Final 6 Images

Book Format

The format of my book will be paperback. I will print out my pages on a 13 x 19 piece of paper. I will fold that paper, and each photo will fit within the two folds of the page like a comic book. Two photos of a similar setting will be on each page. One photo will contain more nature in the shot, and one will contain more man made objects in the shot.

Final Book Theme

The final theme for my book will be the conflict and conversation between nature and man made objects. The idea is that nature and the things man creates are at war, and each side is battling one another for space. The nature aspect will consist of various vegetation in and of various states. The man made objects will consist of both architecture and garbage. Both elements will be present in each photo.

Two Ideas for Final Project

Idea 1: Comic/Paperback

I would like to create a soft cover book, or more specifically paperback book. I would either put multiple images on one page with text indicating what the photo is about, or give every other page a photo and a description on the other page. The flow would be starting with nature, and towards the middle have photos of both nature and man made objects. Towards the end I would have it be just man made objects. I would design this in InDesign and print it at Marymount. 

Idea 2: Cube

I would create two cubes both with six faces. For one cube I would have photos of just nature on the face. For the other I would have photos of just man made objects on the faces. People would be able to pick up the cubes and interact with them. The idea is that both cubes are a separate entity, and the audience would have to match certain cube faces to the other in order to find a "match" of nature and man made object.

Oral Presentation Photographer: Joel-Peter Witkin

 
I decided to chose Joel-Peter Witkin due to his macabre and grotesque subject matter. He is unlike any photographer I've ever seen and blurs the line between art, horror, and ethics.

Assignment 6: Lighting Redux (Part B Only)

Front
Aperture: 4.5
Shutter: 1/30
ISO: 1600


Back
Aperture: 4.5
Shutter: 1/30
ISO: 1600


Top
Aperture: 4.5
Shutter: 1/30
ISO: 1600


Left
Aperture: 4.5
Shutter: 1/30
ISO: 1600


Right
Aperture: 4.5
Shutter: 1/30
ISO: 1600

Assignment 6: Lighting

Part A: Direct and Indirect Lighting


Hard light
Aperture 4.5
Shutter 1/20
ISO: 1600


Soft light
Aperture 4.5
Shutter 1/20
ISO: 1600

Part B: Directional Lighting


Front
Aperture 4.5
Shutter 1/20
ISO: 1600


Right
Aperture 4.5
Shutter 1/20
ISO: 1600


Back
Aperture 4.5
Shutter 1/20
ISO: 1600


Left
Aperture 4.5
Shutter 1/20
ISO: 1600

Assignment 5: Composition

Line
Light Meter: 0
Shutter: 1/160
Aperture: 7.1
ISO: 100


Repetition
Light Meter: -1
Shutter: 1/125
Aperture: 5.6
ISO: 1600


Contrast
Light Meter: 0
Shutter: 1/40
Aperture: 5.6
ISO: 1600


Texture
Light Meter: 0
Shutter: 1/125
Aperture: 7.1
ISO: 400


Shape
Light Meter: -1
Shutter: 1/160
Aperture: 7.1
ISO: 200


Analogous/Monochromatic Color
Light Meter: -1
Shutter: 1/200
Aperture: 4.5
ISO: 1600


Complementary Color
Light Meter: 0
Shutter: 1/125
Aperture: 9.0
ISO: 200


Rule of Thirds
Light Meter: -1
Shutter: 1/200
Aperture: 5.6
ISO: 1600

Exhibit Review: Guadalupe Rosales: Legends Never Die, A Collective Memory

Exhibit Review

The exhibit I went to was located at the Aperture Foundation located in NYC. The gallery itself, titled Guadalupe Rosales: Legends Never Die, A Collective Memory was somewhat small and shared space with the bookstore located to the left of the front desk. The photographs themselves were in glass containers in the middle of the room, while others were blown up and pasted onto the wall like wallpaper. The photographs in the glass containers were 4.233 x 3.483-inch polaroid photos, and they shared space with music pamphlets from the 1990’s in Los Angeles. The photographer/artist Guadalupe Rosales has been building the archive of photos and music pamphlets from Los Angeles since 2015, and her aim is to create counter narratives and aims to tell the stories of underrepresented communities as well as archive them. These photos and pamphlets are connected by their ties to Latinx culture, and are of her own taking, or from other people. The photographs and pamphlets themselves depict Latinx culture, and their subject matter consist of photographs of people within the Latinx community, or of music pamphlets promoting dance parties in which primarily people within the Latinx community attended. The exhibit itself was arranged so that on the wall at the back, and the wall to its right were some photos blown up. The name of the exhibit was places on the back wall, while photographs of young Latinx women were displayed with friends or by themselves proceeded. The photos and pamphlets in the glass containers in the center of the gallery consisted of more of the same, with multiple pamphlets promoting rave or dance clubs/events, and photos of Latinx women and men taking group photos or by themselves. The style of the exhibit was that of nostalgia/vintage in the sense that the photographs were taken in the past (1990’s) and aim to reframe Latinx culture that differs from a more mainstream idea of it. The internal context of the works tells a story of youth and their pastimes in the 1990’s, albeit through the rave/dance club pamphlets or the photos of them being together. The extremal context tells a similar story, however enriches it by involving multiple people in the project and having the project involve the Latinx LA community, furthering the impact of the exhibit. The exhibit was the only one displayed that day, so I was unable to compare it to other works, however just having that exhibit shown made it more impactful, as it felt like I wasn’t distracted to look at anyone else’s works, and I had a lot of time to envelope myself into the exhibit.

One of the works that stood out to me above the others was a photo titled Guadalupe Rosales’s cousin, Ever Sanchez (right), and unidentified woman, East Los Angeles, 1995. The photo depicts a man and a woman embracing each other in a romantic way in front of a kitchen. The photo corelates with Latinx youth as both people in the photo are of Latin ethnicity. The photo was a part of the blown-up photos painted on the wall, and hung right above candles, flowers, and a black bandana. The style is reminiscent of vintage or nostalgia, as the photo is of two people romantically involved, and feels like a memory the photography had.

Overall, I liked the show as it felt like I was stepping into a time vault. The people presented in the photos looked to be like any other youth in America, and even reminded me of people I know. I thought the subject was provocative and achieved its goal of creating a counternarrative that sheds light on what the Latinx people in LA were mostly about in the 1990’s. Because of how it was positioned, and the size of the gallery, I felt like I was in someone’s living room and was looking at old photographs of themselves or of their kids when they were younger. What was a little surprising was the prevalence of music pamphlets throughout the gallery. The love or importance of music in the Latinx culture in LA in the 1990’s was very big, and it was effectively shown in the gallery, like it was a part of the culture just as much as the people themselves. I would love to see this project grow more to involve more people both in LA and all around the country.

Reading Assignment 2: Barrett Chapter 3

1. Barrett’s thesis is that good interpretive criticism comes from thorough interpretation from the critic. Interpretation comes from understanding the technicality and intent of a work of art. It is understanding what the author’s main point is for producing the work of art, as well as how it affects and changes the viewers feelings or point of view.  

2. The first work Barrett uses is that of Jeff Wall’s photograph “Dead Troops Talk (A vision after an ambush of a Red Army patrol, near Moqor, Afghanistan, winter 1986). He uses Susan Sontag’s review of it to introduce his thesis. Barrett also mentions Joel-Peter Witkin and philosopher Nelson Goodman quote about the “innocent eye”.

3. Interpretation is the act of deconstructing and finding meaning in a photograph or any other work of art. For the critic, it is understanding the different pieces, or metaphors, to a work of art and being able to piece them together in a coherent way that lets other people know what the work of art is about and what the author is trying to say.

4. According to the author, it is important to do this because every photograph is not “innocent” and has a bias or attitude towards something. Interpreting what that is is what will make the photograph more meaningful. Uncovering the hidden meaning will allow the audience to make better informed interpretations as well.

5. The interpretive strategy of Semiotic Interpretation interested me as looking at the presentation of the work of art carries a lot of meaning. Bill Nicholas’s example with the Sports Illustrated football cover depicting the quarterback as being physically bigger than the coach reminded me of hierarchal importance in art dating back thousands of years. However the relationship between the two subjects also brings into question as to who is really more important. 

6. The main points are that interpretations follow a kind of spectrum between plausible and implausible, or reasonable and unreasonable. In this sense, viewers and critics can discuss works through different perspectives. However, interpretations should be backed by reason and logic in order to be valued over those that don’t. Believing that art is “subjective” and each viewer has their own “opinions” about it dilutes our ability to debate and share different interpretations and perspectives. Valued interpretations contain correspondence and coherence.

7. The main points is that viewers shouldn’t use the authors said intentions about their work in formulating their interpretations, or else they will fall into the trap of intentionalism. Most of the time a photographer is unaware of what their intention is when they photograph something, as well as, for a lack of a better term, waiting to be spoon fed an answer instead of looking for it ourselves. However, if an author does have intention, then it is important to analyze it like we would any other interpretation.

8. From the reading this week, I learned about the Marxist Approach as seeing works of art as tying back to social reality. I knew there were different ways going about analyzing art, but taking into account the current (or past) social element to it gives then more depth. Learning about the “right” interpretations as well opened up my eyes to analyzing art. I remember hearing someone say that when it comes to art that it is up to the individual to think if it is good or not. On an elementary level this might be permissible, but on a higher level of discussion and thought it is important to interpret different works of art with correspondence and coherence. 

9. Barrett’s conclusion is that the only way to properly critic art is to have people from all areas of interpretation say how they interpret art in a way that is sophisticated and makes logical sense. The scale can’t be tipped so that any interpretation is allowed into the discussion, nor can there be an interpretation that “trumps all”. Interpretations change, and so will our understanding of a work of art, thus allowing our knowledge of it to change and perhaps evolve with that new knowledge.

Assignment 3: Depth of Field

Title: Apple Lowest Aperture
Aperture: 3.5
Shutter Speed: 1/640
ISO: 100



Title Apple Highest Aperture
Aperture: 22
Shutter Speed: 1/15 (cue up Kenny Loggins)
ISO: 100

Assignment 2: Shutter Speed and Motion

Title: Cat Toy 1

Meter = 0

Shutter = 1/60

ISO = 1600

Aperture = F5.6

Title: Cat Toy 2

Meter = 0

Shutter = 1/125

ISO = 1600

Aperture = F5.6

Reading Assignment 1

1. The author’s thesis is that critics use description to talk or write about a work of art. Description relies on numerous factors to give the audience the most information about a work of art, and thus it becomes a process that all works together to create the “perfect package” for which a critic analyzes a work of art and the audience understands it.

2. The author uses several examples when describing the process a critic takes (or should take). He uses works from Tunick and Rashid Johnathan, and names Avedon to illustrate his points about the process.

3.

A) Description according to the author, is when a critic uses facts and verifiable observations about a work. Descriptions are used to give the reader a better sense of a critic’s judgments and opinions. In the text, critic Davis uses description to state that he’s interpreted the work as being vary stylized, judges that it fails and succeeds because so.

B) Subject is the message or point of the art, and the subject matter is who is delivering that message or point. In the example given, Tunick’s photograph’s subject was about freedom of speech, and the subject matter were the 4500-nude people. The subject matter projects and emphasizes the subject.

C) Form is how the subject matter is presented. In a way, it is like the mis-en-scene of a photograph. Form is how the lines, colors, shapes, values, texture, and scale are arranged and viewed by an audience.

D) Medium is what the artwork is made of and more importantly, how it is presented. For example, a photograph about a clay person has clay, metal wiring, light bulbs, etc. The way that the photography is viewed is via a photography.

E) Style is how the artist treats the subject matter and formal elements which are influenced by the period, geographical location, and society. Style is someone the audience will look at interpretively and are mostly determined by the subject matter and the form.

4.

A) Comparing and Contrasting, as it states, is when one takes a work of art, and finds the similarities and differences it has with other works by the artist or by other works by other artists. Barrett’s position on their relationship is that comparing requires the critic to understand the other works which they are comparing with, and contrasting requires the same.

B) Internal and External Sources of Information relates to how a critic sees certain works from an artist. A critic who researches a fair amount of external sources will have more background information about a work of art because they know more about the intent and process the artist undertook. Internal sources are from the work itself and thus lend itself to more interpretation.

5.

A) Description and Interpretation refer to the process by which a critic describes and interprets a photograph. For example, a critic may use interpretation to identify the most important aspect to the work, and then use those to relay the description of said work. Before one can describe, one must interpret.

B) Description and Evaluation refers to the way critics describe what they are seeing, as well as tie in a positive or negative reaction to the work. They both work off each other, in that within the description, a critic will make clear their evaluation of the work. This in turn gives the audience an idea about the success or failure that the work has on trying to tell the subject. Descriptions contain evaluation.

6.

A) I think that the author was trying to say that when we compare and contrast as critics, we should aim to research other works from other artist in order to better understand the relevance the work we’re reviewing has with other works that’ve come before it. Another thing I think the author is trying to say is that when we follow the “system” that critics should follow, we can better analyze and relay information about the work we’re viewing to people who have not or cannot see the work we see. In this sense, we offer a more rich and valuable review of the work.

B) I learned that Style is comprised of the time period, geography, and subject matter. This gave me a new insight into what style was in an artistic sense. I also learned that Internal and external sources play a very big role in how critics relay information about a work of art. Knowing the context about a work of art and being able to articulate what the work of art makes you feel really helps people who can’t see the work or who haven’t know what to see and think.

C) The authors conclusion is that description of any artwork is vital in allowing a critic to relay the necessary information to an audience about the work in question. Description allows the critic to have insight about the work of art, and allows audience to make better informed judgments about a work of art because they know what to look for. In the end, description is criticism, but one that is needed.

D) I though the material was very informative. The process of description gave me insight into how I should approach artwork of any kind. It hammers in that we should all be critics in our own way by really analyzing the work we’re seeing in order to gain a bigger picture and a further appreciation of any work that goes into art.

Assignment 1: Inspiration Images Part 2

Ttile: House of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Bulgaria
Author: Dimitar Kilkoff

I was online looking for photographs, and I stumbled upon a website called 31 Haunting Images of Abandoned Places That Will Give You Goosebumps. Although this does not give me goosebumps, the photo itself brings about a sense of wonder and awe. The ceiling of the building looks alien in a brutal and elegant manner. The scale of the ceiling compared to the man in the foreground emphasizes the grandness of the place. The snow/dirt coating the ground along with the holes in the ceiling wrap up this photograph nicely as to illustrate something intricate, but dissolved and in ruin.




Title: beyond the gates
Author: Richard Gubbels
Date: June 11, 2011

The image above is of the I.M Cooling Tower in Belgium. The image itself caught my eye because of the geometric patterning to the structure. The rings stacking up from the base to the opening creates a sort of optical illusion, and gives a sense that the structure is curved. The platform in the center as well also plays into a sort of holistic site, as it is being illuminated from the light pouring down from the opening of the structure.

Assignment 1: Bracketing Part 1

Title: Cross +1

Meter = +1

Shutter = 1/60

ISO = 1600

Aperture = F11

Title: Cross 0

Meter = 0

Shutter = 1/125

ISO = 1600

Aperture = F11

Title: Cross -1

Meter = -1

Shutter = 1/250

ISO = 1600

Aperture = F11

Bracketing is a method of selecting the right exposure for a shot by taking three different photographs of the same shot. One can bracket by altering the aperture or their shutter speed, and proceed to take the shot. I bracketed by moving the shutter three stops to the left to underexpose the shot to light, and three stops to to the right to overexpose the shot to light.