the harmony and clash of buildings with their environments”. 

And sometimes it is more about the surface and texture through which we discover subtle resemblance between aluminium sunscreens of the modern theatre and roof tiles of an alpine hay barn.

These moments of recognizing something familiar in something alien helps to understand some principles that lay in foundation of man-altered landscapes and can be observed all over the human-built world.

Sources: 

Lake, Q 2009, Drawing parallels: architecture observed, Papadakis, Berkshire

http://blog.quintinlake.com/

Cities and Development - Jo Beall and Sean Fox

The book Cities and Development by Jo Beall and Sean Fox provides ideas and insights into the key challenges of urban poverty and development in the twenty-first century. The book begins with defining key terms to allow a clear understanding and insight into their ideas and theory’s on urbanisations history, its influence on the environment, the economy and politics. Beall and Fox describe the process of human migration from rural areas to towns and cities, and how this rapid urbanization means that the rate at which the migration from rural to urban takes place very quickly and has detrimental effects on cities. The condition varies from country to country as the number of cities and rural areas in the countries are different. Emphasis on is also placed the difference of the conditions in various countries. Conditions are dependent on the development nature of the country; some countries are developed and continuing to, others are developing while others are considered least developed.

The history of urbanization is explained, how in developed areas it can be traced from the industrialization era when the populace migrated from the rural/ancestral home to towns. The book explains how for the first time in history more people around the world live in urban areas than in rural ones. Economically advanced nations are predominately urban, having urbanised rapidly during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Most importantly, in my opinion seeing as I have lived in a metropolis of a highly developed country, the book particularly highlights the stability of global environments and how it is under threat, particularly in cities.

 

Source:

Beall, J. and Fox, S. (2009) “Cities and Development”, Book.

 

 

Oh this beautiful mundane world

William Eggleston once said: “I don’t particularly like what’s around me”. Reflecting on these words, we may come to conclusion that the process of taking photographs could be regarded as an attempt to make peace with the hostile environment by capturing it in a subjective and personal way. He is an authentic portrayer of american spirit.

Eggleston's fascinating treatment of color is something he was both most praised and accused for, when he first entered the world of black-and-white dominated photography. “Eggleston’s use of color in his photographs is unspectacular, incidental. He uses it so subtly that we are no longer aware of it as a separate component of the process by which we perceive an object visually” (Knape 1999). 

Some critics accused Eggleston of being totally indiscriminate when it came to the choice of subject matter. However, by his choice of seemingly accidental scenes he also “...introduced a new aesthetic, a new ‘democratic’ way of seeing through which the ordinary and banal become extraordinary and engrossing” (Knape 1999). Eggleston simply considers every object worthy of depiction, and this looks like a very healthy approach, because through his images he projects vivid and moody attitude onto places and objects we deal with on a daily basis. Eggleston is very talented at glorifying the mundane life, the very one we are striving to escape when we are looking at more glamorous photographs. And he puts us right back into this reality, showing that it's not so ugly and scary, after all.

Sources:

Gerard, V & Lempereur, L 2008, William Eggleston: Spirit of Dunkerque, Gingko Press, Corte Madera, CA

Knape, G 1999, William Eggleston: The Hasselblad Award 1998, Hasselblad Center, Sweden

Book review: Moby's 'Destroyed'

People whose occupation allows to travel all over the world get almost infinite opportunities to take very diverse and striking images. With that thought in mind, I opened ‘Destroyed’ - the book which includes 55 photographs taken by Moby. As a touring musician he visited many countries and wanted to document at least some of his wanderings. In the foreword Moby mentions his long-standing interest in photography, and how life on the road enabled him to pursue this hobby.

“I wanted to put out a book of tour photos, because touring is strange. I hope that somehow in these pictures I am able to convey the mundanity of touring as juxtaposed with those moments of the disconcerting and/or sublime. one minute on tour you’re by yourself in a soul-less backstage area, the next minute you’re on stage in front of 75,000 people”.

The idea sounded good in theory, because as a music photographer myself I deal with very similar subject matter: airports, hotel rooms, music venues and city views. So I was interested to see how a musician would photograph such environment. Despite containing several visually strong images, in general this book failed to meet my expectations. All in all, a lot of images looked somewhat 'accidental' and lacked real artistic value. Of course it would be unfair to treat a musician like a photographer, however this photo book seems to be aimed mostly at Moby’s fanbase and not general public. 

Moby, 2011, Destroyed. Damiani, Bologna, Italy

'House for Tree's' - Vo Trong Nghia Architects

Under rapid urbanisation, Vietnam has moved away far from its origins of tropical forests. An excessive amount of cars and motor-bikes, causes serious exacerbated air pollution for Ho Chi Minh City. Globally urbanisation is having detrimental effects on the planet. As a result, people in urban areas are forgetting their connection with nature. This project by a Vietnamese studio Vo Trong Nghia Architects was said to bring green space back into the city, and to be an accommodating high-density dwelling with big tropical trees as a cultural link. Vo Trong Nghia Architects, are uniquely and beautifully designing and creating accommodation for people, whilst expending a minimal global footprint.  Five concrete boxes are designed as pots to plant trees on their tops. The pots are utilized as storm-water basins that hold the water within them and contribute to decrease the danger of flooding in the city.

 

House for Trees by Vo Trong Nghia Architects is a two-bedroom home for a family of three. Built on unoccupied land, in one of the many heavily populated areas of Ho Chi Minh City, which only has 0.25 percent of its region covered in foliage, according to the architects.

"The aim of this project is to bring green space back into the city, accommodating high-density dwelling with big tropical trees. Five concrete boxes are designed as 'pots' to plant trees on their tops," said the architects. Simplistic and clever architectural designs such as ‘House for Trees’, is the future of architecture, aiding to sustain our planet.

 

 

Links:

http://votrongnghia.com/projects/