Which of the artist's many technical choices are of interest to you and why?
Technically I am interested in the artist's choice in taking extreme close-ups in black and white. I have an affinity for black and white photography. Instead of being old fashioned I consider it timeless. The lack of color makes the portraits more real, more human. Stark contrast, stark reality. What is it about black and white photography that seems more real than color? I don't know. I can't name it, but it fascinates me. Schel's choice to photograph extreme close ups is essential to his concept of capturing a body with and without life. As cliche as it sounds the eyes are the windows to the soul and in the photos of death you cannot see the spark of a soul behind a corpse's closed eyes.
2. What do you believe are the artist's conceptual and/or thematic intentions?
I believe Schel took these photos not as a scary reminder of our own eventual deaths, but to view death in wonder. What is it exactly that makes a person alive? What leaves a person when they die? What's the spark in their eyes? A soul? Chemical and electrical impulses that keep us running as organic machines? Besides permanence how is death different than sleeping? Why are we afraid lose consciousness in one form and not the other? Is death something we should actively be afraid of?
3. How do you personally respond to these choices and intents?
As mentioned before I respond with a sense of wonder.The law of conservation of energy postulates that energy cannot be created or destroyed, but can be altered from one form to another. I cannot process that what makes a person a person, their energy or their soul, is gone. Even in the photos of death the reality is hard to comprehend. I cannot imagine a person's energy or soul being destroyed, but its clearly not in their bodies. The subjects don't even appear sleeping in death. Through the photographs I can feel their energy has left, but where did it go? Things don't just stop existing. Where did their energy go to? What did their energy get converted to?
4. Why I chose this artist:
I chose the artist because I remembered seeing his photos from a while ago and they have stuck with me since.
No comments:
Post a Comment