Lecture 3 Flashcards
Myth of photographic truth
Photos are typically associated with REALISM → an objective representation of the world, offers an unbiased truth
This is ultimately a myth.
Important points from Sontag:
• PHOTOS ARE AN INTERPRETATION vs a representation of reality
• what is not photographed is just as important as what is photographed (what is put on the newspaper)
• there is always a subjective choice
o i.e. devices such as framing a photo a certain way and selection (personalization/the author/why are they taking this photo/what’s its function, what do I think is interesting)
• official functions
o photographs as evidence (an interesting problem, should they be used as proof in court)
o mugshots, passport photos
aura of objectivity
photography tends to be understood as more objective than painting or drawing especially in this technological age where we are surrounded by machines, challenge and unpack this aura of objectivity
• the problem: we think of machines as very neutral, the info that comes in is objective or more real, there is more truth in it
Sekula quote:
photography almost mystical, having a power over us, the realisim
• where you look at a photo of your grandmother or mother and how that affects you
• affective – social and cultural feelings; as a society we are anxious
o photos have a power over us in an “emotional” realm
o a famous photo having an affect on the culture or society
• “both powers”
o one photo can be both art and information; can be two-fold, dynamic
o i.e. Japanese museum where they take the artist’s ID cards and put them all together (something informative to something powerful)
• dystowing honor or prestige for somebody
• repressive use (i.e. mugshots and evolution into surveillance; scans in airport of your body, intimate and very detailed)
Modernity
- historical era → rise of industrial revolution
- set of social values → efficiency, rational order, rejection of tradition
- associated with the transition towards the nation state, secular society, urbanization, industrialism, capitalism, and the rise of mass media (photography)
Modernity
- historical era → rise of industrial revolution
- set of social values → efficiency, rational order, rejection of tradition
- associated with the transition towards the nation state, secular society, urbanization, industrialism, capitalism, and the rise of mass media (photography)
artistic modernism
discarding tradition and criticizing conventions of representation (i.e. cinema and photography; the camera is a crucial part of the rise of the nation state, an important tool in this project)
nation state
sovereign (government) and limited geographic area (with borders i.e. USA)
“imagined communities”
• ppl who belong to a nation are all connected by some imaginary thing; we don’t meet everyone in Canada face-to-face but still unified and stick us together
o vernacular languages (“eh”)
o fabricated rituals and traditions (family day, bush parties)
o food (poutine, “pop”, Tim Hortons, maple syrup, beavertails, ketchup chips)
CANADA
last point in skeleton notes in radio and on tv → Canadian content rules Much Music (MTV) CBC → its job: to oversee everything in our country (vs overwhelming amount of American content)
What represents visual culture of Canada • The flag • Maple leaf • Tim Hortons logo • snow • CN tower • Animals (polar bear) • Poutine • Lumberjack plaid look • Loonie and toonie • Niagara falls
Canada’s identity: nature, rugged (deal with the cold)
A great Canadian novel → death of character; death by nature (Margaret Atwood once mentioned)
Nature, with a fixation on wilderness, is a privileged symbol of Canadian national identity
Kootenay, BC 1965
connotative/denotative meaning
photographic truth (claim, i.e. framing, selection, and personalization)
what is it saying about Canada
• heard of elk (togetherness, pioneers, one with nature) • wilderness aspect • untouched nature, idea of preservation, essence of purity • snow, the cold • peaceful • how about the Aboriginal ppl? • what’s not in the picture: humans o why is this significant? o All wildlife, naturesque, wilderness
