Tuesday, May 12, 2009

2/5 there

I have only a handful of favorite photographers. It is a small and scattered group.

These artists are all intelligent and sincere. The photographs are excogitative and often include pieces of the artist's physical body or traces of its existence in the images. The work is not evidence of life or as a result of living, it is more.
My favorite photographers are perspectivists. Their work illustrates the many ways of seeing 'real' objects and the unlimited truths in our world. A photograph can offer the viewer many ideas or perspectives, but it can never give a definitive truth. Neither the photographer, subject or viewer has knowledge of the noumenon, the thing-in-itself.

My favorite photographers are transcendentalists.

Photography is less art and more science. The medium requires traveling to a destination and studying a particular subject. A talented photographer can study a subject's qualities that are not immediately apparent to the human eye. The best photographs are to be viewed slowly. Repeatedly. The most interesting photographs do not rely on shock or the allure of novelty. These images do not necessarily display a new subject to the viewer, but display the subject in a way that the viewer has rarely, if ever, seen before.
Consequently, this display opens a new realm of possible meanings, interpretations and actions in our world.


Jim Goldberg

We are a very emotional and tight family, 1979 Silver print 35.2 x 27.4 cm.


SAN FRANCISCO — "Manny loves me—but I am too strong to love him." ... "This photo makes me want to cry," 1982.
© Jim Goldberg




Francesca Woodman







Lee Friedlander is close to being a favorite, but he I don't think he is.