Research Point: Sense of Place.

Research Point: Sense of Place.

The question being asked is, “Is it easier or harder to document a place if you come from it’?

Does local knowledge blind you to the faults of a place?  Does intimate knowledge of a place make you too biased to give a fair view of it?  Does that same intimate knowledge give you an edge that allows for a deeper insight?

The approaches of the following photographers and their work may give a clue.

Mikhael Subotzky. (Beaufort West). 

Born Cape Town, South Africa, 1981.  

The Beaufort West pictures paint a pretty bleak view of modern South Africa and could  never have been produced by an outsider.  The end of Apartheid brought to end end one form discrimination but allowed a second to flourish, the haves and the have nots.  As Subotzky describes, "The problem is that so much of the way crime is represented in the popular media polarises victim and perpetrator, us and them, the law-abiding citizens and those who the law-abiding citizens have to fear. I almost see this as a new kind of apartheid - between those that fear and those that are feared.”  

An outsider would never have able to photograph the working life of the prostitute Michelle nor the quirky images of Mr. Roussouw the antique seller.  

The picture of Jaco the pest controller was interesting in that only the dead jackals were mentioned.  There was no mention of the two dead caracals on the right.

Jens Olof Lastheim. (Abkhazia).

Born Sweden, 1964.

Abkhazia is an autonomous republic and is a relic left over from the Russian/Georgia War of 1992/3.  Nominally independent it festers on the eastern shore of the Black Sea.  Following the war the Georgians fled leaving only the Russians.

Lastheim was definitely an outside when he went on this assignment.  The camera he chose was a Widelux  panoramic camera giving a 140° field of view.  Normally used in landscape photography, it forced him to close in on his subjects and made for interesting perspectives and juxtapositions.  What he clearly not do was get in close to was the lives or personalities of these people.  There are no indoor or intimate shots.  He operates as an outsider and with an outsiders viewpoint.  We see what he found interesting but we do not get to the heart of the subjects or the place.

Marco van Duyvendijk. (Mongolia).  

Born Netherlands, 1974.

The harsh land of Mongolia is about as far removed from the flatlands of The Netherlands as it possible to be.   No matter how long you stayed with these hardy people you would always be an outsider, and that is reflected in this collection.  There is a lack of warmth brought about by the posed nature of the images.  There are some light touches as well such as the glimpse of Calvin Klein underwear as displayed by the traditional wrestler and the blue puppy hair ties worn by the girl in the butchers.  We have a sense of place but only as seen by an outsider.

Philip Cheung. (West Bank).

Based Toronto.

Cheung records the life of this mis-managed part of the world as a stranger.  How else can he do it?  There is no hint of intimacy in these pictures.  They nicely place the subjects in context but there is no attempt to get close, either physically or figuratively.  The girls in the fairground boat ride look happy and relaxed, while the images of the young men, one in a gas mask and one using a catapult, give a hint at the violent lives they lead.  These images give a fair impression as what life is like on the West Bank but again as seen by an outsider.  He only shares the space, he is not part of the place.

Can the same geographical space be two places at the same time?

I am starting with a bit of anecdotal evidence based on a stag night in Brighton.  Brighton has to be one of the most hedonistic towns in Britain ,with it’s bars, clubs, and various attractions to meet all tastes.  Being  older than the rest of the party I bailed out early from the festivities and crashed out.   I got up at about five the following morning  and went for a walk.  The Brighton I saw looked similar to the one I had left only a few hours earlier but was now populated by the local people who supply the town with it’s entertainment.  The delivery men, the early opening cafes serving hearty breakfasts, the street cleaners ridding the streets of the previous night's over indulgence.  Even the derelict pier look serene.

Barney Case.

As John Agnew of California University says of senses of space and place:

“In the simplest sense place refers to either a location somewhere or to the occupation of that location. The first sense is of having an address and the second is about living at that address. Sometimes this distinction is pushed further to separate the physical place from the phenomenal space in which the place is located. Thus place becomes a particular or lived space. Location then refers to the fact that places must be located somewhere. Place is specific and location (or space) is general”.

According to Yi-Fu Tuan the US-Chinese geographer:

“Space' can be described as a location which has no social connections for a human being. No value has been added to this space. It is an open space, but may marked off and defended against intruders. It does not invite or encourage people to fill the space by being creative. No meaning has been described to it. It is more or less abstract.

'Place' is in contrary more than just a location and can be described as a location created by human experiences. The size of this location does not matter and is unlimited. It can be a city, neighbourhood, a region or even a classroom et cetera. In fact ‘place’ exists of ‘space’ that is filled with meanings and objectives by human experiences in this particular space. Places are centres where people can satisfy there biological needs such as food, water etc.. A ‘place’ does not exist of observable boundaries and is besides a visible expression of a specific time period. Examples are arts, monuments and architecture.”

Conclusion: 

The Brighton I encountered was indeed one space, but two different places.  The difference was not location but time.

References:

http://web.archive.org/web/20090222104822/

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

http://www.jmcolberg.com/weblog/2008/11/review_beaufort_west_by_mikhae.html

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhael_Subotzky

[Accessed: 17th. September 2015].

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abkhazia

[Accessed: 17th September 2015].

http://www.saatchigallery.com/artists/mikhael_subotzky_articles.htm

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

http://www.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&ALID=2K1HRGM3KRV

[Accessed: 17th. September 2015]>

http://blog.leica-camera.com/photographers/interviews/oskar-barnack-award-winner-jens-olof-lasthein/

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

http://www.foto8.com/reviews/V4N4/monglia.html

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/geog/downloads/856/416.pdf

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

http://geography.ruhosting.nl/geography/index.php?title=Space_vs._place

[Accessed: 18th. September 2015].

Exercise: We English.

Exercise: Reflective commentary on We English.

Simon Robert’s use of a large format camera contributed to both the quality of the pictures and their air of non-spontaneity.  They are beautifully composed and processed but the time taken to set up the shot removed all hope of involvement. Because he limited the human content he also limited his scope to use the human form as a central figure he has fallen back on the landscape artist’s artifice of a red feature to give the eye a starting point from which to examine the rest of the picture. 

He has managed to photograph the mundane but made it compelling in a way that I don’t think his, The Election Project, matched.  These images held my attention and were a pleasure to look at.

This was a well planned and executed project relying on both his own knowledge and the accepting of suggestions from his web followers.  The study of earlier work, the securing of funding and publication gave Simon time to produce this excellent work.  Unlike Martin Parr, he shows little cynicism and tries to find the best in people.  The one exception was the image of the filthy state of the pleasure beach at Blackpool.  

Exercise: The Roma Journeys-Gipsies.

Exercise: The Roma Journeys-Gipsies.

Before I read the Cia Rinne interview I looked at what images were available on the web of the two projects and brain-stormed the first impressions of each set.

The most obvious difference was that they were taken at different times and so that had to be taken into consideration.  The use of colour in the later images has to be ignored as it can seriously change the feel of a scene.

Koudelka.  1st. impressions

Different/self contained/family/proud/isolated posed/uninvolved/formal/outsiders.

Eskilden. 1st. impressions.

Different/self contained/family/proud/isolated/happy/involved/relaxed/outsiders.

The life the Roma led seemed similar but the presentation was different.  After reading the Cia Rinne interview and some background on the Koudelka set I started to see where the difference in presentation lay.  Koudelka remained an outsider and photographed the Roma as such.  Although he got to know the people he photographed from the outside.  Eskilden on the other hand not only got close to the Roma but learned their language and at times lived with them.  

Eskilder’s close relationship with his subjects shows in the far more relaxed spontaneous shots he obtained.  Life looks far less grim, the people happier and the feel of the settlements lighter.

From the outset it would seem that Koudelka wished to show the Roma from the position of an informed outsider, whereas Eskilden wished to show the Rome from the inside.  At first glance the images appear, only, to come from different eras but on closer inspection the photographers intentions from the start were different.

Exercise: Seeing and believing.

Exercise: Seeing and believing.

After downloading and printing out the Panos Picture files I laid out each set on a table to get an overall feel of what the photographer was trying to say.  I didn’t look at each image in detail at this stage as it was the theme of each set I was interested in. 

Dirven:  Dismissed as all black and white.  Pity, as it was an interesting set of images.

Nelson:  A familiar story retold without originality.  Lacked a cohesive thread.

Vitale:  An interesting subject but retold without any original variation.

Teleman:  A great set of pictures telling a good story, but a story that is as old as man himself; where to find sufficient potable water.  A great deal of money has been invested in fresh water projects in Africa, but until the problems of burgeoning populations is solved there will be no lasting solution.  

This left me with the sets from Hinton and Telemans.

Hinton:  It is here that I will look at approach made to the subject of education and it’s importance to families in Guatemala.  

Information: Without the accompanying words I would have gained no information from these images.  They are a series of charming mother and daughter pictures shot in domestic and rural settings.  There is no educational context.  

Aesthetics:  Good technical images that, as I said above, informing us of very little.  No where do we glimpse at aspirations or a possible improved future.   

Expression:  What is Hinton trying to tell the viewer?  Is this about hope, despair,

governmental  neglect or world indifference?  A good set of images should be able to carry their own message.

Telemans:  These images tell of the aspirations of the young in the town of Chimbiri in Ethiopia.

Information:  Even without the supporting text the viewer can see that these children are communicating with us.  They are giving a hint at what they want from life and are shot within a context.  The text gives additional information but the message in each image is there already.

Aesthetics:  Beautifully shot.  The face of the little shopkeeper is such a powerful image, and although obviously set up shows no sign of  overt control.  The young farmer pictured with his plough illustrates how hard these people need to work just to survive.  

Expression:  The set, as a whole, expresses hope.  We are all well aware of the bad times these people have lived through, and this series of mini stories show that they look to a better future.

Conclusion: When I first looked at the images I saw only what I wanted to see,  pictures of third world countries and their problems.   It was only after I sorted the images by photographer that I was able to see the different approaches.  The images were made stronger by involving the subjects and by framing them within a context.  By doing that the additional text only had to add to the available information and did not have to tell the whole story.

The old cliche about a picture being worth a thousand words is true only if the picture is allowed to tell the whole story.

Exercise: Paul Close.

Exercise: Paul Close.

Take away the photograph’s titles and the images have little meaning.  They are reduced to a series of pictures in which the main subjects have been isolated by the employment of a white cloth, but the reason for that isolation is not clear.   

Put back the words and clarity returns.  The subject, although still isolated from the background, is no longer separate from the context.  One can consider the context and at the same time study the subject.  

These subjects are not as isolated and controlled as Diane Arbus or Richard Alvedon would have them, nor as uncontrolled as W Eugene Smith’s.  

These images work well but only with the addition of the titles.  How would one know the small boy wishes for a large car or that the man in front of the shop is not only the shop keeper but wants a larger shop?  Remove the words and all meaning is lost.

Exercise: The Tourist Gaze.

Exercise: The Tourist Gaze.

How apposite that I write this less than a week before I leave for a five week break in Australia.  The way I have taken photographs has change dramatically over the course of my studies.  My wife says I now look for the quirky rather than the obvious; seeking out the unusual rather than the trite. 

This essay nice encapsulates the attitude of the tourist who occupies that place that is neither home nor familiar.  The word “liminal”, new to me, defines the space he occupies as a threshold.  

As it says in the essay, when we visit the other place we go to see the already seen, be that in a brochure, a travelogue, or a soap.  We go already knowing what we will see.  We are directed, pointed, and even pay to see what we have already seen.

The alternative to this is to hire a local guide, take some risks, go off the beaten track and visit the lessor known.  Don't take a thousand selfies in front of the Taj Mahal but  do what Katie Litchfield did and take a picture of the cleaner.

Reference:

Litchfield. K. (2013) A Clean Sweep For The Taj Mahal.  FT Photo Diary.

Available on: http://blogs.ft.com/photo-diary/2013/06/clean-sweep-for-the-taj-mahal/

[Accessed: 16th September 2015].

Exercise: Five Images in a Surreal Style.

Exercise: Five Images in a Surreal Style.  (Two aborted attempts and the final submission).

This exercise led to a number false starts, mainly, because I had difficulty finding a subject around which I could base it.  Before I produce the five images that make my final selection I will show five unsuccessful candidates.  I rejected them because I couldn’t link them or match them.

Second abandoned idea.

I thought this exercise might be an excuse to get out my 7-14mm Olympus lens and let it’s power to distort and give a deep depth of field run riot.  The beach front at Deal, with it’s semi derelict beach fishing fleet, was the subject.

The opening image is just a play on words with two signs placed incongruously next to each other.

Dangerous Fish.

The second is of  one of the last working boats.  Taken with the wide lens the boat is nicely distorted.

Moss Rose.

The second is of a newly restored former fishing boat which this lens turns it into a good likeness of a viking long boat.

Lady Irene.

When I saw the boat Genie I new I had to place it in a bottle.  I half filled a bottle with water and held it up in front of Genie.   The deep depth of field did the rest.

Genie in a Bottle.

By framing the anchors against the sky gave them the surreal feel that this exercise called for.

Sky Hooks.

Should I get any comments I will add them to the post in due course.

Final Attempt.

I liked the ideas in the beach scenes but was not happy with the result.  The images were far too weak for the subject.

Every year Deal High Street is closed for the Deal Braderie, a market where all and sundry can sell their wares.  I thought this might be a fruitful place for some surreal images.

The first is a group of wax hands on a wooden table.  I imagine they were, at some time, used to display jewellery but gathered together like this they take on eerie quality.

The second is of two heads, one be-hatted human and one ape.  To me, it is the look of apparent resignation that makes the shot.  No wonder the ape looks amused. 

The third consists of Tin Tin and Captain Haddock dressed in space suits.  The Captain appears to be in pursuit of Tin Tin.

Number four was of a stall specialising in stuffed animals.  Most of the animals were of very poor quality but the chicken in this picture looks almost alive.  The presence of this chicken in amongst all those predators looks so wrong.

The last image is a drunken Micky Mouse slipping from his chair.  Mr Clean in a state of inebriation.

It took three attempts but I think it was worth it.  This series has the theme of The Braderie running through it, and the images are pretty surreal.  All the images were as found. 

Peter Dench.

Peter Dench’s use of surrealism is a powerful tool which he employs to illustrate his message.  He seems to use it less in the more serious series, such as the jabaleen of garbage city, where any use of flippancy would be out of place.

In Alcohol & England he tells the story of alcohol abuse through a series of events, over a period of time, so that one passes from joy, euphoria, and exuberance through drunkenness and stupidity on to  vomit, violence, and injury.  The piece has a superb surreal feel to it throughout.  

Likewise The British Abroad, in which he points out, in graphic detail, why I hate holidaying with my fellow Brits.  Everything from the fake tan to the morning after is again given a light surrealistic touch.

I do not wish to go through all of the Peter Dench pieces but must mention the delightfully filmed War and Peace Show, with it’s collection of thoroughly eccentric warriors.  Never cruel but still pointed out the absurdity of the event.

Peter’s use of surrealism is a fine balance, employing it to highlight the humorous or absurd but holding back when the seriousness of the image does not call for it.

Research Point: Surrealism.

Surrealism, (definition).

1. A literary and artistic movement of the 1900s that attempts to express the workings of the subconscious and is characterised by fantastic imagery and incongruous juxtaposition of subject matter.

2. Literature or art produced in this style.

Brief History.

The Dada movement that was started, according to Gerry Carlin and Mair Evans of Wolverhampton University, by Hugo Ball in the Dada Manifesto that he introduced in Zurich on 14th July 1916, and from which, according to,  James Voories of the Department of European Paintings, The Metropolitan Museum of Art grew the surrealist movement.  The surreal artists, that could, fled Europe at the start of  WW II and set up in the USA.  

Photographers included aspects of surrealism in their images from early on as can be seen in the works of Man Ray, Andre Kertesz, Edwin Blumfeld, Brassai and many others.  The medium of photography was ideal for the mixing of ideas necessary for surrealist images.

Man Ray. La violon d'ingres. 1924

Andre Kertesz. The Carnival. 1920-1970.

Published 1971.

Edwin Blumenfeld. Self Portrait. Date unknown.

Brassaï. l'amoureux de Paris

All the above were pioneers in the field and worked in black and white where form is the most important element.

In 1934 two artists, Helen Lundeberg and Lorser Feitelson, declared surrealism dead and that post-surrealism was the new way of examining the the relationship between the perceptual and the conceptual.  Whatever the name, modern photographers still use surreal technique to great effect. By mixing time, perspective and just placing disparate objects in close proximity they bring about the impossible or the absurd.

I produce the work of for such artists.  In two the influence of Rene Magritte is obvious and shows the continuation of earlier surreal artists.

Logan Zillmer. Born 1986 in Michigan.

Eric Johansson. Born 1985 Sweden.

Ceslovas Cesnakenius. Born Vilnius 1979.

Martin Parr.  Born Epsom 1952.

Katerina Bodrunova. Born Moscow 1985.

From my research it would seem that surreal photography is very much alive 

Research:

Gerry Carlin & Mair Evans

http://www.wlv.ac.uk/~fa1871/surrext.html
[Accessed: 31st August 2015].

James Voories.

Department of European Paintings, The Metropolitan Museum of Arthttp
[Accessed: 31st August 2015].

www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthis

tory/surrealism/Origins-of-Surrealism.html
[Accessed: 3rd August 2015].

surrealistic photography usa
[Accessed: 3rd August 2015].

https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/surrealist-photography/
[Accessed: 3rd August 2015].

http://thecreatorsproject.vice.com/en_uk/blog/surrealist-photographer-channels-his-inner-magritte
[Accessed: 3rd August 2015].

http://www.magnumphotos.com/Catalogue/Martin-Parr/1997/SPAIN-Benidorm-1997-NN162686.html
[Accessed: 3rd August 2015].

http://www.emptykingdom.com/featured/katerina-bodrunova/
[Accessed: 3rd August 2015].