6 Photos

Final Decision on Book Theme

The theme for my book is “Melodrama”. I stage out everyday events like going to school, getting ready to go out, etc. with the photos being dramatic shots. I will try to draw out the relatable emotions when things in life just don’t go according to plan. Each photo will tie with another to tell a story, and there will be several stories within the book that talk about everyday occurrences that aren’t really problematic, but they seem that way in the moment. By overdramatizing these occurrences, I hope to reveal the actual problems lying underneath the surface. For example, my first story is called “Smiling Will Make You Feel Better”, and I exaggerate the frustration and sadness I feel when I’m told that, which shows how that phrase and others like it patronizes people and will only worsen the problem.

2 Ideas for Final Project

My first idea is a David Lynch theme. Each page will have its own story told by the photos. The photos will be taken in very dramatic lighting and with stark contrast. The stories told by the photos will range from a kind of noir detective genre to sort-of horror, so there’ll definitely be a few black and white photos. All of the pages and their stories will have some ambiguity so it’ll be up to the viewer to make their own inferences.

My second idea is called “Space Odyssey” (inspired by the David Bowie song). I’ll draw these little astronaut cartoon guys with each one in a different position. Then I’ll take pictures of them with different backgrounds to resemble space. I’ll have some other backgrounds that aren’t space-themed, but I’ll make it so that it looks other-worldly. The story will start off with a lift-off in a rocket, and then it’ll move through the astronaut’s adventures before it settles down permanently somewhere.

Photographer Pick- Lisa Ross

For my oral presentation, I have decided to present on photographer Lisa Ross. I chose Ross because her work always catches my eye with the small pop of color against a desolate landscape. Her work also has a lot of interesting external information since her subject matter is the Uyghur people and their shrines, and her subject is the persecution of their culture and religion by the Chinese government. Lisa Ross was also really caring and passionate about her work and she thoroughly explained the facts and her thoughts to me, and she made me eager to share this with other people as well.

ASSIGNMENT 4- Composition

 
Complementary Colors
SS: 1/125, F4.5, 
ISO 100

Contrast
SS: 1/64, F11, 
ISO 200

Line
SS: 1/100, F5, 
ISO 800

Monochromatic Color
SS: 1/64, F11, ISO 200

Texture
SS: 1/64, F5.6, 
ISO 1600





Shape
SS: 1/80, F5.6, 
ISO 100
 

Rule of Thirds
SS: 1/64, F4.5, 
ISO 1600
 




Repetition
SS: 1/800, F4.5, 
ISO 100

ASSIGNMENT 5: Exhibition Review

Located in the Sundaram Tagore Gallery (Suite 204), photographer Lisa Ross has set up her first solo exhibition I Can’t Sleep: Homage to a Uyghur Homeland from January 17th through March 26th. The suite the exhibition is in had been decorated by Ross herself with monochromatic images of anthropologist Rahile Dawut (who had recently disappeared while in Xinjiang, China, the home of the Uyghur people) as the wallpaper. Her photographs are large prints that hang on top of those images. Lisa Ross spent 15 years in Western China photographing the Uyghur people, until the Chinese state had amplified its efforts to assimilate these people, which encouraged Ross to display these pictures to the public. The subject matter of the photos are the Uyghur women and children alongside their outdoor beds located on grape farms, while the subject is the exoticization of the Uyghur people by the Chinese state. The form of the photos is strongly based on color and contrast as seen with the stark difference between the subject matter’s clothes (bright and colorful) and its background (low saturation, not many colors). Ross’ style is separating the subject matter from the background by giving the subject matter high contrast and color and the background low contrast. The internal context shown is the Uyghur people sleeping outside next to their fields during harvest so they won’t have to go back and forth between the fields and their homes, and the external context is the recent efforts made by the Chinese state to force these people to leave their culture and religion. Compared with other artists, Ross’ work strongly brings out the subject matter, but without taking it out of real life, like other photographers would by making the everything (except the focus) black-and-white. As a viewer, this work evoked surprise and curiosity about the people presented in the photos because Ross was able to maintain the realistic aspect while brightening the subject matter. 

I chose this photograph because the colors of her bed and clothes really separate her from the background, but without being distracting. The subject matter is of a Uyghur woman sitting on her bed with a field of grapes behind her, and she is sleeping outside for the harvest, as are the rest of her family. This fit in perfectly with the other works because it shows a young woman while the others showed the elderly and children, so it completes the age gap. I really connected with this photo personally because my entire family came from farmers who would wake up early to tend the fields, and they too had piles of colorful quilts that I still have, as well as colorful, patterned clothes.  

Overall, I was really impressed with the show. It surprised me to see so much thought put into documentary photos, and the whole history behind Ross’ cause. I think the artist was trying to show the lives and culture of the Uyghur people, and she did an excellent job at communicating that because not only did she document these people, but she also explained and handed out articles explaining their situation in full. I enjoyed the show, and after seeing her passion first-hand, I would love to see more work by Lisa Ross. 

ASSIGNMENT 3: Depth of Field

Small Aperture
SS:1/80, F36, ISO 3200

Wide Aperture
SS: 1/125, F5.6, ISO 400

READING ASSESSMENT 2

1) Photographs need to be recognized as pictures with a purpose to express or communicate something to others. The photographer's knowledge, belief, values, and attitudes are reflected in the photographs they create. Interpretations are the answers to a person's questions about a photograph, and so interpretations vary depending on the questions a person asks and the answers they find. Interpretations are not judged on what is right and what is wrong, rather they are judged by how reasonable they are.

2) When people look at photos in a newspaper, they are taken as facts just as the article it accompanies. People do not realize that the photographer constructed the photo with skill in order to change a person's view of it, whether it be negative or positive. Cindy Sherman's self-portrait photographs show a woman doing various things like being a circus clown. A person could ask who the woman is, and find that it is the artist, making them believe that this is what the artist thinks of herself. Others could ask about how the subject was photographed, leading them to interpret the photos as a reference to media portrayals of women, and these interpretations of Sherman's photos are all valid due to the fact that they have a reasonable basis to go off of.

3) Interpretation is not just what a person thinks of a photograph. Interpretation is when attention and discussion move beyond basic information to discussion of the photo's meaning and purpose. For someone to interpret, they must account for all the described aspects of the photograph and determine the meaning behind the connections between those aspects. Interpreting also includes telling the sense, tone, or mood of the photo as well.

4) Photographs need to be interpreted so that they may be fully appreciated. People tend to accept photographs as facts that do not need any special attention. They are treated like everyday items, like a bed in a bedroom, something never to be thought about. However, every photograph is affected by the photographer and their own beliefs, giving each photograph its own perspective that needs to be recognized so that we know exactly what that perspective is.

5) One example that stood out to me was the photo Eleanor. Two of the three interpretations of this photo kind of creeped me out. They described her as a "Heliopolitan goddess" and stated how she was an "energy rather than a substance". When I looked at the photo, I saw a woman who was putting up with her husband's crap by resistantly being his model. Then the feminist interpretation surprised me because I would have never thought that a photo as simple as this would completely change someone's world view, especially when that world view is revealed to be somewhat sexist. I never got any of those views/vibes from that photo.

6) Some people understand artworks better than others. So, some interpretations of those artworks are also better than others. Not all interpretations are equal, and they should not be based on whether they are true or false. Good interpretations are plausible, original, and insightful.

7) Not every photographer takes their photos with something in mind, or intent. Therefor, people should not compare their interpretations to the photographer's intent. An artist cannot just give any interpretation they want without it being shown in the presented photo. So, the artist's own interpretation should be judged the same as anyone else's.

8) One way to interpret a photo is through the artist's biography. Knowing more about the artist's background and how they grew up can help answer the question "why did they make this?" Interpretations are not just random thoughts and feelings thrown out by critics. Interpretations are like arguments, and they need evidence to support them in order for them to be deemed plausible.

9) Critics, artists, collectors, and viewers are all in the community of interpreters. Together they observe and talk about their understandings of photographs that then combine into a common interpretation of the piece. This community creates and accepts interpretations that are reasonable and based off of knowledge. By following the principles of interpretation, such as how interpretations differ and should be reasonable, everyone can join the community and contribute to it as well as benefit from it.

ASSIGNMENT 2- SHUTTER SPEED AND MOTION

        Slow Shutter
ISO 100, SS: 1/8, F25

         Fast Shutter
ISO 1600, SS: 1/500, F4

READING ASSIGNMENT 1

1. Description is criticism that is based on data-gathering process where everything matters, such as facts about the artist and the title of the piece. A formal analysis is a combination of description and interpretation, and reported descriptions should be relevant to interpretative, evaluative, and theoretical ideas. Description is dependent on interpretation, and can be infinite; however, whether the description is productive depends on its relevancy.
   
2. The author mainly uses the example of Avedon's "In the American West" exhibit to support their thesis. Art Critic Davis explains Avedon's history of being a fashion designer, and that his new exhibition was different from his previous work and long-awaited. Davis' review includes facts both about the exhibit as well as the artist himself, revealing that he is aware of Avedon's acclaim, which in turn affects his interpretation of the exhibit and allows him to be more open-minded with the famous designer. On the other hand, critic Susan Weiley sees the exhibit as fashion and not art, using Avedon's history in a way opposite to that of Davis. Avedon's history affects Weiley's interpretation by influencing her belief that he is more of a fashion designer than a photographer.
   
3. a) Description is when one gathers factual evidence about a piece of art. Whether it be about the piece itself or the artist who created it, all facts are pertinent to form a description. To describe a photograph, one must gather all of the information they can find about the photo and share it with others.
   b) Subject matter identifies the persons, places, or objects within a photo. However, the subject is the theme or meaning of the photo in its entirety. Subject matter is the physical image, while the subject is what that image represents.
   c) Form is how the subject matter is presented. A photograph's form is how it is composed and constructed visually. So, principles of design such as color, shape, and texture are used to create a photo's form.
   d) Medium is what an art piece is made of. A portrait's medium could be either a painting or a photograph. There are also mediums within mediums: a photograph's medium could be a photogram, which is a photograph taken without a camera.
   e) Style is a resemblance among art from an artist, location, or time period. Style is recognized through the presentation of subject matter and the use of principles of design. For example, an artist's style could be their repetitive use of rough texture in their paintings.
   
4. a) One way to critique an artist's work is to compare it with the works of others. Comparing and contrasting is to look at two or more pieces of art and see what is similar and what is different about them. Compare and contrast is used in criticism as a rating system to see how one artist rivals with a more popular one.
   b) Internal and external information is what one gathers about a particular painting through extensive research. Internal information is what is presented in the artwork. External information is outside research into the life and mindset of the artist.
   
5. a) It's impossible to describe without interpretation. It is also impossible to interpret without description. A critic needs to keep their descriptions relevant, but what one considers relevant is dependent on their interpretation of the artwork.
   b) Evaluation is the judgement of a critic. A critic's judgement often influences their description. A description may carry a positive or negative tone depending on the critic's evaluation of the piece.
   
6. a) Description, interpretation, and evaluation are intertwined with each other. A description needs to be relevant, and that relevancy is dependent on a critic's interpretation, and part of that interpretation is the critic's evaluation of the artwork. Description is important to readers because it is how they learn to appreciate and understand the artwork. Description provides information and perspectives that the readers may have never been able to experience themselves.
   b) I learned from the reading that description is dependent on interpretation. So, when critiquing a piece of art, the opinions of the critic is pertinent to their reviews. I also learned that external information matters when it comes to interpreting a piece. By just staring at a photo, I can't really gather much from it, but when I learn the photographer's intention behind the photo, then my whole perspective is changed.
   c) In conclusion, there are many aspects to criticism and description. A critic's interpretation and evaluation, the internal and external information, and the medium, form, style, and subject of the artwork all play important parts in forming a description. Also, the descriptions of critic's are important to readers as well because it teaches them how to understand and appreciate the piece of art.
   d) I personally thought this chapter to be rather enlightening. I have been taking an Aesthetics and Criticism class, so I've been thinking a lot about the topic of criticism when it comes to art. This chapter was a clearer way to explain the aspects and importance of criticism compared to the ramblings of some guy from the 1700's that I have been reading.

PART 2- Inspiration Images

I found this image on VSCO, and it is from the user floweirdy, posted on January 25, 2019. I really like it because of the pastel rainbow colors that fall on the flower and go into the background. I think it's a very peaceful picture because of the smooth texture on the flower, which goes with the smoothness of the ball it's on. The colors are just right too: they don't scream and hurt my eyes, rather they're more calm, which adds to the serenity I get from the photo.

This photo I found on VSCO comes from user floweirdy, and was posted on November 7, 2018. I really enjoy this photo because it reminds me of the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland, which gives it a playful feel to it. I also just really love how the whole composition of it differs from your average photo. Instead of one angle and zoom, it includes several, which makes me think about how there is even more to photography than just the usual rule of thirds and color.

This photo I found on VSCO was published by avynleedahl on January 27, 2019. I love this photo because of its strong vintage vibe. The old skateboard with the Vans sneakers and shirt say 1990's, and the black and white composition suggest that it's older. However, my favorite part of the photo is the grain and vignette that helps make the photo look ancient, as well as give it a photo-you-find-in-a-horror-movie tone to it, making it cool and a bit scary.