Week 5, Part 2 Genius of Photography
Q.1 Who said “ The camera gave me the license to strip away what you want people to know about you, to reveal what you can’t help people knowing about you”, and when was it said?
This statement was made in 1960 by Dianne Arbus to express
the power of photography.
Q.2 Do photographers tend to prey on vulnerable people?
Photographers prey on those that are vulnerable people to exploit and
often expose the nature of their faces and lives.
Q.3 Who is Colin Wood?
Colin Wood was one of Dianne Arbus's subjects, the photograph was
taken in Central Park in 1962. The imagery expresses the humours side
of childhood for 7 year olds such as Colin, showing curiosity and playfulness
in the serious of images Arbus took of Colin. The intention of the imagery was
to be as a reflection of herself and turned more into a revelation and reflection
of the war, this is due to the nature of how the child in holding a toy grenade,
and showing a certain level of animalistic character in the way his body language
is composed and exploiting the intensity of his facial expression, whilst
being playful, as through full of rage and violence.
This imagery out of the series Arbus took of Colin that day is the most
recognisable pieces.
Q.4 Why do you think Diane Arbus committed suicide?
Due to insecurities, and repressed emotions, feeling unfulfilled and dissatisfied
with her life, Arbus became dependent upon photography and her subjects
to work as her placebo of life. Since her photographic subjects were considered
to be often referred to as freaks, and abnormal she found a certain
injustice in society and culture, as she believed these people were considered
to be aristocrats since they had passed their test in life. From the sudden
realisation of this unjust behaviour of society, this prejudice, and obnoxious
behaviour, she felt she had exposed herself through these people and therefore
making herself vulnerable, therefore wanting so
"desperately to be anybody but herself".
Q.5 Why and how did Larry Clark shoot “Tulsa”?
Being within the drug culture Clark was within easy access to witness such
obscene occurrences, these series of images were dedicated to expose
his own lifestyle. This series of images created a documentation with
a photojournalistic quality which could be related to a visual diary of his own
lifestyle and his friends lifestyle, consisting of drugs, sex and guns.
This exposure of his lifestyle acted as a personal confession piece but is
fitted more so into the category of impolite genre.
Q.6 Try to explain the concept of “confessional photography”, and what is the “impolite genre”?
Confessional photography is the abrupt realisation of truth, exposing
an intimate side of your life to be depicted almost as though it is a visual
diary that can be summarised through imagery apposed to words. The life
you lead behind closed doors is no longer private through confessional
photography, and often becomes a subjective view into a hidden lifestyle that
is often a mystery to others.
Impolite Genre, is also a form of confessional, however the visuals expose images
of a crude, violent, sexual or disturbing nature. These images give a shock
factor to viewers, and often leaving them to feel uncomfortable and unnerved, this is
due to the imagery being very dramatic due to the bold and being of
emphasis upon descriptive content.
Q.7 What will Araki not photograph, and why?
Potentially for sentimental purposes, Araki photographs pieces which
he wishes to keep as part of a memory. Prime examples of typical
images he has collected over the years include images of his wife,
intimate scenarios and parts of his daily life. This preference to take photographs
of things he wishes to remember has refrained Araki from taking
photographs of things he does not wish to remember, making his decisions
more channeled.
Q.8 What is the premise of Postmodernism?
Postmodernism is that we now live in a culture so saturated with media
imagery and media models of how people live, which is now one of the
key influencers of how we as consumers live our lives, instigating dramatic
influence of aspects upon human life. The myth of media controls the idea
of how life should be lived, therefore the rationale of reality is only from
our interpretations of what the meaning of existence and the world
means to us on an individual level.
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