Categorising photographs
Why are we doing this? • To develop your ability to analyse photographs. • To enable you to analyse others’ work and your own work in more detail and depth. • To encourage you to consider the possible interpretations of your own photographs. • To widen your vocabulary when talking about photographs. • To help you to meet Merit and Distinction criteria in current and past projects.
CATEORISING PHOTOGRAPHS Terry Richardson - Criticising photographs (An introduction to understanding images).
The 6 categories • • • • • •
Descriptive Explanatory Interpretive Ethically evaluative Aesthetically evaluative Theoretical
Descriptive photographs
Descriptive photographs Attempt to accurately record subject matter. Aim to be neutral and not influence the viewer to interpret or judge the subject. Examples: Passport photographs, X-rays, Surveillance photographs, photographs of historical objects in museum catalogues.
Explanatory
‘Suburbia’ by Bill Owens
Explanatory
Edwaerd Muybridge
Explanatory Small difference between Descriptive and Explanatory. Often provide visual explanations that can help our scientific understanding of things. Can also provide visual explanations that can help our understanding of society. Examples: documentary photographs, many press photographs, photographs that explain scientific aspects of the world.
Explanatory
Lauren Greenfield ‘Thin’
Explanatory
James Van Der Zee ‘Harlem Renaissance’
Interpretive
Jerry Uelsmann
Interpretive Personal interpretations. Subjective as opposed to objective. More like poetry than science. Usually fictional. Directorial approach – the photographer makes something happen. Often staged or changing real life situations. Self expressive. Dramatic.
Interpretive
Ethically evaluative
Ethically evaluative Makes a value judgement of an ethical type. Praise or condem aspects of society. Show how things ought or ought not to be. Politically engaged. Passionate. Aims to move people to action, not just show how things are.
Ethically evaluative
Eugene Richards
Aesthetically evaluative Makes a value judgement of an aesthetic type. Show what the photographer considers worthy of contemplation and observation. Usually beautiful photographs of beautiful things Common subjects are nudes, landscape, still life.
Aesthetically evaluative
Jock Sturges
Irving Penn
Ansel Adams
Theoretical
Cindy Sherman ‘Untitled Film Stills
THEORETICAL Comments on other photographs or artworks Photographs about photography. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yG2k4C4zr U Jeff Wall.
Theoretical
Alison Jackson
Theoretical
Richard Prince
• SONGS OF MY PEOPLE AFRICAN AMERICAN PHOTOJOURNALISTS. http://www.laurengreenfield.com/index.php?p= CPWSTGDI Fast Forward. http://vimeo.com/34595852 - TULSA Larry Clark
Descriptive to ethically evaluative
Photographs can be categorised in many different ways. Categorising is not meant to end discussion by pigeonholing and sorting. Placing images in the categories is an activity designed to encourage discussion about how we interpret images. Trying to put photos into categories means we have to think about our interpretations.