Criticizing Photographs: an Introduction to Understanding Images
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PPStijj^ • as ••"• <•'. " ..•.••. '••••.:: V; . Criticizing Photographs /\n iiiLiuu-ULLion LU unutisianQing linages Third Edition Terry Barrett Criticizing Photographs An Introduction to Understanding Images THIRD EDITION Terry Barrett The Ohio State University Boston Burr Ridge, IL Dubuque, IA Madison, Wl New York San Francisco St. Louis Bangkok Bogota Caracas Kuala Lumpur Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan Montreal New Delhi Santiago Seoul Singapore Sydney Taipei Toronto McGraw-Hill Higher Education eg A Division of The McGraw-Hill Companies Criticizing Photographs: An Introduction to Understanding Images Published by McGraw-Hill, an imprint of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, 10020. Copyright © 2000, 1996, 1990 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written consent of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., including, but not limited to, in any network or other electronic storage or transmission, or broadcast for distance learning. Some ancillaries, including electronic and print components, may not be available to customers outside the United States. This book is printed on acid-free paper. 9 10 11 12 DOC/DOC 9 8 7 6 5 ISBN 0-7674-1186-2 Sponsoring editor, Janet M. Beatty; production editor, Melissa Williams Kreischer: manuscript editor, Joan Pendleton; design manager, Jean Mailander; text and cover designer, Amy Evans McClure; cover art, © William Wegman, Ocean View, 1997, 20" X 24" Polaroid; manu facturing manager, Randy Hurst. The text was set in 10/13 Berkeley Oldstyle Medium by TBH Typecast, Inc. and printed on acid-free 50£ Somerset Matte by R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Barrett. Terry Michael Criticizing photographs: an introduction to understanding images / Terry Barrett.—3rd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7674-1186-2 1. Photography, Artistic. 2. Photographic criticism. I. Title. TR642.B365 1999 770'.1— dc21 99-26895 CIP wAv\v.mhhcA:om Contents Preface XI Chapter 1 • About Art Criticism J Defining Criticism 2 Sources of Criticism 4 Kinds of Criticism 5 The Backgrounds of Critics 7 Stances Toward Criticism 8 Relations Between Critics and Artists 20 Criticizing Criticism J1 The Value of Criticism 13 Chapter 2 • Describing Photographs 15 Defining Description 15 Descriptions of Avedon's "In the American West" 16 Describing Subject Matter 20 Describing Form 26 Describing Medium 28 Describing Style 31 Comparing and Contrasting 31 Internal and External Sources of Information 32 Description and Interpretation 34 Description and Evaluation 34 The Importance of Description to Readers 35 Prxc'ii|'inr Photographs 112 ( hii|>l<'i i • Interpreting I'hotogi.ipliN Id i xplanatoi v /'IK>I<H;»<I/>IIS / /2 i >< lining Interpretation IJ c: =3 im, rprttlvt Photographs 112 I 111' ( )l)jccls ol Inli'ipii°l:ll 101 is I'l I /In. ally Evaluative Photographs 112 Interpretive Claims anil Arguments I / \. ,iln in ally Evaluative Photographs 1 13 Interpretive Perspectives 42 i In nn in al Photographs 114 I luce Interpretations oj Lileanor -12 I In Interpretive Process: A Summary 1 14 Other Interpretive Strategies 45 ('ombinations of Interpretive Approaches 48 ( h.ipli'i (< • I v.iln.iling Photographs 116 Right" Interpretations 48 I s,uii|ili •. nl Judgments /16 Interpretations and the Artist's Intent 50 111> 11-111< ills and Reasons /1 7 Interpretations and Feelings 51 ImljMiii ni\ and ( riteria /19 Interpretation, Meaning, and Personal Significance 52 I llffi K in ( riteria 120 I he Community of Interpreters 52 Realism 120 I xprcsslonism 122 Chapter 4 • Types cf Photographs 53 I iMnudism 123 C Categories of Photographs 54 lir.iiinncntalism 124 New Categories 56 i '//HI ( liferici 126 Descriptive Photographs 58 i Kooilng Among Criteria 126 Explanatory Photographs 61 I >ilii i Ing |udgments 127 Interpretive Photographs 70 liulginciils Are Arguments 128 Ethically Evaluative Photographs 76 Reuppiaisals 128 Aesthetically Evaluative Photographs 82 judgments and Preferences 128 Theoretical Photographs 91 Inuiiiinnalism and Judgments 129 I in i Ibjei ts of Judgments 130 Chapter 5 • Photographs and Contexts 96 ludgmentsol Robert Mapplethorpe's Photographs 130 Internal Context 96 Hilton Kramer's and Grace Gluech's Views Original Context 97 oj Mapplethorpe's Work 131 I Menial Context 99 (i/ln'i Critics' Views oj Mapplethorpe's Work 134 External Contexts and Connotations 101 i inn lusion 138 Interpreting Barbara Krugers Untitled ("Surveillance"), with Contextual Information 103 Ch.ipt.'i /• Theory: Is It Art? 140 "Surveillance" and Internal Context 105 Aesthetic Theory 143 "Surveillance" and Original Context 105 I In in les and Critics 144 "Surveillance" and External Context 10') I heories and Photographers 145 Barbara Kruger's Untitled ("Surveillance"), I liriiiies and Historians 146 and the Categories / / I I heoiics ,UHI ( maims Ho A Survey ol rheoretlcal Positions lis Realism and Conventionalism I \9 Modernism and Postmodci nisiii I V> Marxist Theory and Criticism 162 Femi?tis( Theory and Criticism 163 Preface ( (inclusion 166 Chapter 8 • Writing and Talking About Photographs 168 Writing About Photographs 168 Observing the Work and Taking Notes 168 An Interpretive Paper 169 An Evaluative Paper 111 i \t". ni ii Ai IIINC, ART CRITICISM have convinced me that one of the best The Process oj Writing 175 Y w .iv. in appreciate an image is to observe, think, and talk about it. This is what an i i II H I.in emails, and it's what this book is about. My goal is to help both begin Talking About Photographs 177 ning anil advanced students of photography use the activities of criticism in order Discussions of Art in the Presence of the Artist 178 to liciiri ipprei late and understand photographs. Studio Critiques 1 79 I In book Is Organized according to the major activities of criticism which Morris Welti Identified In his study oi Hamlet criticism, namely, describing, interpreting, Notes J 83 evaluating, and theorizing. His breakdown is sufficiently broad so as not to exclude any Considerations about criticism, and sufficiently narrow to provide a directed Bibliography 195 and i leal consideration of the complex activities of criticizing photographs. The goal "I thcie activities is always increased appreciation and understanding, or whal Index 205 Harry BfOUdy, the father of aesthetic education, calls "enlightened cherishing." I like hll compound concept because it acknowledges feeling as well as thought, WIIIHHII i resting a dichotomy. I he Inlawing chapters consider describing photographs, interpreting and evalu ating them ,111(1 theorizing about photography, in that order. I've placed major emphasis on the interpretation of photographs because I believe that discussion of meaning Is more important than pronouncements of judgment and that interpreta tion r, tin iiin.t important and rewarding aspect of criticism. Interpretive discussion increases understanding and thus deepens appreciation, whether that appreciation is ultimately negative or positive. A judgment rendered without an understanding is irresponsive and irresponsible. Unfortunately, criticism is too frequently confused with negative value judgments because of its everyday connotations. The term crit- ii ism in iln language of aesthetics encompasses much more. I HI tin present, at the nstc oi oversimplification, tne four activities of criti cism deSt iil'ing, interpreting, evaluating, and theorizing—can be thought of as Seeking answers to four basic questions: What is here? What is it about? How good «C3 iiiii> hi II my i hair, foi their support In the writing ol this book. I hanks especially li It? K ii .HI•' l liis hook explore! thi i ritli lim ol photographs by means ol th( n h' '.usan Mn h.ii'l Barrett, my loving wile, for her enthusiastic, joyous, and loving major questions, nmliiii ill mi- ami my work. i In hook also provides .1 variety ol iniwi ri to ihew c|uestlons by critics, ln< lud i il || " hi i in ih.mk the reviewers ol the third edition manuscript for their Inci mg student critics in Chapter H, who sometimes agree and sometimes disagrei slvi comment!!, especially Ron Carraher, University of Washington; Victoria Hirt, about the same photographs. I've cited dozens ol < rltli i and many more photogn I HIM i lit) "I ',niiill I loud.i; Ilea Nellies, University of Illinois; Han Powell, I Inivei pin-is in my selections I've tried to present a diversity ol 11iin.il voices to responsl sit) "I I 'ii ism ,\ih lenne Salinger, University of New Mexico; Christopher Tsouras, hi)' provide readers a range of critical stances and approaches I mm which to choose < ommunlt) < ollcge ol Southern Nevada; John Upton, Orange Coast College; and I i hose these particular critics and photographers as being especially appropriate to |on M "uni,ishim, Miami University the points being discussed; no hierarchy of critics or photographers is implied by in)' choices. NEW TO THIS EDITION Readers familiar with prior editions of this book will notice a change in the pho tographs: there are more of them, and many are different from those in previous edi lions, to better exemplify what is being written about. In my experience with using this book in classes, students who are new to pho tography are sometimes overwhelmed with many names of photographers whose work they do not know. This is a problem that this book, itself, cannot rectify. It is my hope that the descriptions or discussions of the photographers and their works will motivate readers to find and explore these fully on their own. Such exploration is becoming increasingly easier because of the World Wide Web, which carries the home pages of individual photographers, for example, Carol Flax's (cflax@u. arizona.edu); online galleries of photographs, (or example, @art gallery (hup:// gertrude.art.uiuc.edu/@art/gallery.html); electronic journals of photography and o criticism, such as James Hugunin's U-Turn (http://www.uturn.org); museums of photography, for example, the Center for Creative Photography (http://www.ccp.