Chris Jordan

Pain Killers, 2007     60x63"

Depicts 213,000 Vicodin pills, equal to the number of emergency room visits yearly in the US related to misuse or abuse of prescription pain killers. http://www.chrisjordan.com/gallery/rtn/#pain-killers

Skull With Cigarette, 2007     98x72"

Depicts 200,000 packs of cigarettes, equal to the number of Americans who die from cigarette smoking every six months. Based on a painting by Van Gogh. (Same Link as above)

   
            Chris Jordan's photographs are an examination of or our culture as a whole in relation to the roles we play as individuals in regards to consumerism and commodity culture(first point in relation to the textbook). His images present this idea as one large constructed image, created out of thousand of tiny images that are meant to represent this notion of the often times unrealized part we play as one person in the overall picture when it comes down to consumption within our society. All of his photographs in terms of how they were constructed, is done through a compilation of thousands of tiny digital photographs that are arranged in a fashion to re-create ( such as in the second image) bigger pictures when viewed as a whole and from a distance. The way in which the pieces are viewed and constructed are very much akin to his concept, too. When viewing the picture from a distance, you are presented with one complete image whose sum of all parts forms this beautifully rendered photograph .However, when viewed up close, the image is broken down into thousands of tiny individual photos. The first mode of viewing may be a representation of our society as a whole and it's apathetic approach to over-consumption and waste; creating a falsely constructed and possibly ignorant prospect of how we function as a society. The latter view is an up close, in your face depiction of the reality of the situation when it comes down to consumption and societal views on it; providing an overwhelming sense of consumption, coupled with statistics that Jordan provides to further substantiate  his concept. Jordan does view his projects as photographs and not digital collage.
         This would be the second point of debate that the book could provide when examining his art. Does Jordan's work fall more under the category of Digital art or photography? He labels his work as photography which I'm not in disagreement with, but it really does call into question the nature of photography. Clearly these are digitally compiled images that may not use traditional forms of photography to construct a photographic image. But does his work clearly communicate something of the real in comparison to a straight photograph? I believe that there is no question about the labeling of his work as being photographic in nature because it is just as effective in communicating his ideas about consumerism and commodity, if not more effective because of the scale in which he is capable in working with due to the digital basis of his pieces.    
        Another concept from Liz well's book that also ties into the argument aforementioned, is the section about photography in a “ techno-progressive” time line. The passage discusses the nature of the the photograph in parallel to the its cultural and technological advancements and how history has been more concerned with the technological advancements and the differences it has brought in critical discussion about photography ( in concern with film vs digital) and the cultural aspects of the photograph were lost in this focus. Kevin Robins explores the idea about these discussions about photography and the digital revolution of the medium and how it really is nothing new, rather it is an old and recurrent idea, tracing back to the time when photographs were joined with science as a way to rationalize photography. So while many critics have been too heavily focused on the changes digital technologies have brought about to photography, Robins is in disagreement with this focus, stating that digital technology isn't a break in photographic practice, it is rather a new way of practicing these old ideas. He goes on to state that if anything, digital manipulation is in a sense, the most sophisticated way of gathering and asserting ideas about the world not possible before and in a manner that is congruent with the older , positivist ways of conducting photography.

Each one of these places seemed so familiar to me, but all were completely new environments and whose visual components seemed to differ so greatly than the non-tangible emotional  feelings that each of these places create.I like these images because it feels like they can evoke these emotions that cannot be seen.

   

Image one: In terms of formal qualities, I really enjoy the light on the side of his face, it gives the portrait a very dramatic feel.This photograph was really one of the first images that I took for our project, and while I felt it could fit into my project, in the end it just wasn't the strongest of shots.

Image two: While I do enjoy this photo for its aesthetic aspects,this photograph makes me recollect the night and the events that occurred during that time and this is really the reason why I like it. Seven people living in one room, techno, booze, and a grown man wearing a gillie suit  while riding a wooden horse.And no, it wasn't Halloween night.

Image three: The lighting in this shot was what attracted me the most. It really does a great job of adding this very ambiguous feel to the photograph; turning a moment of the ordinary into something more interesting. 

This is actually a photo from a wedding I just shot, not the best photo but I just found the entire experience to be pretty interesting considering it was the first one I had to shoot on my own. Commercial photography is a strange thing, I liked certain aspects of it and others I'm still unsure about.

These two guys came into my work and asked me very politely to take a photograph of them. The guy on the left, after I got done showing them the photo, then snapped his fingers and pointed at his glass and demanding that I refill his drink; momentarily unveiling his true character to me( wish i had a photo of that). People are strange creatures, and these two guys exhibit that notion perfectly. 

This photo took me innumerous amounts of attempts to upload to the my blog, it made me start to question if the photo was real or just something I had imagined( only kidding). The light is something I see every single night before i go to bed and usually the window curtain is open; revealing a plethora of gold colored crucifixes and light worn virgin Marys, hopefully I can get a picture of this soon. 

Inez van Lamsweerde, Thank You Thighmaster, 1993.

 http://www.genderstudies.nl/erosandpathos/index.php?pageid=83

Robert Maplethorpe, Ken Moody and Robert Sherman, 1984

http://www.mapplethorpe.org/portfolios/portraits/?i=4 

Both mapplethope and Lamsweerde are addressing how sexuality and the body are portrayed or perceived through popular culture; creating complex images of the human figure that suggests these ideas as well as questions the authority of popular culture, and it's ability to construct prospects of falsely idealized bodies,  as well an attempt to challenge the representation of the body and sexuality, when in concern with misleading identity construction created by the media, in relation to homosexuality.In lamweerde's images, there is this objectification of the body that occurs, however, this is intentionally done in an attempt to accentuate his message behind the work. The figures are lifelike in size, yet they embody this physical nature that is beyond pure size , that represents more a a doll in term of attributes of the face, body details, and postural positioning. The figure evokes this feeling of the unreal, but does so in such an uncanny way that is intentionally done in order to cause the viewer to have to reexamine the figure more than once. The message lamweerde is positing, is about how popular media sources and culture in general, have created a hyperbolic and false body of representation for what the deem to be an ideal form of the female figure. These images question that; utilizing wantonness visual techniques that push this notion onto the viewer in an attempt to question that  norm or perception as well as directly critiquing it.While in Maplethorpe's images, he is very sensuously showing a side of homosexuality that in concept, is quite similar to that of Lamweerde, but in terms of formal visual elements, strikingly different.Maplethorpe's approach is more about displaying these two male, homosexual figures, in a very soft light;evoking feelings of interconnection and passion through the two men, which directly question the homosexual views of mass culture during that time period.Lamsweerde chooses to take a visual approach that will create the feeling of rejection and possibly disgust,which is intentionally done in order to bring out his concept. These artist both share conceptual ideas about identity and the way in which popular culture perceive them due to the media influence that was prevalent then, as well as today.

While I really do feel that I love photography because it is my favorite artistic medium to use for self expression, I still do enjoy using it for documentation of the milieu of my everyday life ( which this still may be considered another form of self expression). I stumbled upon these guys at a time of night that was too late ( or early) for most people, and in in such a drunken state of existence that I found oddly enjoyable. To me these images really brought back so many found memories shared with a group of friends that I don't see enough, but know that the friendships that I have with these individuals are irreplaceable, as well as perdurable .

Answers

Reason for choosing each image:
I would have to say what initially attracted me to the images created by these artists, is there  stylistic abilities as photographers; often times portraying certain scenes with very cinematic qualities.


Write what similarities you find in the two images, and what differences you can see:
Like stated above, I think they both encapsulate this very cinematic feeling, even though conceptually they differ quite a bit.In Prager's body of images, the photographs have such bold and dramatic colors, that are much different than Spano's pictures, obviously because his are all shot in black and white.Yet, despite these two big differences, both images still incorporate these drastic angles and very dramatic subject matter, as well as lighting. I think despite some big conceptual and aesthetic differences ( color compared to black and white), they both still achieve a very similar feel, even though though they are nearly 7o years apart in terms of when they were shot.

Micheal Spano- New york , 1940. http://www.laurencemillergallery.com/artist_spano.html

 

Despair. 2010-http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2010/newphotography/alex-prager/despair/ 

Alex Prager

Image is nothing- Malerie Marder

The words that are spoken through this image are incredibly immense and beautiful. Marder's image is capable of telling us so much, yet, so little at the same time ( if this makes sense). The sense of ambiguity and her ability to create an image that leaves so much visual information up to the viewer to explore is an aspect to her work that I feel I'm trying to explore, too. I've been completely enamored by this image for far too long now. It really is stunning. http://image-nothing.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/malerie_marder5.jpg

The Ohio Project (6)
1999
Fujiflex print
http://www.tonkonow.com/lee_projects_5.html

capturing the purest form of human emotion is something that is very hard to achieve( whether it be candidly done or not), however, in Nikki Lee's work I feel she has very adequately done so. While this is something that I'm trying to explore ( stylistically, much different) , I feel like her ability to do this is something I need to strive to get to. 

A Rural Boy In School Uniform, Fengxiang, Shaanxi Province From the series The Chinese Gelatin Silver Print 2000- LIu Zhang. 

 

One aspect that I believe I can find some sort of correlation between my work and Liu Zhang's work, is the quality of the unfamiliar( while this may be a bit far fetched because obviously she is from another country), but this element is something that i've been fascinated with in photography, and her work embodies this feeling.

I find the process of photography to be extremely cathartic and in this photograph I see nothing less. The way the figure seems completely unaware of the camera recording his presence and the sense of relaxation and almost ecstasy because of the way the light is falling on one, select part of his body, yet, the photograph still seems to be lost in this sense of disillusion; creating this feeling of ambiguity.

 

While this photo is more of a landscape photograph and usually something that I couldn't be interested in, I still found a visual draw mainly because of the fact that it is a landscape at night ( one we would traditionally see during the day).this is another test shot that I found oddly attractive.  

de

machine and man v.s man and machine

Silencer, 2002. Urethane rubber, nylon. 36x 24 x 18 in. (91.4 x 61 x 45.7 cm). Colection of Dean Valentine and Amy Adelson http://www.whitney.org/www/2006biennial/artists.php?artist=Greely_Hannah
Hannah Greely's piece once again dwells on ways of redefining the normal, resembling all three other artist's concepts to an extent. 

http://www.whitney.org/www/2006biennial/artists.php?artist=Gibbons_Joe
 All three of these artist's work share the common concept of presenting their own realites in ways that defy normality;re-contextualizing an image in a way that completely transforms it. This is an idea that I have always been fascinated with and regularly try to incorporate into my own work .

http://www.whitney.org/www/2006biennial/artists.php?artist=Strassheim_Angela
Untitled (Father and Son), from the Left Behind series, 2004. Digital chromogenic color print, 40 x 30 in. (101.6 x 76.2 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Marvelli Gallery, New York

 Strassheim's photograph is an image I believe that I feel a level of interconnection with, yet , at the same time there is this bifurcation, visually that occurs. This visual division allows for me to feel connected with the image, like stated before, but also almost adds this trite side of information, too. All of this makes for an image that visually attracts me, but also creates this slight bit of resentment because of the vapidity that is conveyed in certain parts of her image. This in the end creates a wonderfully balanced photograph that is very inspiring.

This photograph really interested me because of its ability to remove the subject from a sense of time and place. It almost reminds me of the moment where you're in between being awake and asleep.

I really don't like this image, it is way too dark and more of a test shot anyway. But I really didn't have time to sift through all my images that I shot the last few days, so I figured I would post this one before I delete it. The wonderful and ephemeral life of a digital photograph.

 

While this photo really has nothing to do with my concept for our project two, I just found myself drawn to the idea of having a cattle run located right in the city. I'm really not too sure why, possibly how it can relate to it in the sense that it may represent the way we have outlined our own lives;constantly being led through a series of structures and pathways that our supposed to define who we are. 

I've actually never seen VALIE EXPORT'S work before, but after looking at just a few selected works I've found it to be quite beautiful. Once again, I feel attracted to her work not only because the visuals are beautiful, but because it seems to be a lot about self exploration of the human body to that of her environments. The way she is capable of using the inherent properties of the medium of photography is very interesting; knowing how to fully take advantage of photography's ability to completely remove something from context and as a result, creating images that escape the banality of the everyday image.This concept is something i find myself constantly interested in when taking photos, and even a concept that I used with my last project. http://www.valieexport.at/en/symposien-vortraege/

Vito Acconci has always been one of my favorite video artists and it is nice to see some of his other work outside that of video. One thing that I've always admired( not so much in this piece), is his ability to put himself in vulnerable situations in order to convey his desired message to the viewer, often times it is a bit obscure, but beautiful. This piece, while not as provocative as some of his other work, is still an interesting look at self exploration through his artistic practices. This idea of self exploration is something I'm trying to achieve in a lot of my stuff, often times you look strange doing so. http://aleph-arts.org/art/lsa/lsa39/eng/1969.htm

This image really seemed to be an accurate reflection of the subject on the environment in which he lives in; about how he is caught up in situations that seem to be out of his control and that idea I see being represented through this picture.

There are quite a few reasons why I think this image interests me, but for the sake of time i'll narrow it down to one overall quality. This quality has to be the light and the way that it is very misleading in terms of the portrayal of the subject , as well as the way it really distorts the sense of time ( I took it at about two in the morning ).

The main thing that really attracted me to this image is how completely oblivious  the subject is to the camera; adding a sense of ambiguity to the situation.

I had never seen any of Gutman's work before, and to be quite honest I'm not sure if I liked a lot of his work that I viewed on the website. Although, even after looking through a majority of the photographs from all the artists listed on the site, I still found myself coming back to this one image. I think the main thing that really draws me to this image is the sense of displacement that occurs with the main two figures in the foreground to that of the structures and environmental details seen in the background. There is such a contrast between the two, that it causes a complete reconstruction of the feeling of the environment. If you were to remove the two figures, all you're left with is an image we have seen a hundred times before. http://masters-of-photography.com/G/gutmann/gutmann_visitors.html

I'm pretty disappointed that this site didn't contain any of Lee Friedlander's self portraits, which is the main reason why I've always had an interest in his art. This photograph is a portrait of fellow photographer, Garry Winogand. I guess what initially attracted me to this photo is the way that Friedlander has chosen to take the portrait. The very candidness to the shot, as well as a sense of purity that comes from Winogand because he seems to be looking past the camera, possibly observing the actions of Friedlander.   http://masters-of-photography.com/F/friedlander/friedlander_portraits_garry_winogrand_new_york_city_1957.html 

I've always been fascinated by the work of, Meatyard.His ability to portray a sense of connection  between subjects in his photographs is amazing and at a level that I don't feel a lot of other photographers reach.At first glance it may seem quite the contrary; both subjects, presumably mother and son, seem very disconnected  because of the positions he chose to photograph them in. However, I feel that that disconnection instead shows a level of dynamics in a relationship that is much purer and distinct than most other photographer's approach .  ---Meatyard--http://masters-of-photography.com/M/meatyard/meatyard_crypt.html

I guess i enjoy this image more for the conversation that took place before I took it. The image really seemed to reflect on my friend and his views on the constantly changing dynamics of his neighborhood.

This location seemed pretty peculiar to me when I first drove up to it, mainly because of the general abandonment that it seemed to embody. However, after I spent a few minutes there the signs that hang on the wall in the background became my main focus. They all mark the position of employees and their designated parking spot. There is no mention of position or sense of personal belonging. This is an idea that I feel is all too common in work environments today; the feeling of objectification in a  corporate infrastructure. 

I guess what really caught my attention in this photograph was how the American flag is shown. It is recognizable, but at the same time how it is folded over itself and hit by the light on the porch doesn't give it a sense of power and icon that i feel I am usually accustomed to. The flag seems to droop in front of its audience and distort its image as it hangs in a futile state of suspension.

I was really just immediately attracted to the aesthetic qualities of this multimedia piece. The colors, textures, and kitsch appearance really stood out in his series. 

    This image really spoke to me in terms of how we interact and proceed within our every day environments; a milieu that often seems to be overlooked and unappreciated at times. http://www.saulgallery.com/chronicle/liao_bqmb.html

If you guys haven't seen Ryan Trecartin's work before, do yourself a favor and check out his videos. This image really doesn't tell you too much about the style of video art that he creates. His work  really is something that i've never seen before; a combination of nonsensical imagery and absolute bizarreness.The style in which he critiques popular culture is pretty amazing. Down below is a link to the gallery and also a link to a video on youtube that I watched a couple months back.http://www.moca.org/museum/imagerotator.php?exid=439&id=1163-gallery                                    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR4sHDR-1XE_Video

The aftermath of having too much fun.This image not only represents that idea, but also the prospect of two people, who are relatively new friends, momentarily and unknowingly sharing a very intimate body of overlapping planes.

large bodies of black water always seem to flood even what seem to be the most secure structures that compose our lives. Often times the only way to completely embrace the uncertainty of these instances is to crawl out directly above the water on the withered and splintered planks that keep us dry.

self portrait- I was tired of being in that place, taking photographs.  As I laid awkwardly on that jail-bait table,I reflected on what exactly that building meant to my family's history and the intrinsic qualities, that at the moment, seemed too diaphanous for me to see.

To put it simply, ambiguity is huge to what attracts me visually. This photo does exactly that. http://www.gagosian.com/exhibitions/2010-09-23_gregory-crewdson/

After watching that  dvd in class about their work, I really gained a new level of respect for  what they did for so many years. Their photography is not only technically astounding, but also conceptually sound.This photograph resonates with me mainly because of the familiarity that the image has to me, yet at the same time that feeling allows for a deeper analysis to occur and adds another layer of visual information that isn't blatantly obvious. http://www.diacenter.org/exhibitions/introduction/76

I was kinda shocked to see that this was an image created by Ed Templeton. Not only is he a great artist, but he was also one of the biggest pioneers for skateboarding in the early 90s. The image in general is very beautiful, however I think the biggest interest for me was seeing who created it and the medium in which he chose( he usually does more mixed media stuff).http://www.icp.org/museum/exhibitions/perspectives-2010