On the Invention of Photographic Meaning by Allan Sekula
A New Instrument of Vision by Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
Seeing Photographically by Edward Weston
* Bring to class contemporary visual models that illustrate similar conceptual structures identified within the reading(s) and be prepared to discuss their relationship(s): complements, contrasts and/or contradictions.
On The Invention of Photographic Meaning
ReplyDeleteAllan Sekula
In “On the Invention of Photographic Meaning” Allan Sekula discusses the 1) inevitable subjectivity of photography due to cultural definitions and 2) photographic literacy/discourse. According to Sekula, photographs are “unbias” and that the contexts of photographs have a huge influence on the photographic meaning. However, it is vital for a spectator to have additional knowledge before they can even begin to understand and relate to the photographer’s intentions. A photograph cannot embody a complete message. Therefore, for a photograph to be successfully deciphered, photographic literacy is necessary.
In the concluding paragraph, I best understood Sekula’s reference to “ binary folklore” – photography taking one of two “poles”:
Photographer as seer vs. photographer as witness
Photography as expression vs. photography as reportage
Theories of imagination vs. theories of empirical truth
Affective value vs. informative value
Metaphoric signification vs. metonymic signification
Also, the title “The invention of Photographic Meaning” helps me sort my thoughts about the reading and process what Sekula said. The “invention” meaning how as a member of an audience, we feel we have the right to make up or “invent” the meaning of a photograph– instead of a photograph “telling” us what its conveying.
Bio…
Allan Sekula (1951) is an American artist, writer, and critic based at the California Institute of Arts. His primary medium is photography and his formative influences include the Marxist theory, documentary photography, and the Conceptual art movement of the late 1960s.
What page is this reading on? I cannot find it for the life of me? -Merrisa
DeleteA New Instrument of Vision
ReplyDeleteBy Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
In “A New Instrument of Vision, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy refers to photography as an “extraordinary instrument for reproduction”. From there, he generates a long list of the various ways photography is ‘a new instrument of vision’ – from quality, technique, and performance to the eight varieties of photographic visions (including abstract seeing, reportage, rapid-seeing, slow-seeing, micro-photography, filter-photography, radiography, transparent superimposition, and optical jokes). Moholy-Nagy makes his support of photography and belief of its significance to society throughout the text:
“The realization that knowledge of photography is just as important as of the alphabet”.
“The illiterate of the future will be ignorant of the use of camera and pen alike”.
“In photography we must learn to seek, not the ‘picture,’ not the aesthetic of tradition, but the ideal instrument of expression, the self-sufficient vehicle for education.”
Also, he discussed the importance of seeking new artistic expression, rather than settling for aesthetic traditions.
Bio…
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (July 20, 1895 – November 24, 1946) was a painter, photographer, and a professor in the Bauhaus School. He was strongly influences by constructivism and was an advocate for the integration of technology and industry within the arts.
Seeing Photographically
ReplyDeleteEdward Weston
In the opening of “Seeing Photographically”, Edward Weston states that “each medium of expression imposes its own limitations on the artist”. Being in the youngest of the arts, photography has received relayed recognition due to the belief that it lacks the qualities of traditional art because it is the “product of a machine.” A very valid point Weston makes in the text is when he questions the dismissal of art. For instance, why should society reject the mechanical function of photography when we do not dimiss music – which is created by instruments… a mechanical device? It seems unfair that photography has negative connotations when other types of artistic expression have their inadequacies as well. However, I think no matter how much photography advances/improves, there will always be that idea that it is not true art.
Favorite Passages:
“The sculptor, the architect, the composer all have the possibility of making chances in or addition to, their original plans while their work is in process… But the photographer’s recording process cannot be drawn out… there is not stopping or changing.”
“When we attempt to assemble the best work of the past, we most often choose examples from the work of those who are not primarily concerned with esthetics.”
“Photography is basically too honest a medium for recording superficial aspects of a subject.”
“Good composition is only the strongest way of seeing the subject. It cannot be taught because, like all creative effort, it is a matter of personal growth.”
Bio…
Edward Weston (March 24, 1886 – January 1, 1958) was “one of the most influential photographers”. He photographed an increasingly expansive set of subjects, including landscapes, still lifes, nudes, portraits,
On the Invention of Photographic Meaning
ReplyDeleteThis essay is also rather easily understandable and relatable. The first sentence of this essay relates strongly to what we discussed in class, “The meaning of a photograph, like that of any entity, is inevitably subject to culture definition.” I also feel that reading this essay, as one of the first readings would have been helpful. Its explanation of photographic discourse is exactly what we talked about in class one. The concept of photographic context is discussed, explaining how photography may need a clarification, it’s “incomplete”. From this, “photographic literacy is learned” is brought up. Simple pictures can be easily understood, and most of the time, that’s their point. When a concept or meaning is introduced, that’s when the “literacy” is tested. The comparison between the two photos is helpful to show that it is tough for one image to stand alone and instantly you employ your past experiences into photographs without a “caption”. Sekula finally reiterates that photography can be used for specific purposes, including press control.
A New Instrument of Vision
ReplyDeleteThis essay seemed very cut and dry, which is almost a sigh of relief as compared to the previous reads. Each section is titled with exactly what the following is going to be about. The only section I got lost in was “What is optical quality?” The section titled “Sublimated technique” brought up a very interesting/valid point. “This advance in technique almost amounts to a psychological transformation of our eyesight, since the sharpness of the lens and the unerring accuracy of its delineation have now trained our powers of observation up to a standard of visual perception which embraces ultra-rapid snapshots and the millionfold magnification of dimensions employed in microscopic photography.” Which segways into “Photography, then. Imparts a heightened or, increased, power of sight in terms of time and space.” These two quotes are true in the fact that I feel photography has trained my eye to look at things differently, whether it’s more closely or farther away. The essay then continues to talk about photography’s “breakout” moment and finishes with prefacing the knowledge of photography is needed before the push for film.
Seeing Photographically
ReplyDeleteThis essay was by far my favorite so far. It starts off with a total debby downer “each medium expression imposes its own limitations on the artist.” However, its is undoubtedly true and he continues to say, “We select music or dancing… because we feel that within the frame of that particular medium we can best express whatever it is we have to say.” The “photo-painting standard” is probably the best, more simply way of describing how painters originally influenced photographers. Weston continues to describe this “box” that photographers where put into due to the fact that when people saw a photograph, they still wanted to see a painting at the time. “Behind the photo-painter’s approach lay the fixed idea that a straight photograph was purely the product of a machine and therefore not art.” About half way through the essay, Weston seems to finally state his thesis, “It is learning to see photographically- that is, learning to see his subject matter in terms of the capacities of his tools and processes, that that he can instantaneously translate the elements and values in a scene before him into the photograph he wants.” Weston is explain the point he brings up later, that unlike painting or sculpting, photography can’t be changed throughout the process, yet it actually can be. The way you choose to print it, or represent it all can change, along with how you shoot it (mechanically what f stop or shutter speed). I don’t understand this “Salon Psychology” that he brings up though. Weston finishes with two quotes that complement each other. “When subject matter is forced to fit into preconceived patters (like paintings), there can be no freshness of vision.” Followed by, “Only then can he be free to put his photographic sight to use in discovering and revealing the nature of the world he lives in.”
Merrisa Brierly
ReplyDeleteA NEW INSTRUMENT OF VISION – Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
What I got out of this reading was that photography was a form of reproduction. It went on to talk about optical quality, which were are shadows and color and what makes it a piece of art rather than just a reproduction or documentation of something. Moholy-Nagy then lists the eight varieties of photographic vision which are:
1.) Abstract Seeing
2.) Exact Seeing/Reportage
3.) Rapid Seeing/Snapshots
4.) Slow Seeing/Prolonged Time Exposures
5.) Intensified Seeing/Micro-Photography, Filter-Photography
6.) Penetrative Seeing/Radiology
7.) Simultaneous Seeing/The future process of automatic photomontage.
8.) Distorted Seeing
Throughout the rest of the reading he talks about the significance of photography in society and that artistic expression is important rather than aesthetic traditions.
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy Biography:
Born July 20, 1895. Was a painter with is own abstract style that was influenced by Malewitsch and El Lissitzky. One of the most important artists of Constructivism. Also was a teacher in Berlin and a he was a photographer. Important in the world of technology and arts. He died November 24, 1946.
Merrisa Brierly
ReplyDeleteSEEING PHOTOGRAPHICALLY – Edward Weston
I liked this reading the most. It was about how photography originated from paintings and that since early photographers didn’t have something to look back on to, to reference to, they looked back on the history of painting and tried to make it resemble a painting. It was called “photo-painting.” It goes on to explain the difference between what photos were considered art and what wasn’t. The mechanically produced photos aren’t art. So stock photos and such. Weston also talks about how photography cannot be drawn out like paintings and sculptors can. You can keep on adding to a painting for years whereas with photography, you click the shutter and that’s it. That moment can’t ever be repeated. Similar scenarios may be reproducible but never that moment. Later on he states that there are two basic factors of the photographic process that separates it from other graphic arts. They were the nature of the recording process and the nature of the image. After this section I kind of was losing interest. All I know is that the last part of this reading was about subject matter and composition which is basically about choosing who/what you are going to photograph and how/where you are going to photograph them. Overall I think that photography had to start somewhere and I’m glad they referred back to paintings.
Edward Weston Biography:
Born March 24, 1886. At one point in his life he was a surveyor for LA then later realized he loved photography. He peddled his wares door to door photographing children, pets and funerals later realizing the need for formal training, in 1908 he returned east and attended the Illinois College of Photography in Effingham, Illinois. He’s one of the most influential photographers out there photographing landscapes, still lifes, nudes, and portraits.
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