Art & Authenticy

Looking at all the photographs throughout the International Center of Photography, each one seemed to amaze me. One of the pictures that had caught my attention the most was when a lot of people were in the picture and all of them seemed to be doing something different. It was amazing how the photographer could capture such a moment. Even with so many different people, the photographer took a great picture as we get to observe how so many things go on at the same time. I also watched the video of guys that kept talking as they tried on new clothes. I thought this one was very interesting how each of them thought how important clothes and looks were to them. For them, it seems that brand names is the most important thing in their life. Throughout, there was a wide variety of photographs including weird, funny and meaningful ones.

ICP Exhibit

Rating: 5 stars

Reasons:

All of the photos are extraordinary in someway. Let’s look at three examples:

1) The first set of three photographs about African American women were so colorful and eye-popping that viewers can’t help but feel the subculture of African Americans, I’m guessing, in the 70’s and 8o’s.

2) The black and white images of the train conductors scream out RUSSIA, oppression, and monotony in ways that viewers don’t even have to look at the caption to understand their meaning.

3) The set of photographs with Afro-Brazilian women wearing animals body parts as decoration and accessories for their clothing. If these photos doesn’t surprise you as a viewer, I don’t know what will.

I especially like the idea that the museum is revolving around one theme–fashion. By looking at the individual artist’s work, I can hardly tell that he or she was focusing on fashion; however, to look at the exhibit as a whole, I can really see the cohesiveness of the theme coming together.

There were three specific works that really intrigued me. The first was Pinar Yolacan’s photographs of elderly women wearing satin dresses laced with animal innards. When I first saw the pictures, I thought the innards were fake and that they were fabrics made to look like innards. It was not to be disgusted after finding out that they were real, bloody animal parts. The plaque next to the display described the project as a comparison between the qualities of the sheen on rich fabrics and the sheen on raw animal innards. The idea itself is so strange and the concept is a little difficult to understand, but the photos were still very graphic and they drew me in.

The second piece that I found interesting would have to be the video by Grace Ndirita. In the video, she is wearing a black velvet mask. She continually strokes the mask; the clip is a commentary on the vanity of “attaining the ideal image” and it’s titled Artificial Beauty. Most of the other viewers found it to be a little eerie. It quite appropriate because often those who had already reached their idea of “ideal beauty” can look plastic and cold.

The last piece has aesthetic beauty– the set of photos containing the Lacrimacorpus. The bodies of the creatures were made entirely of inflated latex and they were dressed in elegant clothing. The location of the shoot was Germany, a site that had celebrated Goethe and also became a Nazi concentration camp at different points in time. The name of the creature is means “tear” and “body”. The photos are both beautiful and melancholy.

The ICP exhibit was . . . an interesting experience. It was unlike any other museum I’ve been to, not only because it consisted entirely of photographs, but because it was held in such an intimate space. Among the beautiful pictures dedicated to African American women and Brazilian fashion, it was Alice O’Malley’s piece that stood out. Her photos were of men and women who blurred traditional gender lines. As a big supporter of the LGBTI (Lesbian, Gay, BiSexual, Transgender, Intersexed) community, I thought the idea was beautiful as well as the photography. Deceptively simple, the photos still had so much character. I wish there were more people that understand that genders are fluid creations of societal expectations, and were more open-minded to the sexes crossing gender lines.

I walked into the International Center of photography to many photos. However this is the first time I as presented with so many pictures yet I had to look one at a time. Every single one had its own authenticity, its own story, and its own aura.

     The Belt, Step 1 to 9 caught my attention the most. As I first looked at it I saw a rather heavy-set woman, however upon further research of the other pictures or steps, it is a woman hiding many layers of fabric. This was very powerful to me in a few ways, that people will get by sometimes by any means necessary; also because it shows that you can show the world whatever face you want but reality can be so drastically different. It’s amazing how extremely cosmetic things can look so very genuine. You choose how the world sees you.

I huge fan of photography, I loved coming to the ICP to take a look at some pictures.
It was interesting for me to see the wide range of photography out there – from pictures bigger than me in size, taken from another room, to blurry shots, with a bit of a buzz to them, to collages put together to harmonize.

The picture that I enjoyed the most was the one with the “tears” (which were actually condoms). To this day I am not certain as to what I loved about the photo, but I couldn’t help but be drawn to it, and I actually walked back to stare at it a few times.

A favorite of many were the pictures of African women in the beginning of the exhibition. I disagree. I saw nothing good about the pictures, aside from maybe composition. The viewer’s eye was simply fooled by all the vibrant colors. The colors blinded everyone into thinking there was something special about the photo. There wasnt.

Another set of pictures that I really liked was the collection of Shanghai photos, put together to explain the life in the city. It was shoking to see the conditions that people live in. Some families have a kitched, living room, bedroom, and convenience store all in one box-like room. To see what life is really like for some people, in a country that is deemed to be prosperous was really eye-opening.

Overall, I must say that through this exhibit I understood that there arent just two types of photography – portrait and landscape. There is photography that extends into everything, and everything can become art (like the photos of women wearing animal organs showed). Presented in the exhibition were many ideas, concepts, beliefs. Photography was portrayed as a medium of expressing oneself in more than just a creative way.

Oh, and I do not agree that the central theme tying all pictures in was “fashion;” I think a better connection should have been culture, as seen through the eyes of each particular individual.

This exhibit consisted of a large cluster of black and white portraits or real ordinary people paired with a number of abstract ink paintings. The pictures along with the abstract paintings served the purpose of highlighting the process of circle of life. I felt that the abstract drawings were trying to portray the loss of self identity or self worth in the lives of the people depicted in the portraits. It’s as if they are losing their direction in life with the passing of time – hence the title “Please Remind Me of Who I Am. The juxtaposition of the portraits and the drawings indicate the gradual move from a confident self-assured state to an abstract and confused. Further the use of normal people in the portraits and the large numbers of varied, small portraits used for the exhibit symbolize the universality of this theme.

The School at ICP sits like a sky-sleeping star in the center of the city. Seriously.

I have always doubted the authenticity of the art of photography (alliteration for the win!) I always thought that it was just a cheap craft that just involved a focused aperture and couple touchups with Photoshop that will eventually lead your artwork to fame, stardom and a place on DeviantArt’s “hourly top ten.”

I might have to rethink that opinion now.

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Once I walked into the International Center of Photography, I was surrounded by photographs. Each of the photographs in ICP tells a story, a life, or even a culture. The one photo collage that stood out to me the most was the woman smuggling clothing by tying them around her waist. The collage, from left to right, top to bottom, consists of photos of her untying the clothing little by little—the last frame showing her with only her normal clothes. It is a powerful collage that speaks to me the story of this woman, her life, and perhaps the culture of many other women like her.

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“Hastings Park, 16 July 1955” was taken in 2008, but who would know that? Who would also know that the photo was to mirror workers unrest in Vancouver, Canada during the 1950s? In 1912, there was a free speech rally and in 1935, there was a labor strike. This photo did not necessarily need to include any violence nor any “loudness” as there would be (typically in a strike), but for some odd reason, Douglas did not have to show angry workers protesting in the park. He was able to convey his message by capturing just the opposite – placid (in the terms in that they are sitting and not boycotting), unemployed residents. Continue Reading »