Expressionism Photography

“The term expressionism is more common in the literature of art and aesthetics then in photography. The term pictorialism , however, is common in photography and the pictorialist movement in photography fits within expressionistic criteria.” (Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding Images; Fifth Edition; Pg. 136) In the above photograph by David Julian, titled “The Haunted Tree” many of the qualities of expressionism or pictorialism are present within this photograph. The lighting and soft focus create an image that looks more like a painting than a photograph. This photography with its title also could be considered an allegory, which is also in pictorialism. In photography today a photographer may not use traditional brushes or textured papers to create a pictorialist feel to their imagery they may one the other hand use programs such as Photoshop to create that same look and feel. “For expressionists, intensity of expression is more crucial than accuracy of representation.” (Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding Images; Fifth Edition; Pg. 136) This is another example from our book that I feel applies to this image and why I feel that is fits into the expressionism category. The tree in the image only has the look and feeling of being a haunted old tree due to the way the photograph was edited. The desaturation of the colors and the darkened edges add to the mood of the photograph, while the birds flying overhead give the tree and image it’s foreboding feeling. “Interest in pictorialist aesthetics and techniques (“manipulated photographs”) declined by the mid 1920’s, only to reemerge in the 1970’s and the tradition is vigorously continued today.” (Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding Images; Fifth Edition; Pg. 136) This photograph is also one of many by the photographer David Julian in a series he calls “Dreams and Visual Poems”, in which he states “ In dreams, trees are hands, water is silk, birds are spirits and dramatic skies veil an unrelenting sun.” When I view this photograph having read that statement it makes me even more convinced that this photograph fits into the category of expressionism. The allegory also comes to life more with this description of the photographers description of a tree being a hand of hands reaching towards the birds in the sky or spirits circling overhead, underneath a dramatic sky and unrelenting sun.

Explanatory Photographs

The above photograph is an example of an explanatory photograph taken be Ray Demski, like those of Eadweard Muybridge this photograph shows the visual explanation of a female volleyball player performing a jump serve. Muybridge was the first person to photograph a trotting horse in sequence to show that a trotting horse did in fact have all four hooves off the ground at the same time. Muybridge offered a visual explanation of how a horse moved with his sequence of shots. Ray Demski also offers us that same explanation of movement with this photograph. I also feel because of the artistic way each movement is either faded or in full opacity this photograph could fall under the Interpretive photographs category. Yet because this photograph has more of a scientific representation of how this individual moved I felt as those it fit better in the explanatory category. Ray Demski does a superb job in visually detailing how not only the individual moves during the whole process but visually shows how the ball travels as well. The way the ball travels and the shapes it takes during its course of travel remind me of Physicist Harold Edgertons photographic study of how bullets move and change shape when that bullet strikes a hard object. “Most explanatory photographs deal with subject matter that is specific to a particular time and place.” (Criticizing photographs: An introduction to understanding images; Fifth Edition; Pg 79) This photograph is also an example of that as well, time and place can mean a great many things but the sandy beach and the coastal background is an example of the place which the photograph was taken. The volleyball players’ outfit also is an example of the time period in which the photograph was taken as well. Another example of time in this photograph would be the time of day it was taken so that the photographer could capture the most details in the way the volleyball player moved. This photograph like so many other photographs fall into multiple categories, yet because you can see the steps in sequential order of how this individual moves when doing a jump serve and the somewhat scientific manner it depicts those movements it falls into the explanatory photograph category. Explanatory photographs are often made to be reproduced in books, magazines and newspapers. I can see this photograph as a magazine spread which is another reason I feel as though it fits into this category.

Midterm: Black and White Photography in the Digital Age

Black and white photography in the digital age is a step-by-step guide to black and white photography using new technology to get the most out of your black and white imagery.  Andri Hery said this about black and white photography “To see color is a delight for the eye, but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul.” “Traditionally, fine black and white photography was the province of the darkroom expert, applying subtle tones and tints and skillfully controlling the exposure to affect a lighting and darkening of specific area of the print. But the digital revolution has allowed formerly time-consuming, difficult and even dangerous processes to be easily and safely tackled on the computer screen.” (Inside front cover, Black and white photography in the digital age © 2007) Tony Worobiec and Ray Spence wrote the book “Black and white photography in the digital age” on creative camera, darkroom and printing techniques for the modern photographer. This book appears to cover a good range of different technics in creating stunning black and white imagery.

The book starts out explaining the process of how to convert monochrome film into digital black and white digital images using different types of scanners. Once converted into digital format these images can then be modified and enhanced using different digital enhancement programs like adobe Photoshop. Other techniques are also discussed on how to convert different files into a monochrome or black and white photographs in chapter one of this book.

 In chapter two the book begins to talk about tonal control and controlling contrast throughout the image.  Chapter two also discusses how and when to apply selective tonal controls, with a variety of different techniques. Some of those techniques include using curves and levels, burning and dodging and using gradients and quick masks.

Chapter 3 goes into even more ways to further enhance or manipulate your digital images to create a more pleasing photograph. Some of these techniques include cropping, sharpening and differential focusing.

The next chapter talks about toning and coloring your black and white photographs to achieve even more of an artistic look.  Some of those styles are using sepia toning to create a vintage look or using duotones to create an artistic feel with in a photograph. This chapter also includes a section on how to isolate a color such as red to create an emphasis in a photograph or to highlight a specific detail.

Chapter 5 goes into the process of how to drop in a new or different background or sky to create a more intense scene or just to add another element to a plain looking photograph. One of the examples in the book for dropping in an alternate sky is a landscape photograph of a sand dune with a plain cloudless sky that the authors then drop in a dramatic sky of clouds changing the whole dynamic of the photograph. Another section within this chapter that I liked was creating a special effect by adding the illusion of lightning into a landscape photograph.

Chapter 6 is very helpful to those photographers that enjoy printing their photographic works and give a step-by-step write up and examples on how to create certain styles and looks with your printed digital imagery.  Some of these digital darkroom effects were creating a lith effect or a solarized effect in a digital photograph. Other effects are creating diffuser and texture screens to add an interesting look and feel to and image. This chapter has some of the best and most useful section at least for my photographic style and me.

 Chapter 7 gives both example and different ways of creating borders for you photographic works. Some of these borders and frames are just a simple black or white feathered edge and some of them are more complex making an image look as if it had a film negative or polaroid border. One of the section within this chapter is on how to create an image using a flatbed scanner and another is on how to create a or produce a digital negative, which for me is a really awesome concept.

The in the final chapter the book talk about and shows different ways to output your imagery whether it be thru print or by printing a self published book. The book talks about different types of ink and paper used in printing and publishing.

Overall the book “Black and white photography in the digital age” is a book worth having in your own library to refer to and to use to create your own style and feel monochrome photography in this the digital age. As stated in the beginning with the quote from the inside front cover traditionally great black and white imagery has been created and process by those with extensive darkroom experience using film photography, now with the use of this book or others like it a photographer can create beautiful black and white imagery that can rival that which has come before.

According to the copyrights in the front of the book Tony Worobiec and Ray Spence copyright all of the text and illustrations used with in this book. In my opinion the right images to illustrate and demonstrate the techniques used in each section of this book.  

Belagio Art Exhibition

A Sense of Place: Landscapes from Monet to Hockney

The exhibition at the Bellagio gallery of fine art was an exceptional assortment of art pieces. The pieces were made up of paintings, photographs, sculpture and video installations. The exhibit was made up of different pieces showcasing the different ways artists have represented or portrayed landscapes over the years. Some of the ones I found to be most interesting to me were Catherine Murphy’s “curtained window”, Robert Rauschenburgs’s “Soviet/ American Array”, Ana Mendieta’s “Silueta”, Christo’s “running fence” Steven Hannock’s “vortex at dawn” and the most interesting piece for me was Inigo Manglano Ovalle’s “juggernaut”. I found Robert Rauschenburg’s piece to be a very interesting combination of colors and pictures giving me the viewer a number of things to think about while trying to interpret the pieces meaning for myself. I also found that the large mural representing the running fence of Christo’s creation to be quite interesting as well and would love to have been able to see the real running fence before it was taken down.  Steven Hannock’s painting of a missile vortex at dawn over the ocean captured my eye and for a moment I could imagine seeing the missile turn and twist over the water before either splashing down in the water or disappearing over the horizon, all while standing on the beach watching the sun rise.

I think for me the three pieces that stood out the most was Ana Mendieta’s “silueta” which were a series of photographs taken of a wave washing over a hole in the sand that appeared to be the imprint of a body. Ana Mendieta was known to use actual blood in her photographs and that is probably the reason my eye was drawn to the photographs. Looking back and forth to each of the different photographs my mind was trying to put together a story of the event that could have possibly taken place on the beach as the tide slowly washes away any trace evidence.

Another of the three pieces that stood out to me was Catherine Murphy’s “curtained window”. When I first looked at this painting I thought it was two separate pieces, because the right third of the painting is the curtain separated from the other two thirds of the painting by a straight vertical line. Once I stood back and listened to the short informational narration the painting came alive to me. The painting was an artist’s interpretation of how we view the world and the chaos that can be nature from within the confines and safety of our houses.

The last piece which for me was the best piece was a short film made by Inigo Manglano Ovalle’s called “juggernaut”. Inigo Manglano Ovalle’s originally intended to make a film on some endangered whale and instead turned his 16mm film camera to the salt flats and the goliath sized machinery used in collecting the salt giving the piece its name. This piece by far is my favorite piece in the whole exhibition. It caught my eye from the first moment I walked into the exhibit and I found myself going back to watch the video over and over again, each time I watched it I found something new interesting about the piece.

Week 3 Trading Places

Steven Lippman created the above photograph for Jewelry designer Rosalina and fits into his unique style of imagery. Steven is a high fashion photographer with an eye for stunning images.  Each of his images has very precise lighting to set the mood and overall feeling of the photograph. This image of a beautiful young woman in a silky evening dress backlit and sitting on the edge of a banister with a dark foreboding landscape behind her looks as though it could be a movie still for the next big vampire blockbuster. The way the model is in total focus while the rest of the image is blurred adds to the overall appeal of the image. Even though the model is backlit and the front of her is a little on the dark side you can still see the sharp details of the dress, necklace and her face. The backlight also casts a soft halo around her that helps to separate her from the dark gloomy background. As far as an advertising photography I think this image hits the nail on the head, if I were to see this image in a magazine I would stop and look at the advertisement.  I would have to say this though I would not know that this was a jewelry advertisement if it did not say so in the bottom left side of the advertisement or if I the viewer did not know who Rosalina was. The necklace is very nicely lit with beautiful highlights on the stones making the necklace stand out in the shot.

Photo Critique #2

Out of all the Sally Mann photographs this one entitled “Three Graces” is one that I do not understand the meaning of. The photograph is a part of her "Immediate Family" series which includes several other photographs of this same nature. "In the late 1980s, the widely exhibited family photographs eventually published in Immediate Family (1992) and Still Time (1994) were attacked as perverse and exploitative, or praised as innocent and beautiful, depending on the political stance of the viewer." (http://www.answers.com/topic/sally-mann#ixzz1SWekVKqO)

“Sally Mann has used her 8 × 10 view camera to capture in fine detail, among other subjects, images of her children as they mimic and act out social and familial roles in the lush landscape of their rural Virginia home. For the series Immediate Family, posed or simply arrested in their activity, Mann’s children (who often appear nude) convey both primal and playful aspects of human behavior.” (http://www.mocp.org/collections/permanent/mann_sally.php)

These are two different statements of Sally Mann’s published works in which this photograph is part of. I tend to agree with the fact that this particular image appears to me to be nothing more than exploitation of her children. I can understand the beauty of a tastefully made artistic nude, or capturing the innocence of children in their adolescence, however I don’t feel that this photograph captures that beauty and innocence.

For me I do not understand what a posed photograph of naked young women urinating has to do with family or innocence. This is not an innocent moment caught on camera of a young child urinating outdoors, while that may have been its intention. I feel that the posed nature of the photograph and the fact that the girls are urinating is more of what makes this photograph have an exploitive or vulgar nature.  

Chapter 1

I do not know whom I most identify with as far as a critic from the book; I do like Morris Weitz definition of criticism though. Morris Weitz defines criticism as " a form of studied discourse about works of art. It is a use of language designed to facilitate and enrich the understanding of art." (Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding images, Fifth Edition. Pg. 3)
This definition of criticism is the way I feel about a critic or how you should critic something. First you need to study the field in which the work is created, as well as the piece of art created. Then you have to be able to use a language to voice your opinions and questions in a manner that ultimately enriched either the piece of art or the artist. This doesn't mean it cannot be critical and disagreeable, it only means that it should be constructive and beneficial to both the viewers and the artist.
I believe that a critic can successfully critique the work of someone whom they have an intimate relationship with. I believe we all have different levels of intimacy and depending on that intimacy it can be either harder or easier to give a successful critique. The more intimate we become with the person we are trying to critic the more our emotions for that individual may get in the way of giving our true opinions, yet if we are honest with those other people we can give a true honest critique.
"In criticizing an art object for a reader or viewer, critics must struggle to translate their complex jumble of thoughts and feelings about art into words that can be understood first by themselves and then by others." (Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding images, Fifth Edition. Pg. 15) I believe that this statement defines why there is value in criticism. The longer we study another artists work and formulate our own ways of expressing our likes and dislikes about those works it helps us to better define our own works bringing not only the others we critic but ourselves to the next level of understanding and ability. "Viewers who consider art in the way a critic would consider it will likely increase their own understanding and appreciation of art - that is the goal and the reward." (Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding images, Fifth Edition. Pg. 15)