Exercise 1.4: Archival Intervention

This exercise required me to search through my own family photographic archive and try to discover a series of portraits (four or five) that have existed within the archive, but have never been placed together before. The portraits can contain individuals or even couples; they may span generations, or just be of the same person throughout the years (chronotype). Whichever way you wish to to tackle this exercise, there must be a reason or justification for your choices. What message are you trying to get across about these portraits?

My parents house contains the vast majority of our family photographs, particularly those that are more than 15 to 20 years old, in other word, our analog archive. Mobile phone technology has meant that my family, myself included, have large individual archives of photographs which remain stored in some digital form, albeit on our phones, hard-drives, cloud and/or other online store technology. The digital age has seen exponential growth in photographic capture, with the complete opposite in terms of photographic printing.

I live a considerable distance from my parents house, and so with time and distance playing a key role in my execution of this exercise, I enlisted the help of my mother and sister. Asking them to look at our family photo albums on my behalf, I simultaneously consulted my own digital archive. While viewing my own digital archive and hearing feedback from my helpers, it became clear that I needed to be very specific as to what they were to look for. Making myself the subject of the exercise was the best option available to me and my helpers. The first three photographs were sent by text message from my sister, after she rephotographed them with her phone. While the quality isn’t particularly good, it suffient for the purpose of this exercise. The last two photographs were taken digitally, one by an army friend and colleague, while the other was taken by me using my camera’s self-timer.

I chose the five photographs below for a number of reasons. Firstly, I’m the common denominator across the series, which is a chronotype of sorts. The series begins with me as a toddler in late 1979/early 1980 outside the backdoor of my grandparents house in County Kerry. They ran a bar and ‘ladies’ (denoting the direction to the ladies toilet) can be seen on the wall behind me. The smiley, laughing child is very much a symbol of the happy childhood I recall, and my grandparents house is a place I remember fondly. The next photograph was taken later that same year after our family moved to Lagos, Nigeria, for a period of five years. I’m held in my mother arms as we visit Santa Claus in a Lagos department store. This photograph is very different to those of my friend, and even to all subsequent Santa visits we had after returning home to Ireland. I don’t thing I know anyone who went to visit such a cool Santa Claus. Even if their Santa Claus happened to be wearing sunglasses, in Ireland in the 80’s/90’s, and sadly, even today, Santa was always going to be played by a white man. And so, the photograph marks the interesting childhood I had in Nigeria. The third photograph features me again in my grandparents house, posing with my cousin from Boston. I’m again smiling and my posture is probably tells a little of the shy awkward child that I was for a time. The next image is from 2004, while serving in the Irish Army on overseas deployment with the United Nations in Liberia. I’m proud of my time in the Army, and it is a significant period of my life.  Finally is a photograph taken in March of this year (2017) while traveling in Laos with my girlfriend. Having been together for 9 years, we decided to take off and see a bit of the world together.

Overall the series of photographs portray a happy life and there are a number recurring elements or themes. I spent some of my childhood in Africa, and later returned as a peacekeeper, both of which are represented. The series is punctuated by modes of transport, the buggy/pushchair, armoured personnel carrier, motorcycle and even my mother arms, which reinforce the idea that I’m a person who has always had strong support behind me, i.e. family, the army, my partner. The over all message of the series is that of a happy, well lived and enjoyed life. The final photograph, from a journey that is now over, shows two people posing by their trusty steed, and is perhaps suggestive of the road ahead, yet to be travel.

Exercise: 1.3 Portraiture Typology

In response to Sander’s work, try to create a photographic typology which attempt to bring together a collection of types. Think carefully about how you wish to to classify these images; don’t make the series to literal.

For this exercise I decided to carry out the shoot at The Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, Ireland. The cliffs are Ireland most visited natural site, receiving 1.5 million visitors per year. The site has an interpretive centre, coffee shop and the usual shops that are geared towards tourist. A walk takes in the 6km (approx.) length of the cliffs, with the majority of visitors staying close to the amenities and car-park located towards the centre of walking route. As the area is heavily visited, I began my walk from the less visited, and generally more peaceful southern end. Most people, myself included, walk this stretch as the path or track is in a more natural state, and receives far less footfall. This allowed me to photograph subjects within the large framed landscape, which in turn afforded my series series greater context.

I approached people introducing myself and explaining my goal. After the first couple of refusals, I became more selective as to whom I approached. If the person was wearing a scowl, or appeared to be having a fight or argument, which I saw at least one time, I would let them pass by uninterrupted. In general, I found people to be extremely friendly and accommodating. I recorded names and an email addresses of all participants so that I could forward them a copy of their portrait. I probably spent on average 5 minutes chatting with each group. Some people were quite interested in what I was doing, and we just chatted in general about there trip to the cliffs, the weather etc., while other were happy to accommodate me but clearly wanted carry on walking without too much delay.

There are any number of possibilities in the classification of the portraits; occupation, age, purpose of visit, etc. As there was a diverse range of nationalities, I noticed that I subconsciously was assigning or at least considering the subjects nationality before I engaged with them. Classifying my portraits by nationality, and simply listing them alphabetically before the images, the viewer is then allowed to consider the nationality each portrait.

Where are we from ?

Listed alphabetically, but not in sequence with photographs; Argentina, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Spain, United States of America.

Overall this was a very interesting exercise and I quite enjoyed chatting with the people I photographed. While a long way from the work of Diane Arbus or Gillian Wearing, this exercise has reinforced the idea that typology and playing with the use of commonly accepted stereotypes, a series of photographs can open a dialogue or even challenge our ideas about stereotypes and identity.

Exercise: 1.2 Background as Context

After a study of some August Sander portraits, this exercise requires the student to make a portrait of someone they know, paying close attention to to what is happening in the background of the shot, how the subject is posed and what is included in the photograph. Ideally, the background should tell the viewer something about the subject.

Reviewing any book on the history of photography, would reveal references to August Sander’s People of the Twentieth Century. Sander seems to have been ahead of his time, being one of the pioneering photographers to move portraiture beyond the studio, to make “simple, natural portraits that show the subjects in an environment corresponding to their own individuality” (Ang 2014 p.152).

August Sander’s People of the Twentieth Century, which feature people defined by their profession, “remains one of the most sustained attempts to define individuals within their time and culture” (Clarke 1997). Sander did not discriminate. He photographed the full range of people across all walks of life, young, old, rich and poor. He had a “severe portrait style” (Jeffrey 2010 p.132), with many of his photographs appearing static and quite formal, taken at full or half-length. The majority of Sander’s portraits seem to feature subject that are looking at the camera, and engaging directly with the viewer. Sander’s image, The Bricklayer, is a good example of this engagement with the viewer. The bricklayer squarely faces the camera  and the portrait seems formally posed, his broad shoulders fill the camera frame, denoting his strength and the physicality of his work. He is loaded down with props, that inform the viewer of his occupation, and so the simple title describing his trade seems unnecessary, although it does add greatly to Sander’s overall typology. The dark background doesn’t add any information about the subject, although it does allows the subject to stand out and impose himself on the viewer.

In contrast to The Bricklayer, in Sander’s, The Banker, the subject’s gaze is not on the viewer, but just beyond them, as if in thought. The desk creates a physical barrier along with a plethora of official banking paraphernalia (stamps and ink pads), which put him out of the reach of the ordinary man. His comfortable position affords him the time to enjoy a cigar while reviewing some bank documents. His clothes are expensive and his clean shave and neat appearrance is in keeping with his affluent position and social standing. The background reveals a door some distance away indicating a substantial office space. The main difference I see between these two photograph is where the subject is looking. The bricklayer look directly at us (and Sander), we are not above or below him in social standing. The banker does not engage with us, not everyone can an audience with him. The banker is not our equal, we have been lucky for the brief momentary glimpse into his world.

Sander’s image of The young farmers reveals a far more dynamic and possibly spontaneous photograph. The farmers are thought to be one their way to a dance in a neighbouring village and “seem to have paused, but only momentarily, to present themselves to the camera” (Jeffrey 2010 p.132). They gaze at Sander and the viewer with indifference, possibly even a hint of curiosity. Although the farmers are looking at the camera, their bodies are turned to the side creating tension. They are very much committed to their direction of travel.

My girlfriend, Gráinne, agreed to be my subject for this exercise and appears in the image below.

Gráinne is posed at an oblique angle, which is neither confrontational nor passive. The viewer is greeted by the subject’s smile and relaxed posture, an indication of the subjects comfort with the camera and surroundings. I used a wide aperture to created a shallow depth of field as there was no reason for anything other than the subject to be sharp. Even blurred the background and other props clearly denote a kitchen setting. The clock places the photographs capture at almost 13.00 hours, which isn’t particularly significant. The kettle, extractor fan and ornamental geko in the background indicate the probability that this is a domestic kitchen rather than a professional one. The props around the subject denote ‘Baking’, while her finger points to or is following instruction in a folder, notebook or recipe book.

While my portrait doesn’t reveal Gráinne’s true occupation, although it could potentially mislead, it does demonstrate her interest in baking. Hr nail polish work against the idea of her being a professional chef/baker. She is obviously happy as she goes about her task. The number of apples is an indication of the scale to which she is baking, while the appearance of the product packaging confirms that there is definitely no possibility of this being a photo shoot for professional purposes. The overall tone of the image is warm and engaging.

Where I feel that the image perhaps falls down a little is in the placement of the subjects hand. It’s a little too prominent as I feel that it acts like an arrow drawing the viewer’s eyes down to the bottom of the photograph. If her hand had been closer to her body and more subtly placed, the result would be a much stronger image. That aside, overall I’m happy with the my portrait and I’ve learned more from the exercise as is than if I had captured a more complete portrait.

Reference

Ang, T. (2014) Photography The Definitive Visual History, London: Dorling Kindersley.

Badger, G. (2007) The Genius of Photography: How photography has changed our lives, London: Quadrille.

Clarke, G. (1997) The Photograph, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Jeffrey, I. (2010) Photography A Concise History, London: Thames & Hudson Ltd.

MoMA (2017) August Sander [online], available: https://www.moma.org/artists/5145 [accessed 6 Nov 2017].

Tate (2016) Tate [online], available: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/search?q=August%20sander [accessed 6 Nov 2017].

Warner Marien, M. (2010) Photography: A Cultural History, 3rd ed., London: Laurence King.

 

Exercise 1.1 Historic Portrait

This exercise required me to make an in depth study of any historic portrait. The photograph I chose is, The Heritage of Motherhood (1904) by Gertrude Käsebier. While searching the internet, I found that the photograph appears in varying degrees of quality, with a number of different crops and even some mirrored versions.

The Heritage of Motherhood 1904 by Gertrude Käsebier

On my initial viewing of this photograph, I felt as if I was intruding in the subject’s privacy. The woman appears with her hands held together as if at prayer, her eyes are closed and her head has an upward intention. She is placed within a barren and desolate landscape. The loose locks of hair and the shawl upon her shoulders add a coldness and reinforce a sense isolation. The title of the photograph is quite general and only hints at the reason or cause for the woman deep contemplation or prayer. One must speculate that the woman, and mother, is troubled by some worry or concern for a child or children.

Gertrude Käsebier, like Julia Margaret Cameron, came to photography late in life. Käsebier studied art at the Pratt Institute, and turned to portrait photography in order to support her family after her husband became ill. Käsebier belonged to the same Pictorialist school as Alfred Stieglitz which ‘sought to elevate the status of photography to a fine art’ (Bridgers 2014). Käsebier had five of her photographs published in Camera Notes, the official magazine of the Camera Club of New York. Stieglitz (1899) as the magazine’s editor, described her as ‘beyond dispute, the leading portrait photographer in the country’. One of her prints, sold for $100, a new record price of the time. Stieglitz was against commercial photography and while Käsebier had to support her family, a difference of opinion resulted in Käsebier resigning and joining the Professional Photographers of New York (Ang 2014).

The woman in the photograph is Agnes Lee, a friend of Käsebier who sits in the gloomy landscape, grieving the recent death of her daughter. Agnes Less appeared along side her daughter Peggy in an earlier of Käsebier’s photographs entitled, Blessed Art Thou among Women 1899. In that image, Lee is depicted as the mother encouraging her child out to negotiate the world. Religious overtones are again present in this image as a picture of The Annunciation (Angel Gabriel appearing before the Virgin Mary) hangs on the wall (Warner Marien 2010). Peggy died a short time after making the photograph, and so the grieving mother portrayed in the staged photograph, The Heritage of Motherhood 1904, is in fact a fair and true depiction of Agnes Lee’s feelings of loss.

Blessed Art Thou among Women 1899 by Gertrude Käsebier

The theme of motherhood is quite strongly represented across much of Käsebier’s work. I find that reading these two images together creates a very powerful and compelling commentary on the trials of parenthood. Together they ‘give us a moment of their truth depicted in an artistic manner, leaving the viewers space to find their own truth, too’ (Perich 2017).

Reference:

Ang, T. (2014) ‘Photography The Definitive Visual History’, London: Dorling Kindersley Limited.

Bridgers, J. (2014) ‘Gertrude Käsebier (1852-1934): An Artistic Success Story’, Picture This Blog Library of Congress Prints and Photos [online], 24 Jul, available: https://blogs.loc.gov/picturethis/2014/07/gertrude-kasebier-1852-1934-an-artistic-success-story/ [accessed 25 Oct 2017].

Halter, P. (2003) ‘Portraits of Women in Early 20th-Century American Photography’, in Maeder, B., eds., Representing Realities Essays on American Literature, Art and Culture, Tübingen: Gunter Narr Verlag Tübingen.

Perich S.T. (2017) ‘Gertrude Käsebier’s photographs about motherhood’, O Say Can You See? Stories from the National Museum of America [online], 12 May, available:  http://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/gertrude-kasebiers-photographs-about-motherhood [accessed 25 Oct 2017].

Stieglitz, A. (1899) ‘Our Illustrations’, Camera Notes 3, Jul 1899, p.24.

Warner Marien, M. (2010) Photography: A Cultural History, 3rd ed., London: Laurence King.