Saturday, November 27, 2010

Contemporary photo based art



straight: the oldest of old school. Straight photography is what it sounds like just plain photo shots of objects and people. Sounds simple. Its not. When you take away all the toys and trick, you remove all the cliches satire and you are left with composition, light, darkness, movement, line, form and beauty. This in my opinion is where photography truly becomes art or, more often then not, trash. With the right camera at the right place with the right eye and artist can take an image that will become synonymous with that place or time etc. but, if even one of those elements is not perfect and you are left with mundane rubbish.

Steeling: something that has been at the core of photography since its inception. Even at the beginning photographers stole ideas and inspiration from the paintings of grate masters this may very well be to blame for the hesitance of traditional artists to except photography as an art. In later years photographers now look to steel ideas, images, personalities and icons in an attempt to create new worlds or simply make a name for themselves out of shocking the art word.

constrictive world: when thinking bout this idea with a modern knowledge of art and the tools available ones mind instantly goes to photoshop and the infinite possibilities it offers. However, this is just as old as any concept in photography, artist have been arranging models in elaborate sets for well over a hundred years in order to create and recreate works of art like those of the old masters.

stranger than fiction: sometimes the world is enough. We have all seen things that we didn't think possible, things that could not and can not be explained. I'm sure its not a stretch to say that we have all seen things which people have created that seem impossible, a shark forever entombed in a museum, or people walking from building to building on wires no bigger than your finger. These things seem fictional and if captured by any medium other than photography they would lose all creditability whatsoever. However, despite the illusions we can create through the use of photoshop and other tools people still tend to believe a photo long before they would a painting or other work. Making it the perfect medium to capture such images.

personal narrative: the truth that photography can offer though the use of straight photography make it ideal for personal narratives. If you were to take a camera with you everywhere you go for one year and take a photo of those places you see the people you meet and yourself doing the things you do everyday, anyone could have a wonderful clear idea or who you are as a person. Assuming you were honest with what you took pictures of. For this purpose the photo is better than almost all and at least par with videography .   

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