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Starting the course, I reflected on some of my own personal favourite photographs. “The New Mothers” by Sally Mann is one of them. It captures a childhood moment of pretend play while drawing upon ideas and preconceptions about motherhood and femininity. Mann creates a narrative by contrasting frilly dresses and candy cigarettes. This photo reflects on photography's "truth claim", as this photograph appears more like a piece of art that tells a story, rather than a piece of truth.

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William Henry Fox Talbot | Articles of Glass (circa. 1844)

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This week early inventors of photographic mediums were discussed. Talbot, the inventor of the salted paper and calotype photographic processes understood the profound potential that photography had, which was to capture and reproduce the art and culture of its era. The image I chose this week captures this very sentiment, as he commented in plate 4 of his book The Pencil of Nature, "Look at what the new medium of photography can give you-not just one crystal goblet, but shelves full of glass, as effortlessly as it records any other subject."

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William Henry Fox Talbot | Articles of China (circa. 1844)

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Week 2: The Inventions of Photography (cont.)

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Week 2: The Inventions of Photography (cont.)

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The plate preceding, Articles of Glass, Talbot wrote what he believed could be a new application for photography: "The whole cabinet of a Virtuoso and collector of old China might be depicted on paper in little more time than it would take him to make a written inventory."

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This week, stereographs- which are two almost identical photographs put side by side to be viewed with a stereoscope- were discussed. The image I chose for this week is part of William Hetzer's 1858 collection of 36 stereoscopic views of Sydney, showcasing its harbour, prominent structures, streets, and surrounding landscapes.

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For Week 4, I chose "Fireflies", as it is a photograph that captures the very essence of Pictorialism, a topic that was discussed this week. Pictorialism puts emphasis on photography's artistic, evocative and interpretive qualities. Carter's photograph features a soft focus, was printed in a warm brown, with visible brushstrokes & other manipulation of the image; aesthetics very much associated with Pictorialism.
"Making photographs rather than taking them"

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American Dada and Surrealist visual artist Man Ray’s “Solarisations” was one of the topics discussed this week. He achieved the distinctive tones around this photo subject by turning his studio lights on and off during the developing process.

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Mary Ellen Mark | “Rat” and Mike with a Gun in Seattle, Washington (1983) 

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Week 6: Documentary, Conflict, Collaboration

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Week 6: Documentary, Conflict, Collaboration

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On the topic of photographic documentary, discussed as one of the themes of this week, “Rat and Mike” is one of the many iconic works captured by Mark and was taken from her photo essay series Street of the Lost, which documented lost youth and teen homelessness in 1980s America. The stark sense of survival is felt through the facial expressions of the two subjects and how close together they are standing, contrasting the empty space around them. The steeliness of the gun being concealed cuts boldly through the photo, and serves as a blunt reminder that these kids are alone in this world left fending for themselves.

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William Eggleston | Near Greenwood, Mississippi (1972)

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Week 7: Collecting, Exhibiting and Curating Photography

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Week 7: Collecting, Exhibiting and Curating Photography

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"Near Greenwood, Mississippi" was my photo of choice this week, as it was one of the photographs featured in MoMA's exhibition "Photographs by William Eggleston" that ran from May 24, 1976 to August 1, 1976. The exhibition was discussed during the week's tutorial, and I found it to be the most aesthetically appealing one to me as I am very fond of Eggleston's visual style.

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George Platt Lynes | American Landscape, 1933 (1932)

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Week 8: Collecting, Exhibiting and Curating Photography - Part 2

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Week 8: Collecting, Exhibiting and Curating Photography - Part 2

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This photo-mural was made by American photographer George Platt Lynes and was featured in MoMA's "Murals by American Painters and Photographers" exhibition that ran from May 3–31, 1932. I chose it for this week's reflection as it was one of MoMA's first that featured photography alongside traditional art in a singular exhibition. The techniques Lynes used to create this mural include double-printed photos from two negatives which were mounted on the architectural background.

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Barbara Kruger | I Shop Therefore I Am (1987) 

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Week 9: Conceptual and Postmodern Photography

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Week 9: Conceptual and Postmodern Photography

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This week's image is artwork by Barbara Kruger, one of the many key artists from the Pictures generation photography movement of the 60s and 70s. The iconic bright red and white text over a grainy black and white photograph, typically derived from mass media, is instantly recognisable as Kruger's work. The irony of her work is the direct social commentary they create, and how her work was also simultaneously reproduced on items such as T shirts and other consumer products.

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Nan Goldin | Suzanne Crying, New York City (1985)

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Week 10: Views on Portraiture and Representation

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Week 10: Views on Portraiture and Representation

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The image was featured in this week's guest lecture and is one of the many from Nan Goldin's The Ballad of Sexual Dependency. Goldin captures women in intimate, raw states of ecstasy, despair, and pain, a nudge against the female gaze many women are often photographed within. The snapshot aesthetic of this image and her others are reminiscent of a family photo album. She alludes to the post-modern themes of playing between high art vs popular art, showcasing her work in a performative way, turning her work into a theatrical event.

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Week 11: Contemporary Photography - Analogue to Digital and Beyond

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Week 11: Contemporary Photography - Analogue to Digital and Beyond

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The image I chose for this week's reflection is one from the guest lecturer Baden Pailthorpe's 2017 exhibition "Pitch Deck", which combines elements of 3D animation with photography and digital art. I found the meshing of these components very intriguing, especially when looked at through the lens of photography, art, and the post-digital world we live in, and how all these factors influence how we make art today.