Friday, May 14, 2010
Thursday, May 13, 2010
I saw this painting almost first thing on the whitney website and chose it imediatly. Hopper is one of my favorite painters and this is on of my favorite paintings. It is a beautiful simple composition with grate light and use of color. As a painter myself I appreciate this image for its formal beauty; it is nice to look at.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
I thought this image was also humorous, not that I'm a fashionista but I will never understand the way some people dress. Maybe you need to see more but this outfit was just too much and I think some people need a heads up; guys especially, don't wear pants like this and try to coordinate your entire outfit. This is documentary for social change.
This image is a self portrait that I made while photographing a dance. Its a little creepy and I thought I would play with the idea of the photographer as a voyeur. To me its a humorous image of the male gaze.
TAM TRAN
I enjoyed the youthfulness in this work and the idea of the mascaraed, as children are imaginations give us freedom perform the roles we choose and can slip in and out of different roles. As adults we may perform different roles for different audiences but we tend to generalize the role society assigns us; thats what I get out of this work.
STORM THARP
This image mostly caught my eye because of it's aesthetic appeal, somewhat abject yet calm and engaging. As a painter myself I was also compelled by the technique being used.
NINA BERMAN
I chose this image because of the allusive narrative it is telling. You first notice the subject is holding a gun then you notice his face and appendages have been mutilated, the story like that of many straight photographs, becomes ambiguous.
Roger Fenton
British troops in the Crimea
1855
In sticking with the theme of documentary I thought this was a significant image because of the popularity of Fenton but also because of the controversy that later surrounded many early documentary images (from Crimea, the Spanish Civil War, WWI and WWII), because it was discovered that they were often staged or posed and therefore inauthentic and questioned the realism. It is difficult to tell if this image is posed or not, it may well be some what controlled based on the retarded equipment being used often requiring the subjects to keep still for several seconds. If fenton was directing in this image dose it take away from the realism or the subjectivity of the object?
W. Eugene Smith
Marine Mop-up
Following Japanese Suicide Charge
Saipan, 1944
Since the Vietnam war abject images like the one above have been increasingly censored. I chose this image by Smith because of his importance to documentary photography and to point out how much documentary imagery has changed in the second half of the 20th century and into the 21st. Images like this would likely be censored in a modern war because they are unpopular to audiences and may insight opposition to military operations.
Jacob Riis
Men's Lodging Room in the West 47th Street Station
c. 1892
Men's Lodging Room in the West 47th Street Station
c. 1892
I chose this image because I find it interesting the way Riis would photograph his subjects. He often rejected images that engaged his subjects choosing rather, non-posed images that had a sense of autonomy from his subjects and portrayed their reality. He also photographed candidly and his images often lacked any formal photographic sensibility. The lack of formal aesthetics in the images arguably gave them a greater sense of realism as Susan Sontag would agree claiming that documentary images loose their impact when formal aesthetics take precedence making them objective (art objects) rather than subjective (harsh overcrowded living conditions).
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
I love the intimate engagement between the subject and the photographer in these images especially since they were all strangers at first. I also like the way the subject is gazing at the viewer it gives them an empowering sense and captures them as a subject rather than an object; their engagement makes them aware of the viewer; they are telling us something about themselves.
This is one of my favorite recent portraits; these guys were old friends and asked me to take their picture. Again and again they kept trying typical poses but I was able to capture this moment when they weren't fully aware of the camera. I like the layered composition and selective focus and I bounced my flash off the ceiling giving it a better quality of light than a typical snap shot. I also get a sense of their bond and life long friendship.
This image is of a single mother battling breast cancer; she did not have health insurance and her good friend, the man in the background, organized a benefit raising over five thousand dollars to help her with her medical expenses. I think this image has a good composition and has a narrative, documentary quality that I strive for.
In the past I have been a bit of an activist and photographed many events some were not that visually stimulating but I captured this image at an anti slavery event. Though there was not much to photograph I like the way this image combines words and images that make for and strong statement and the way the demand the viewers attention; its somewhat confrontational.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Garry Winogrand, Los Angeles, California 1969
I have always appreciated Garry Winogrand's ability, like Bresson, to capture the decisive moment. I chose this image because of the dramatic back lit figures with their sweeping dynamic shadows; they have been captured in a moment of action and the juxtaposition of the figures that seem to be coming from a shopping spree with those of the figures waiting at the bus stop and the man hunched over in the wheel chair seem to speak of a class struggle or at least a narrative commentary on the interaction of classes.
Jerry Uelsmann, Untitled 1976
Jerry Uelsmann was one of the masters that inspired me early on. I could truly appreciate his craftsmanship in the darkroom in a time when advances in digital photography where making it easier for anyone with a computer to make similar composite imagery without the experience of a master. But despite the advances in digital software and even compared with some of the most skilled digital guru's Uelsmann's work (especially in person) is second-to-none.
Henri Cartier-Bresson, “Hyères, France, 1932″
Despite not being included amongst the masters on the masters-of-photography.com website though he should be I have also chosen Henri Cartier-Bresson as one of my favorite masters. I love the way he conceived of the decisive moment and was able to capture such fleeting moments so beautifully. And really masters-of-photography.com get it together Bresson is the man.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Sebastião Salgado
The Serra Pelada gold mine
Brazil, 1986
I first saw Salgodo's work in paris in 2000 in an amazing retrospective and I immediately fell in love with his work. His imagery opened my eyes to a world that we rarely see ourselves if ever and the prints are beautifully done despite the brutality of his imagery. For me his work has been inspiring and enlightening since I was a young photographer.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Garry Winogrand. Cape Kennedy, Florida, (Apollo 11 Moon Shot), 1969. Gift of Elizabeth and Frederick Myers. © Estate of Garry Winogrand, courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco.
This show sounded interesting to me; it is a different take on the ordinary photograph and the way many big names approached the problems and inspirations associated with the common or amateur aesthetics in photography. Check out the link for a better explanation of the show. I also really enjoy the image above.
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