HCB Appreciation

[Willy T]

When a student would present me with a photograph I would often look at it upside down. I don't this works for every image, but it is a good guide to see if some form of aesthetic composition is at play.

An effective evaluative tool. Been doing this forever on my own stuff after learning it in art class.

 

[tcolgate]

When a student would present me with a photograph I would often look at it upside down. I don't this works for every image, but it is a good guide to see if some form of aesthetic composition is at play.

It's a sort of interesting thing that in painting/drawing one trick used is to look at a work in progress in a mirror. It's for a sort of related but maybe different reason, basically to see if you've not got something catastrophically wrong. It's surprisingly easy for your brain to just decide something you've started at for hours looks right. Looking in a mirror causes a swift and thorough re-evaluation.

 

[nikos79]

Regarding the topic of color:
Up to 1970's he was very adamant (against) color. Later towards the end of his life when asked about his initial views on photography if he reconsidered anything he said "None, apart from a few things I said about color".
In one of his last interviews he summarises what he really thinks of color:
"In photography colour remains chemical, not transcendental as it is in painting".
Too bad he wasn't here to take part in our long heated discussion about colour vs black and white...

 

[cliveh]

Very cool. Apart from the the technical stuff I find it very difficult to teach photography

nikos79, I taught some technical stuff, but mainly I would say I was a facilitator, nudging them to experiment and look at the work of others. Also, to understand the value of doing something agaain and again and again. For a few years I also worked as a moderator in assessing A-level artwork for an Examining Board around the country, assessing work in photography, graphics and fine art. The fine art lecturer in my own college once brought some work to show me, where one of her own students had made many repeated drawings of her own hand of about 15 or 20 in total. The Fine Art lecturer, asked me if I thought this was a grade A, as she wasn't sure. I said definately. Do you teach nikos79?

 

[nikos79]

nikos79, I taught some technical stuff, but mainly I would say I was a facilitator, nudging them to experiment and look at the work of others. Also, to understand the value of doing something agaain and again and again. For a few years I also worked as a moderator in assessing A-level artwork for an Examining Board around the country, assessing work in photography, graphics and fine art. The fine art lecturer in my own college once brought some work to show me, where one of her own students had made many repeated drawings of her own hand of about 15 or 20 in total. The Fine Art lecturer, asked me if I thought this was a grade A, as she wasn't sure. I said definately. Do you teach nikos79?

Looks like you have lots of experience! And what you did to ask them to look at the work of others was the best thing to do for them!
No, I don't teach although in the past I have really wanted to become a science teacher. Well, it never happened.
However, I do appreciate teaching a lot, as I had close contact with my own photography teacher and heard a lot of his own questions and thoughts about the teaching methods especially in a field like art

 

[Don_ih]

"They are scatological and coprophagous. They photograph only their anxieties and their neuroses", referencing the works of Richard Avedon, Jean Sudre, David Hamilton, Diane Arbus, Duane Michals, and the late work of Bruce Davidson

"In photography colour remains chemical, not transcendental as it is in painting".

It's a shame such quotes exist, since they mostly show a lack of understanding on Cartier-Bresson's part. "Kids these days and their silly ideas" is what it reads as.

 

[nikos79]

It's a shame such quotes exist, since they mostly show a lack of understanding on Cartier-Bresson's part. "Kids these days and their silly ideas" is what it reads as.

I quoted him because it’s an uncomfortable but coherent position he expressed in an interview.
I’m not asking anyone to agree with it.

 

[Don_ih]

I’m not asking anyone to agree with it.

And I was talking about him, not you.

 

[nikos79]

And I was talking about him, not you.

Got it, thanks for clarifying.
I was talking about Cartier-Bresson’s position. I partly agree with it, especially about color working very differently in photography than in painting, even though I really don’t like the wording.