The Photograph as Contemporary Art

   This week in our seminar we were to look at the book by Charlotte Cotton 'The Photograph as a Contemporary Art'. Specifically we were to focus on Chapter 2 which 'considers the use of storytelling in contemporary art photography'.

   The narratives investigated in this chapter are that of contemporary fables, which are dramatised with a sinister edge, such as the work of Deborah Mess-Pelly who uses voyeuristic camera angles and a mixture of story lines, and Anna Gaskell both who works have intense story telling qualities.

Deborah Mesa-Pelly 'Legs' 1999

Anna Gaskell 'Untitled #59' 

   Cotton also focuses on the works that have a sense of uncertainty, anxiety and paranoia, with examples from Jeff Wall and Philip-Lorca diCorcia.

Jeff Wall 'Insomnia' 1994

Even in the title of Wall's image 'Insomnia' there is an aspect of narrative, as it tells the viewer that the subject within the piece is perhaps suffering from insomnia, hence why he is lying under the kitchen table not knowing what to do with him self, with kitchen scene guiding us in the understanding of the subjects movements of this restless man in the lead up to the final capture of the image. The kitchen in correlation with the man suggests that this is his life style in his restless insomniac state, due to the lack of homeliness in his surroundings.

Philip-Lorca diCorcia 'Eddie Anderson; 21 years old; Houston, TX; $20' 1990-92

Even in 'Eddie Anderson; 21 years old; Houston, TX; $20' (from the series Hollywood) there is a sense of narrative within the title but not in the same way as Wall's image does. As with this piece by diCorcia, he gives us the model's name and age plus where the man in question is from, which starts to give us an indication in to who the person is not just as a model but as a person. The title also indicates the sum of $20 which is how much diCorcia paid the young man to model in this image for him, which also suggests that the young man is probably having financial issues due to the measly amount paid to have his photograph taken (especially seeing as he is in Hollywood) and the fact that he is topless gives us the impression that there is an underlying message of the sex industry as he has been paid for the photographic use of his body.
   There are many different approaches to the works which have been shown in this particular chapter of Cotton's book, some have been based on stories, as I have previously mentioned along with reference to paintings such like the work of Sam Taylor-Wood with 'Soliquy' which was based on 'The death of Chatterton' by Victorian painter Henry Wallis. along with Tom Hunter's series 'Thoughts of Life and Death' which shows the contemporary reworkings of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.
   Overall this an excellent chapter to read especially if you want to gain a better understanding of the terms 'narrative' and 'tableau', and is both challenging and overall it engages you with a refreshing and revelatory dicussion in to the photographic artist expression.