In Szarkowski’s essay ‘The Photographer’s Eye’, he discusses how photography has taught us to see from the unexpected vantage point, as well as how ‘photography’s ability to challenge and reject our schematized notions of reality is still fresh’ (Szarkowski. 1966. Page 11). When thinking about vantage point myself, two very different ideas of this characteristic of photography came to mind, which I will discuss and compare in this essay. Firstly, perhaps the more obvious, was the concept of where a photograph is taken from, for example looking at a subject or scene from a position that allows the photographer a favourable view. A very literal approach.
Therefore I decided to think more about how Szarkowski said photography teaches us to see from the unexpected vantage point, and on a visit to the V&A Museum I found Fred Zinnemann’s photograph ‘Empire State Building from the Subway’ (1950) which I think begins to address this idea; the photograph certainly shows an unexpected position for the artist to have photographed the subject from. With the title of the image being ‘Empire State Building’, this surely suggests that Zinnemann intended this to be the main subject and focus point for the viewer, making the position that the artist chose to photograph from very interesting. The empire state building itself is actually set in the background of the image, allowing the viewer to take in the maybe unconventional framing of it, notably the blacked out railings of the subway that are so prominent. Whether Zinnemann intended this or not, I think the vantage point in this image allows for the viewer to relate to the scene more, as it is from a perspective that they could see everyday, when at the same time I feel it also directs the v...
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...Brooklyn Family going for a Sunday Outing. [photograph] (Tate Modern Collection)
Zinnemann, F., 1950. Empire State Building from the Subway [image online]. Available at: http://www.mutualart.com/Artwork/Empire-State-Building-from-the-Subway--c/AD8E090F77375033 [Accessed January 2012].
Calle, S., 1981. The Hotel, Room 47 [image online]. Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=26559&searchid=10437&tabview=image [Accessed January 2012].
Arbus, D., 1970. Jewish Giant at Home with His Parents in the Bronx [image online]. Available at: http://masters-of-photography.com/A/arbus/arbus_jewish_giant_full.html [Accessed January 2012].
Arbus, D., 1966. A Young Brooklyn Family going for a Sunday Outing [image online]. Available at: http://www.studio-international.co.uk/studio-images/arbus/82364761_b.asp [Accessed January 2012].
way to go. In another shot of the New York skyline it is behind a
" The main and essential thing is : the sensory exploration of the world through film. We therefore take as a point of departure the use of the camera as a keno-eye, more perfect than the human eye, for the exploration of the chaos of visual phenomena that fills space."
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The history of this landmark begins in 1929, during the stock market crash, when John D. Rockefeller decided to turn a piece of property in the heart of New York City, formerly known as “the speakeasy belt,” into an entire complex of architectural and cultural phenomenon (“History”). Even though the city flooded with vacant rental spaces, constructing such superior buildings symbolized hope and optimism, drawing the attention of many commercial tenants. In search for a partner in this large feat, Radio Corporation of America stepped up to t...
The camera is presented as a living eye in her work, capable of bending and twisting, contorting reality in its own light. It is at the same time a sensuous device, one that exp...
of “the dizzying hustle of Eighth Avenue” or the Empire State Building (4). We can
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“ The paintings of Filippo Lippi are frequently characterized by two features: an interest in minimizing the divide between world, image and the presence of humor, both bodily and representational. Although these two aspects of Lippi's art might initially seem unconnected, this paper suggests that both can be associated with the use of scientific perspective. Lippi's spatial concerns can be understood as a reaction to the distancing of the iconic image that accompanied the invention of perspective.”
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