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Notes on Understanding Photographs Workshop

This blog entry is based on my workshop Understanding Photographs most recently delivered in Edmonton for the Visual Arts Alberta Association on Nov. 28, 2009. It contains resource material for those attending the workshop: but those of you who were not there may also find this information interesting.

The workshop dealt with the history of photography from the camera obscura to digital images, as well as the aesthetics and language of photography.

Quotations Used in the Workshop

'From today painting is dead.' French painter Paul Delaroche upon seeing a daguerrotype in 1839.

'An illustration is aiming the camera at the direction of some content, while the photograph is making some sense of it.' Stephen Shore. Shore also said that in painting one is taking basic building blocks and making something more complex. It's a synthetic process. 'A photograph does the opposite: it takes the world and puts an order in it, simplifies it. It is an analytic process.'

'The photograph is able to synthesize what is before the camera in a way that we, ourselves, cannot... The beauty of this synthesis would be the fact that it is a reintroduction to reality. No one view better than another but fresh, something we could never have dreamed up.' Frederick Sommer.

'The photograph can confront us with both the universal and the particular at the same instant in time. The strange tension that results between these two polarities is the force that can make the photograph so moving or poignant or disturbing.' James Borcoman, Curator Emeritus of Photography, National Gallery of Canada, 1974.

'The photograph is a secret about a secret; the more it tells you, the less you know.' Diane Arbus.

'The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.' Dorothea Lange.

James Borcoman in his development of a conceptual structure for an aesthetic of photography used the following terms:

'extraordinary amount of minute detail

richness of texture

more than the naked eye can see

every accident of light and shade

clarity of definition

exactitude

perfect delineation

impartiality

subtlety of tonal gradation

exquisite delicacy

the tangible presence of reality

truth.'

Online Resources Relating to the Workshop

The History of Photography Timeline (Phillip Greenspun, photo.net)

The Origins and History of Photography (Ted's Photographics)

The First Photograph (Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin)

Daguerre (1787-1851) and the Invention of Photography: Heilbrun Timeline of Art History

The Daguerreian Society: We didn't discuss this but you may find it interesting. 'Dedicated to the history, science, and art of the daguerreotype.'

The Calotype Process: University of Glasgow

David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson: University of Glasgow

Henry Peach Robinson and his photograph 'Fading Away'

Alfred Stieglitz: PBS

The Girl in the Picture and Photographer Nick Ut

Stephen Shore Museum of Contemporary Photography

Jerry Uelsmann: The Andrew Smith Gallery. Uelsmann is now retired from his teaching position but continues to work. He prefers the alchemy of the darkroom to digital processes and uses 3-10 enlargers to make a print. He produces approximately 100 prints per year.

Podcasts and E-Books

There are a number of podcasts available on photography. I enjoy Jeff Curto's History of Photography and Camera Position ('A podcast about the creative side of photography.') as well as Lenswork by Brooks Jensen. The links I have provided are for the websites connected to the podcasts. One can also go to iTunes and access the podcasts there.

London: Photographs by Jerome Martin This book contains photographs, text and audio.

Golden Prairie: Jerome Martin. This book contains photographs, text and audio.

Cappuccino U: A new way of learning and working. This is not specifically about photography but rather about informal learning in all fields.

Ten of My Favourite Photo Blogs and Sources of Online Resource Material

AmericaSuburbX: A blog featuring in-depth interviews of and essays on American photographers.

Marketing Photos with Mary Virginia Swanson: A great blog to help one keep in touch with major presentations and events in the USA.

Photograph: The online home of Photograph magazine, the best guide to photo exhibitions and galleries throughout the USA and elsewhere.

Tokyo Camera Style: This is a series of photographs of classic and other cameras used by photographers in Tokyo. You'll enjoy the site if you're interested in vintage film cameras.

Visual Arts Alberta This blog discusses exhibitions and opportunities in the visual arts in Alberta and abroad. It's well designed, current and comprehensive. It's a must for visual artists and anyone else interested in the visual arts.

LensCulture Weblog 'Photography and shared territories.' An excellent blog which links to the LensCulture magazine.

John Paul Caponigro 'Illuminating Creativity' Caponigro, son of traditional photographer Paul Caponigro, is a digital photography and Photoshop guru.

Verve Photo A new breed of documentary photographers.

Photo-Eye  A fine gallery, bookstore, magazine etc. located in Santa Fe (a great place for browsing and buying on your next trip to New Mexico).

Ampersand A gallery, bookstore and retail archive in Portland. 'Committed to cultural preservation, we buy and sell vintage photography, paper ephemera, historic documents and collectible books.'

Workshops 2010

Workshops planned for 2010 include 'Our Documentary Heritage', 'Great Photographers' and 'Creating Your Photographic Legacy.' Contact Visual Arts Alberta at 780.421.1731, info@visualartsalberta.com , or Jerome Martin (jmartin@spottedcowpress.ca).

Understanding Photographs Workshop, Nov. 28, 2009

I will be presenting a workshop entitled Understanding Photographs for the Visual Arts Alberta Association (VAAA), November 28, 2009, at the Visual Arts Alberta Gallery in Edmonton. It's the first of a series of workshops on photography which I'm preparing; the other three will be presented in 2010.

This workshop will focus on the aesthetics of photography as well as the history of the medium. I'm enjoying creating the material and look forward to presenting it.

Join me if you can.

Workshops

The Colours of Saskatchewan VIII

I started this series last year so that I could post various digital photographs from my visits to Saskatchewan, photographs that include colours and images that are typical of my favourite Province.

We returned from North Battleford today after attending last night's launch of Inspired by the Land. It was a fine day for driving and photographing: late fall colours, thousands of geese flying out to feed in stubble fields, and a temperature of 10C.

Saskatchewan

The Colours of Saskatchewan VII

We drove from Edmonton to North Battleford this afternoon. It's late fall on the prairies. There's still a bit of harvesting to do as a result of snow and rain during the past two weeks.

Fall colours on the prairies are not as brilliant and showy as they are in eastern Canada or New England, but they are just as appealing.

Saskatchewan

Video Cassettes and Encyclopedias Still Have a Role in This Digital Age

Humour

BookCamp Vancouver II

Today's BookCamp Vancouver 2009 Unconference brought 250 keen, mostly young, people together to talk about books, new approaches to publishing, and their own work. Attendees included publishers, writers and early to mid-career people working in publishing, software design and new media production.

The organizers were bold and imaginative in their choices of topics and speakers. Most of the sessions succeeded in terms of generating discussion and stimulating thought. Facilitators, organizers and audiences share responsibility for unconference sessions that succeed or fail: but unlike many regular conferences the communication that begins at unique gatherings like this can have long term effects.

The best evidence that the unconference succeeded may be found in the abundant messages on Twitter (see #bcvan09). Messages were being sent during the sessions, during breaks and after the event. I expect that they will continue to be written for days or weeks to come.

Publishing needs new people, new ideas and new approaches. Innovative events like BookCamp Vancouver and the excited people, young and old, who participated today are good evidence that this important activity is in good hands.

BookCamp Vancouver

We are in Victoria, BC, visiting with friends, doing some work, trying new restaurants, and enjoying being away from home. It's been a very relaxing trip.

Tomorrow I'll attend BookCamp Vancouver , an unconference which will focus on exploring new ideas in books, publishing and the future of reading.Those of us involved in book publishing are experiencing a combination of panic and excitement as we look at the future. This gathering will look at open source publishing, the future of the book, e-books, new concepts of what books are and could be, and using social media and the internet in general. It will also give us a chance to talk with publishing people, young and old, from across Canada.

The front page of the BookCamp site lists the presentations for tomorrow. Many of the 200 people who are attending will be sharing their experiences on Twitter (#bcvan09) and Facebook. I expect that the conversations will continue long after we leave the unconference.

I'll be writing about BookCamp on this blog and on twitter (@pjmartin) tomorrow.

Conferences

The True Value of Conferences

I returned yesterday from a conference on book publishing, sponsored by the Book Publishers Association of Alberta. I've attended and organized more conferences than I can remember: some of them have been of dubious value while others have changed my life.

Our conference was held at the Banff Centre, a renaissance learning and conference centre located in Banff National Park in the southwestern corner of Alberta. The motto of the Banff Centre is Inspiring Creativity; the location, facilities and the staff fulfill that motto every time I attend a function there.

We enjoyed and learned from most of the presentations, but, for most of us, the best parts of the conference were the conversations, the sharing of ideas and knowledge during coffee breaks and at meals. We spent time talking about publishing, visual arts, business, our families, and new opportunities.

Yesterday after the conference ended four of us sat in the Banff Centre dining room after lunch, knowing that we had hours to drive that afternoon but not wanting to leave. As you can see from my iPhone photograph this is a dining room and an environment which encourages lingering and chatting.

After a long and enjoyable conversation we left, reluctantly, only to resume our chat in the parking lot. Obviously the conference was a success and this long conversation was one of the best parts of it.

Conferences bring us together to learn from each other and to share our hopes and ideas. We cannot always gather in places like the Banff Centre but we now have options of meeting online. Most of us prefer the best of the person-to-person functions but web conferences allow us to meet and learn from people in many countries, people we would not meet otherwise.

If' you are organizing a conference find the best speakers available and ask them to give presentations of which Garr Reynolds, author of Presentation Zen, and the organizers of the TED conferences would approve. Send them a copy of Presentation Zen. Talk with them several times before the conference to ensure that they understand what you want them to do and that they will do it.

Find a location which is both remote and appealing. Pay attention to the quality of food and lodging. Then ensure that the program allows a lot of time for coffee breaks, lunches, dinners and other free time. Invite the best people, provide the best facilities and watch the magic happen.

I'll be attending The BookCamp Vancouver 2009 Unconference on October 16. Perhaps I'll see you there. If not I and many others will be writing blogs and tweets that day and later. Join us in person or online.

Conferences, Presentations

London: Photographs by Jerome Martin

Spotted Cow Press has recently published London: Photographs by Jerome Martin, an enhanced e-book which includes text and audio in addition to photographs. It is available on the Spotted Cow Press website as a free download.

I love paper photography books and will continue to publish on paper and online. However, publishing books electronically allows us to create more of them and to include audio and video as well as the option to search for key words. They are also inexpensive to produce.

This book, published with a Creative Commons license, is a gift; feel free to pass it along to friends.

Lewis Hyde said in the introduction to his book The Gift: Imagination and the Erotic Life of Property that '...works of art exist simultaneously in two " economies." a market economy and a gift economy. Only one of these is essential, however: a work of art can survive without the market, but where there is no gift there is no art.'

Thanks to my colleague Lu Ziola who designed this book with style and vision. She also designed Golden Prairie, the book about the town in which I lived as a young person.

I hope that you enjoy visiting London with me. I would be delighted if you were to respond to the book with questions or comments.

Spotted Cow Press, Writing

Podcasts on Publishing

Podcasts on Publishing, a series of ten podcasts presented by The Book Publishers Association of Alberta (BPAA), is now available directly from this site or via iTunes.

The series contains a wide range of excellent information and knowledge that writers, publishers and readers will find interesting and valuable. I had the pleasure of interviewing some of my BPAA colleagues and other experts in the field, including Andrew Savikas, Todd Anderson and Sean Howard, and producing the podcasts.

Podcasts like these provide opportunities for new publishers and new writers to learn about the industry and for veteran writers and publishers to learn from their colleagues.

Thanks to those who participated in this series and thanks to The Canada Council for the Arts (Conseil des Arts du Canada) and the Alberta Foundation for the Arts who made the series possible by providing funding to the BPAA.

Podcasts