Hmmm this
is probably the hardest question you could ask someone, I suppose it depends on
what context you’re suggesting, and to whom that context is appended to. If say
for example your context is the creator of photography and its origins than you
would begin to think laterally and may suggest William Fox Talbot inventor of the calotype
process. Moreover you would cast your mind back to those founding years of
photography and its processes and one may even suggest Nicéphore Niépce inventor
of the Heliography process.
Thus two
processes so far but we could argue that the daguerréotype) was the first commercially
successful photographic process,
invented around 1837 by Louis-Jacques-Mandé
Daguerre. However it is the process of William Fox Talbot calotype
process that evolved into what photography was by the mid nineteenth century.
Although photography and its origins can be dated back much farther than that,
in fact a lot earlier.
Long
before the first photographs were made, Chinese philosopher Mo Ti and Greek mathematicians Aristotle and Euclid described a pinhole camera in the 5th and 4th centuries BC.
In the 6th century AD, Byzantine mathematician Anthemius of Tralles
used a type of camera obscura in
his experiments.
So a lot
to consider when coining the phrase 'Influential' and we haven't even hit film
yet...So what of film and its discovery and how was it thrust into the
photographic process. Well if you have been paying attention and doing a bit of
research you will have noticed from an Alchemist perspective that each process
does have one common factor they all used silver nitrates or silver salts
chemicals in the process, so without chemistry photography would not have been
born.
Silver
nitrates react to light in far less way than silver halides do, however the silver
nitrates react to another chemical which is used in photography ethanol.
Ethanol is a chemical which was used in the collodion process of photography.
It is an alcohol which is also used today in the process of developing film. In
1846 Louis-Nicolas Ménard
devised a mixture of ether (ethoxyethane) as the solvent and ethanol as a diluent that rendered cellulose nitrate into a clear gelatinous liquid.
The liquid was dubbed “collodion” (from the Latin collodium meaning glutinous).
See how
far we have come? Incredible journey so far, so we can say that these early
pioneers of the early nineteenth century were 'influential' in photography and
certainly the journey of the photographic process.
But fast
forward to the early twentieth century and film was being used to capture
moving images, this fact coupled with advances in cameras and here now in the twenty
first century, we see that we now combine the two art forms in a single
apparatus known as a Digital Single Lens Reflex has the technology and
capability to perform both tasks at ease.
So what
of the twentieth century photographers and who made history during that time? A
whole host of photographers have made their mark be it from a realism
perspective (Alfred Stieglitz, Eugène Atget, and
Walker Evans) or from a conceptual perspective (Man Ray, Cindy Sherman and
Duane Michals).
A look at
these photographers and one would suggest 'oh but you missed out someone or
other', and I know who you would be referring too, because yes we have
mentioned those photographers before. However I am here to enlighten and
hopefully educate you in your thought process in photography and its origins.
Although admittedly I cannot and will not dismiss those photographers, of whom
we know not.
Every
photographer at some point in their lives will affect you and your creative
process, look at my post history and you will find of whom we speak of. Each
and every photographer I have read about as had some influence in my
photography at some point, from the likes of Henri Cartier-Bresson to Aleksandr Rodchenko; they have all
played a part in my photographic journey. Yes admittedly I am an academic but I
am foremost a photographer.
Even from
my perspective my works have influenced my fellow students be it the landscape
shots I have shot or the concept art pieces of work, which clearly have been
influenced by 'selfies' with a bent on the conceptual perspective.
At this
moment they're two photographers whose work I greatly admire two contemporaries
shall we say the first is an extraordinary gentleman named Saul Landell whose work he gives a working title
and suggests a perspective of his creations as 'Magical Realism'.
I find
his work very inspiring and as the photographer implies "My photographs don't offer answers. At best, they attempt
to create more questions." - Saul
Landell
So
Mexico, Guadalajara-based photographer Saul Landell has created a definitive
style of photography that poses questions for the viewer...although I do feel
that certain aspects to his melancholy pieces offer answers to those who are
versed in the art of illusion. One such photographer of course is Duane
Michals, whose work of course is incredible when you think such pieces were
created by hand and not using software.
Which
brings me to another contemporary photographer and one who inspired myself to
get out there and start shooting self-portraiture, much like Saul Landell; David Talley is an extraordinary artist bare
in mind that this aspiring young artist / photographer is only twenty
years old and very talented too, such an inspiring thought when you consider
how young David Bailey was when the
young east ender burst on to the British Fashion scene in the early sixties.
David
Talley is a self-taught, 20 year old fine art photographer born and based in
Los Angeles, California. He began taking pictures in the spring of 2011,
starting with a 365-day conceptual self-portrait challenge.
His portrait
challenge can be found here on Flickr I myself started a 52 week project, and I
have to say it is damn hard to do but an enjoyable experience all the same.
You will
as David certainly has begin to develop a style all of your own making and
in the process in that short time, David has become recognised for his
photographic achievement. Hell, in fifty years’ time he may well go down in
history as someone who was the most influential photographer of all time. Who
knows?
In the
interim we can look back at those in recognition for their contributions to
photography, photographers like Elliot Erwitt and Marc
Riboud different aspects of photography
but both contributed to photojournalism in their own right. Maybe this is where
the tangent should take us, into that realm of realism but not magical as Saul
Landell puts it, instead the very opposite the dark side of photography and yet
it is so beautiful it is a key factor in today’s marketplace.
One a documentary photographer known for his black and white candid
shots of ironic and absurd situations within everyday settings, and the other
known for his
extensive reports on the East: The Three Banners of China, Face of North
Vietnam, Visions of China, and In China.
Though
admittedly Marc Riboud' work is not entirely categorised as Elliot Erwitt’s',
Riboud has contributed to photography documentary in no other way, his work is
incredible and quite remarkable.
©Marc
Riboud
|
I find
Black and White photographs really inspiring because notably they are taken
with such compositional thought they stand out, on their own merit even if
they're part of a larger collection of works, such is the fact with Eugène
Atget work and his allegiance to outdated photographic technology, his focus on
pre–French Revolutionary architecture and ornamentation, and his utilitarian
approach to photography marked him as emphatically old school.
Man Ray actually offered Atget an Rolleiflex he refused it. Yet in documenting France's culture and landscape, Atget explored and
expanded photography's possibilities both formally and expressively.
Combining careful analysis and poetic intuition, Atget produced images
that are strikingly clear and detailed but also deeply personal and
somehow ineffable.
Many of Atget's most arresting pictures are suffused with melancholy. He
presents Paris not as a bustling modern metropolis but as a city
abandoned. Eschewing the prominent 19th-century additions to the city's
face—the grand boulevards, the Eiffel Tower, the Opéra—he trained his
lens instead on its older, often decaying buildings and parks and,
occasionally, its marginalised populations. These understated and
elegant photographs make palpable the quietly pernicious effects of the
passing of time and suggest the fragility of even the grandest human
undertakings.
That statement has a sense of irony to it when considering another French photographer and one who influences myself greatly Robert Doisneau, who during his photo-documenting of Paris thought the city had lost its appeal as Paris makes way for concrete. I emphasise with Doisneau entirely on this, I like architecture yes and I love the geometry of it all, however the materials used are less inspiring.
More so they're as sterile to our surroundings as an infant’s pacifier,
they have no character either. One photographer who should be on the list or
certainly get a mention is that of Paul Strand,
I have spoken of his work before and he clearly influenced a lot more besides.
Strand much like Man Ray moved to France as did many other photographers.
Paris was certainly a city post WWII that attracted many artists and
many of whom pursued photography as an art form.
But who is the most influential well like I said it depends on what
context is it contributory as in inventor (Talbot Fox) or is it contributory as
in technique (André Kertész).
Who will influence your work only time will tell, or will you like David
Talley develop a style all of your own?
Cheerio
David
No comments:
Post a Comment