2016 Yale MFAs - YAWN

ParkerSmithPhoto · May 18, 2016

The New York Times presents a gallery of 22 images from the 2016 Yale Photography MFA graduates, proclaiming the "students’ commitment to evolving the photographic medium within an already image-saturated culture." How this work helps photography to "evolve" remains unstated.

The exhibition is entitled "Reviver" but would be more accurately titled "More Photographs About Nothing." It's the sort of bland, inoffensive, Wonder Bread photography that gets the New Academy quietly golf-clapping with approval.

Why do I suspect it's all printed at 40x60 and mounted to aluminum?

jimjm · May 18, 2016

Agreed.

I usually feel Art is really in the eye of the beholder, but I don't see any sense of impact, creativity, timing or composition in most of these.

Very underwhelming.

removed account4 · May 18, 2016

it is no worse than a lot of photography that
is looked at as being wonderful.

Arvee · May 18, 2016

Most of those photos don't even qualify as good 'happy snaps!'

pdeeh · May 18, 2016

God, aren't young people just awful ?

CropDusterMan · May 18, 2016

Yikes.

ParkerSmithPhoto · May 18, 2016

Your photographs are like your children, and no one wants to hear that their children are ugly and stupid.

Theo Sulphate · May 18, 2016

I liked #17 - photo of the black guy.

GRHazelton · May 18, 2016

I wonder how many of these pictures were part of an essay. Most of them might make sense in a series or essay, but hardly any can stand on their own.

gone · May 18, 2016

The New York Times.....I have trouble reading it w/o laughing these days. Nothing that once good paper prints surprises me. USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, they're all the same paper now.

Those photos are a seriously bad joke. Yikes indeed! Maybe the Yale people better go back to whatever it is they usually do over there. Row boats or something?

wy2l · May 18, 2016

Confirms my decision not to attend Yale...

Poisson Du Jour · May 18, 2016

So can I ask, seriously, is this the best that Yale can turn out?
I have seen so much better from self-taught Licentiates of the Royal Photographic Society.

Patrick Robert James · May 18, 2016

I think it is important to point out that this is the work of the Masters of Fine Art graduates, not Bachelors. Reflect upon that for a minute.

Theo Sulphate · May 19, 2016

The Seven Levels of Photographers:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/7.htm

Andre Noble · May 19, 2016

I am inspired by that work. Inspired to keep doing my own stuff and not follow someone else's concept of "Art" that is.

jvo · May 19, 2016

it does say it's "the best", not that it's good!

trythis · May 19, 2016

The art education I have.... MFA was later determined to be part of a pyramid scheme. It turns out the only actual career that requires an MFA is to be faculty in a Fine Arts program. So you get the same degree that 50,000 other 20 somethings have and can't get a job. But, the art teacher must maintain enrollment to keep the fantastically pleasant job they have, so they keep producing BFA's and MFA's!
The people that work as Fine Art teachers (I have done this for 15 years) get isolated from the real world and continue to believe they are performing a useful service. They attempt to teach the concepts and become experts at discussing extremely esoteric thought processes behind creating but forget about (fight against) things like beauty and aesthetics. The academic goal becomes academia and nothing that deals with marketability is promoted or even allowed to be discussed.

So, dear freinds and enemies, do not worry about weather or not you made it into some elite art program. Make stuff! show it! repeat! That is all you need!

David Brown · May 19, 2016

Well now, aren't we all self-important and smarter than everyone else ...

cramej · May 19, 2016

W. T. F.

Huss · May 19, 2016

David Brown said:
Well now, aren't we all self-important and smarter than everyone else ...

Well that's easy for you to say, you have a DFW!

(wait, that's where you're from? never mind...)

Huss · May 19, 2016

To put the work from the Yale MFAs into perspective, below is a link to a show from Venice Arts in Venice, LA.
They provide free art educational programs for low income and/or under represented communities.

Dead Link Removed

The ages of these students vary from pre-teens to late teens. Whose work do you prefer? The kids at Venice Arts or the Yale MFAs ?

Theo Sulphate · May 19, 2016

Huss said:
...
Dead Link Removed

The ages of these students vary from pre-teens to late teens. Whose work do you prefer? The kids at Venice Arts or the Yale MFAs ?

For the most part: good composition, close shots, a clear subject. The teens in Venice did very well. With the Yale photos, I don't understand why most of those photos were made.

jmlynek · May 19, 2016

Huss said:
To put the work from the Yale MFAs into perspective, below is a link to a show from Venice Arts in Venice, LA.
They provide free art educational programs for low income and/or under represented communities.

Dead Link Removed

The ages of these students vary from pre-teens to late teens. Whose work do you prefer? The kids at Venice Arts or the Yale MFAs ?

The kids from Venice Arts are expressing themselves. The MFA grads from Yale are expressing what curators and critics want.

Theo Sulphate · May 19, 2016

jmlynek said:
... The MFA grads from Yale are expressing what curators and critics want.

Which is... ?

jerrybro · May 19, 2016

I don't understand art. I do know what I like though, and on that note the Venice kids win. I find more expression, more real segments from someones daily life and more creativity. The story behind that 1st shot begs to be told.

2016 Yale MFAs - YAWN

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