Alla Mirovskaya: Distant and Close

Photographer Alla Mirovskaya decided to get to know her mother again, for the woman she had become rather than the woman she had always known. Like the title of the series, she no longer wanted distance between her and her mother; she wanted to become close again. 

I really love the light in these photos, as well as the tone it produces. She jumps back and forth between photographs of herself or her mother, and landscapes or still life set ups. The photos have an old feel to them, but are comfortable to look at and experience. They drew me in instantly.

Dash Snow - Polaroids

New York photographer Dash Snow created a collection of powerful and shocking images depicting sex, violence, drugs, and a healthy disrespect for authority figures in his series Polaroids. The photos themselves are often somewhat surreal(both in composition and in sheer shock value), leaving the viewer (or at least me) with the feeling that the "real world" that we live is muted, and not quite authentic. This isn't to say that a life like Snow's and the subjects of his photos is desirable, but nonetheless Polaroids provokes thought and feeling alike throughout the series.

I noticed this series because of two images: a Shell gas station sign, with the S burned out so only the word "hell" is visible, and a picture of two young men, one of them vomiting over a railing while the other looks on. After viewing Polaroids in its entirety, I admire Snow's talent for capturing in photographs the self-destructive as well as outwardly destructive behaviors of those around him, as well as the negative effects of engaging in these behaviors. Although some might see the series as glorifying the subjects of its photos and their actions, Snow says himself that "[he] saw them as horror stories."

Scor Sothern: Low Life

Scot Sothern

For forty years, Scot Sothern spent his life in freelance photography. His worked spanned from department stores, churches, bowling alleys, sports events, high school proms, to tourist photos and children portraits. In 1983 he began to be known worldwide for his works with the disappearing Bedouin tribe and his project Shopping For God: Religious Cults in America.

This series in particular caught my eye, mainly because of the provocative catch on prostitutes. He spends time with prostitutes, and lets himself loose (as in, he lets himself get an erection or two, and nonchalantly admitting it). He describes them, asks them questions, ask for their opinions. According to Bill Fithugh, author of Pest Control, it is"a masterful memoir, full of truth-telling, ugliness, beauty, tragedy, and humor." I couldn't agree more. 

- Michelle Mangan

Vanessa Winship- She dances on Jackson

Vanessa Winship

Vanessa does wonderful portraits of people in her series she dances on jackson coupled with shots of the city and country which add to the nature of her portraits. Her black and white images are striking in a way that capture the viewers attention and question the relationship of each person to the next.

This work is similar to mine in that it has an element of collection of people seemingly unrelated that hold a common connection through where they live. The type of portrait and distance from her subjects in frame all hold a particular interest to me even with the above image with the elbow cut off the image does not feel incomplete.

Timothy Archibald - Echolilia

Timothy Archibald

Timothy Archibold is an editorial and commercial photographer from an Francisco. The overall themes that I could pick up from his collections is an intelligent use of light and objects and setting that are seemingly out of place. As seen above, the image is a child lying down in a plastic storage box. You can see the soft light from the curtains illuminating the child and the box.

His collection, "Echolilia" is about his autistic son. Throughout the images he seeks to create an emotional connection with son. The CDC states, "Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of developmental disabilities that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges." The images reveal the eccentricities of his son and the mannerisms that maek him unique. This collection is inspiring to me because it is like nothing I have ever seen before. At first glance, you look through the images and are left confused. However, as soon as you look more closely and start pondering the significance of each circumstance you can piece together a narrative of their lives. I like the subtly and the power of light and how seemingly mundane objects can carry so much meaning.

Daniel Gonzalez- Ari Pescara

Daniel Gonzalez's photo series he combines nudes of women with landscape photography to show the connection between women in the earth. The photos show real bodies of women intertwined with nature and each other. In the photos the women use the elements to paint symbols on themselves, and interact with each other in a way that looks like they are performing a type of ritual. Gonzalez depicts the women as a powerful but nurturing force for the nature around them. These photos don't show the female body in a sexual way, but rather a powerful one. When I look at these photos I don't necessarily see the women as being naked because they look completely natural, free and comfortable with themselves. I am able to view the image as a composition and appreciate the message behind it and how women, even in their most vulnerable state, are strong. I think the photographer is trying to give off the message that all women can be mother nature if they let themselves.

Curran Hatleberg- Anne-Sophie

Curran Hatleberg

Curran Hatleberg spent several years travelling across America in order to take photographs of what he calls "his own version of America". For 5 years, he had been driving from side to side of the US, without any precise idea of where he wanted to go but knowing that he was looking for something he didn't know yet. Most of these pictures represent the American working class in their most natural environment.

I found his project, The Crowded Edge, interesting because of the way the subjects are represented. Hatleberg described most of his subject as people we would wrongly perceive as different or disadvantaged compared to ourselves. But, when looking attentively to these pictures, you can see something else appear. You can actually see the bonds between the people represented, you can see joy in some of them, in others you can see worry or sadness. All ways, what you see are humans and it forces you to think of them as so and not as some disadvantaged strangers.

LEWIS HINE: “UNFAVORABLE POSITIONS” - Ayad

LEWIS HINE: “UNFAVORABLE POSITIONS”

 

 

A diligent photographer from the early 19th century. Lewis Hine was a sociologist and a photographer. He used the photography as utility to document the children labor that took place in the United States early that year. Most of the his superb portraits were about disfigured children ether with lost finger or the pure innocence. His photos really take us in time and shows us what truly was hard time for those young boys and girls. He really showed us what he was really cared about and that was children's freedom. Every portrait gives a story of what happened in the time, a seldom years those innocent children have spent their life. Personally, I have a feeling of both thankful and sorry for not being that period of and thankful that I have not been through what they've been through.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Txema Salvans - Caitlin

Txema Salvans, a Spanish photographer, spent six years photographing prostitutes on the side of secondary highways for his project The Waiting Game. Because the women would likely not want to be photographed, he pretended to be a surveyor, bringing an "assistant" and a pole along with him during shoots. I found his work interesting because the women are not the main focus of the photograph. The women are seen from far away and their faces are not shown. He gives his subjects a lot of space in these photos and you can gather a great deal of information about the situation because of this.

Maika Elan - Jon

Maika Elan is a Vietnamese photographer who graduated from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities with a BA in Sociology. In 2006, she began doing photography with lomo cameras. In this series entitled "Like My Father" she photographs her dad doing everyday activities after he was recently diagnosed with cancer.  In this series, she tries to show her father that he isn't as sick as he thinks he is and tries to bring him joy by doing things they used to always do together while Elan photographs it.  I really enjoyed this series because I like her use of film and double exposures, I think it's really effective in what she is trying to do because it isn't as serious and dramatic as one would expect the series to be and has a more positive feel to it.

Michael Wolf - Aidan Beckman

German photographer Michael Wolf, who has an extensive background in photographing cities, created an interesting series entitled Real Fake Art. Composed of portraits of Chinese "copy artists" who brazenly produce bulk forgeries of copyrighted works and distribute them worldwide. Similar to this series, Wolf also captures aspects of Hong Kong life in Real Toy Story and Architecture of Density.

I thought these photos were particularly in the juxtaposition that they provide, in which the subjects appear honest and indifferent while each of them stands by a product of dishonesty. I also enjoyed his use of the positioning of paintings and their backgrounds to maintain unbroken lines through images such as this.

Jose Pedro Cortes - Mischa

Jose Pedro Cortes

Jose Pedro Cortes studied photography in Lisbon, and obtained his masters in the UK. He has published several photography books, one that fascinated me was his project "Things here and things still to come." The project was done in Tel Aviv, where he met four Jewish women who were born in the USA. They all decided to complete the required two years of service when they reached the age of 18, and they all decided to stay after the service was completed.

These photographs really connected to me, because they reminded me of the rugged city of Richmond, and how people who come tend to fall in love and stay. The culture, the traditions, the relaxed environment. I imagine what these women ran away from, and the reason to stay. I want my collection of photographs to be personal and relaxed, capturing the people of Richmond, and the reason they wanted to stay.

Tony Fouhse - Los Angeles

 

Tony Fouhse

Tony Fouhse is a photographer living in Ottawa, Canada  that has been making pictures for over thirty years. Some of his work made in Canada, some photos are based out of the United States. This includes a set of photos from Tennessee and Mississippi. The collection that immediately caught my eye was "Los Angeles". In the second image in the shows the building where the Oscars are held. However, our foreground is a chain link fence.

 To me, this suggests how fame and fortune are so far away for the majority. We place such a high value on such events by having the media focus on them. It does not benefit the common man in anyway. It only sets up people for dreams that will probably not be fulfilled. As a society, we desire the life of a celebrity. In fact, it is nearly romanticized here in the states. Unfortunately, it is not attainable or realistic for anyone to hope to achieve. It is so difficult that we literally have a tall fence keeping us out of this lifestyle. It is reserved for a select few, who may not deserve it any more than we do. It's a business of who you know, not what you know. It's really just a distraction from what plagues in our daily lives. We may think, "Oh that's the life. They are so lucky to be there." We get caught up in thinking of how great it would be. Instead of spending time making our current situation better. The image at first glance seems simple. However, a closer look at the relationship between foreground and background reveals a deeper purpose.

The Conversation with John Gossage - Will Nelson

John Gossage leads us through the creation of "The Pond." The interesting fact is that he did not start with with and end in mind. He mentions that he would go out to make pictures. Early on, he was not concerned with the plot or main focus of his narrative. John knew that would come later after making many pictures. This is sort of the way we are setting up our photography project. We went out this weekend to make images concerning what we care about and what we are afraid of. This could include a number of things. However, after viewing them later we can patch together some sort of storyline.

Kelli Connell

Kelli Connell's work is an 8-year-long production of photos of her relationship with herself, literally. Each photo shows the photographer taking on two different personas in common relationship activities. Most of her photos look very simply posed, if at all. It feels like you're spending a day with a couple you know well, except both people in the relationship are the same person. Connell's goal with her work is to question the gender roles that shape the individual in relationships.

I really enjoy the candid feel of some of her photos. The relationship feels very genuine, which is what I want in the photos I take. I like photographing how we as humans relate to each other, especially in friendships and romantic relationships. I especially like the more lighthearted moment above. Kelli is able to capture real emotions in her work, without them feeling forced or over exaggerated.

JULIUS BORN: “TEXAN PORTRAITS” - Ayad

JULIUS BORN: “TEXAN PORTRAITS”

 

Where do I even start with this epic portrait photographer Julius Born. He worked at railroad when he was young. He started with 8$ ( I know that the value differs that time but hey he started with something small!) to open a small general store where he sells goodies and candy for the youngsters. He started his photography in his small general store that was opened for 50 years in 1905 in Canadian, Texas [1]. He managed to take handsome of portraits with astonishing exposure as if like every portrait tells a tale about that figure or that era that they use live in. His negative portraits were digitized and developed by Jurre Carr, a former contributor to the photographic history of the community[2]. He was remembered by the first who opened business and a photographer in Canadian, Texas.

Conversation with John Gossage - Ayad

I believe what John Gossasage is try to send is an idea of how things have been changed throughout the years of doing his project. He created a photobook in a unique way to grasp an the individuals attention to an acute matter that is unconsciously happening.  He made that book like a no usual photobook. He made it simple but mysterious as if someone who would see it wants to know what are the things are hidden in this book. Curiosity is what made us discover many things and I think he wants as be more curious in our surroundings, as he did with his project. Other thought was creating the book itself. He manage to create a picturesque documentary for his project like a scientist who's committing an experiment taking notes to the changes. Telling us to document the important things like the things we care about, and share it to the world because the only things were going to be remembered are by the care that we cared and the photos that carries it. It's like ancient Egyptian where they build and commemorate the things that they cared about and loved.

Anastasia Rudenko - Jon

Anastasia Rudenko did a photography project entitled "Life in Motion" where she photographed disabled orphans in a Russian orphanage.  The series is very emotional and she attempts to photograph the emotions of the children and their living conditions.   It's interesting because some of the children seem to approach Rudenko as she was taking their picture while others seemed more shy and disconnected.  I can really get a sense of what she was experiencing while taking these photographs because in some of them the children are very close up, almost as if they are touching the camera and you can really see their emotions in their faces.  

Philip-Lorca diCorcia - Anne-Sophie

Philip-Lorca diCorcia

In most of his work Philip-Lorca diCorcia, tries to recreate real-life emotions by photographing his models in their most natural state. He alternates between theatricality and reality which gives to the viewer a feeling of authenticity and truth in his portraits. For his project Hustlers he made several trips to Los Angeles in order to photograph different male prostitutes. Most of these portraits were taken in a motel room or a car.
I love this work because of the hos ability to capture the models' emotions and transcript them along with their personality. I also like the underexposure of the photos that I think had a dramatic effect to the scene.

Alison McCauley: Project-Havana by Night

Alison McCauley
The main themes that run through her work look at issues concerning identity and belonging, migration and living conditions.  These interests were doubtlessly born from Alison's experiences of constantly moving from country to country and the resulting ambivalence towards the idea of her own national identity and her feeling of not belonging to any particular country or community.  Among other projects, she is currently working on a long-term project documenting the lives of asylum seekers in Geneva.

I love this work for her ability to take a location and find characters in them and display them in a fashion that feels natural. I've been doing work in trying to capture a feel for the people and cities I am in focusing on the rougher areas that exist inside the city. I want to find why certain areas feel that they are rough and maybe I can find visual clues as to why.

Zoltan-Conversation with John Gossage

This video made me think about how everyone has their own parameters in which they work to give a style to their work. John said that all his work is hand held much like we do in class for the majority of our work. The way he described how one picture makes you look at all the other photos in a unique way makes me wonder how this might translate into our final projects and what effects do we want our photos to have and how can sequencing help us translate that message. Even the presentation of the work adds to this. John didn't put any pictures on his cover which was a first. However the way the text was incomplete made the reader open the book to read the rest only to find a hidden photo underneath. This thought process I feel is important moving into our final project.

Mischa: Conversation with John Gossage

As we are approaching the end of the semester, we started focusing on formulating a photo project. John Gossage mentions a couple points that are necessary in creating a coherent collection of photos. The collection of photos from beginning to the end need to tell a story, it takes the viewers on a beautiful journey told from the photographer's lens.  The collection of photos also needs to complete each other, thus, there should not be one 'main' photo, so that the story is not focused around that one photo, instead of all of the photos as an entirety. I thought that these points were helpful in the way I viewed my project, because telling stories through photography is a skill that I have yet to acquire. Instead of choosing just any photo, I have to learn how to chose the photos that will fit into the theme of my project.

Jon - A conversation with John Gossage

This exhibition talk with photographer, John Gossage, discusses the work of John and his photography book, The Pond.  This video showed me how you really can make a photograph of literally anything that you find interesting, and it be beautiful.  John Gossage photographed landscapes of a pond and other things that he found interesting and beautiful.  I like that in it he says that “anything that was in the way of what I wanted to photograph, was also beautiful”.  I think that this shows that even if you don’t set up/frame your photograph perfectly, it does not make it any less beautiful. This video really makes us think differently about how we see the world and decide to photograph it. 

Aidan - A Conversation With John Gossage

As our final project draws near, other aspects of photography are beginning to show now that we've learned about all the different variables in a single photo. This video specifically informs us about how sequences of images can be used to construct a narrative without words, and how sensitive this narrative is to small details, such as Gossage's choice not to put an image on the cover, but simply the title in a huge typeface.

Anne-Sophie : A conversation with John Gossage.

The Remaining weeks of class are all about our final project and photographing things we care about. In the video, John Gossage said that he only photographs things that deserve to be seen. 

I think one point of us watching this video was to help us to see our surroundings differently. Maybe we also need to ask ourselves if what we photograph is worth to be seen, what is the message we want to share and what would be the possible reactions to it. 

Conversation with John Gossage (Carley)

In the last few weeks, we've had multiple discussions about how photographs can hold as much information, or as big of a story, as a novel. In the interview with John Gossage, he talks about how each photo changes the way the viewer perceives the next photo in his book The Pond, in the same way that one page in a novel will change the story on subsequent pages. One picture can tell us a lot, but when it's put into a series or collection, that photo becomes part of an even bigger picture, no pun intended. As we are beginning our large photo project, I think the purpose of showing the video was to get us thinking about not only the story one image can tell, but how important it is to think about how photos interact with and compliment each other in a series.

Lise Sarfati - The New Life: La Vie Nouvelle - Caitlin

Lise Sarfati

Lise Sarfati traveled to the United States from France in order to create photographs on a road trip. She traveled east to west, eventually deciding to photograph young people inside their homes. For the first time, Sarfati chose not to view any of her film during the project so that she would stay in a "suspended mood" instead of focusing on creating a certain kind of image from her mind or obsessing over the end product. She aims to make images in which the viewer can identify themselves with the adolescent subjects.

Sarfati's work caught my attention because she bases much of her work on the emotion of the people she is photography. She stated that she usually remained fairly silent during shoots with her subjects for The New Life. Additionally, her work focuses on femininity and portrays young women's relationships with their society and their environments.

Why We Watched a Conversation with John Gossage - Caitlin

Today we watched a video of John Gossage discussing his photo book, The Pond, 25 years after he published it. Although Gossage's book cites Thoreau's Walden, it is not an attempt to recreate the story through photographs; instead, he creates his own work using similar elements (i.e., a pond that is not quite in the wilderness and not quite in an urban setting). His work shows us that your work can be inspired by the work of other's without copying them. Before creating his book, Gossage closely studied Walden to make sure that he understood it well. The Pond also exemplifies the connection between literature and photography.