Mr. U
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Captain K'nobs
Background:
Vivian Maier was a mid 1900’s artist who focused mainly on street photography. Born in New York city on February 1st 1926 to a French mother and a Hungarian Father she spent most of her youth in France, and in 1951 she returned to the U.S., and started working as a nanny, which is what she would ultimately spent the rest of her life doing, though in her free time she took up the art of photography. At the time of her death on April 21st of 2009 Maier left behind over 100,000 photo negatives most of which were mostly taken in either New York or Chicago.
Vivian Maier was a mid 1900’s artist who focused mainly on street photography. Born in New York city on February 1st 1926 to a French mother and a Hungarian Father she spent most of her youth in France, and in 1951 she returned to the U.S., and started working as a nanny, which is what she would ultimately spent the rest of her life doing, though in her free time she took up the art of photography. At the time of her death on April 21st of 2009 Maier left behind over 100,000 photo negatives most of which were mostly taken in either New York or Chicago.
Philosophy:
Because Maier Kept her art in such a private manner it is hard to say definitively what she was trying to "say" with her photographs. Something can be said about the pervasive reality that is present in her images; this is not necessarily in reference to any post processing techniques, or camera tricks she used, but the subjects she chose to capture. While there are far amount her pictures who's subjects are the traditionally "beautiful" people there are a equal or greater amount of those who are disfigured, or abnormal in someway; this is the reality that she tried to portray one that is mixed with not always beautiful and perfect.
Because Maier Kept her art in such a private manner it is hard to say definitively what she was trying to "say" with her photographs. Something can be said about the pervasive reality that is present in her images; this is not necessarily in reference to any post processing techniques, or camera tricks she used, but the subjects she chose to capture. While there are far amount her pictures who's subjects are the traditionally "beautiful" people there are a equal or greater amount of those who are disfigured, or abnormal in someway; this is the reality that she tried to portray one that is mixed with not always beautiful and perfect.
influence:
one way in which Maier has influenced my work has less to do with an adaptation to the way I take photos, but more in what I take photos of. Before I was much more reserved in what I took pictures of saving my precious 64 gigs of memory for what I deemed the most worthwhile images. Retrospectively speaking this most defiantly lead to me missing what could have been quite unique and interesting photographs. Looking through the digital collection of Maier's works one can't help but to think if the question isn't what Maier decided to take pictures of, but what she didn't, even things as mundane as a trashcan was a suitable subject in her eyes. Looking at this behavior challenged me to be more liberal with my own work, and look at things that might seem insignificant now in a different light.
one way in which Maier has influenced my work has less to do with an adaptation to the way I take photos, but more in what I take photos of. Before I was much more reserved in what I took pictures of saving my precious 64 gigs of memory for what I deemed the most worthwhile images. Retrospectively speaking this most defiantly lead to me missing what could have been quite unique and interesting photographs. Looking through the digital collection of Maier's works one can't help but to think if the question isn't what Maier decided to take pictures of, but what she didn't, even things as mundane as a trashcan was a suitable subject in her eyes. Looking at this behavior challenged me to be more liberal with my own work, and look at things that might seem insignificant now in a different light.
Style:
Maier's style of photography falls under the umbrella of street or candid photography were the subject is caught off guard.Maier’s main camera of choice was the Rolleiflex Automat; a 3.5 aperture medium format film camera What makes this camera unique however is the fact that while traditional cameras have viewfinder in a position where the user would bring the body of the camera up to their face the Rolleiflex viewfinder is positioned on top of the camera body. Having the user look down to farm their picture instead of blocking their face making the the act of capturing a moment that much less conspicuous, and allows for a more candid photograph. The natural angle in which the photo is taken is lower than with other more traditional cameras as well resulting in some subjects possessing a dominating appearance over the camera, while at the same time things such as children, those who are sitting, and animals are much more in line with the lens allowing for more of the emotion carried in the eyes to be portrayed.
Maier's style of photography falls under the umbrella of street or candid photography were the subject is caught off guard.Maier’s main camera of choice was the Rolleiflex Automat; a 3.5 aperture medium format film camera What makes this camera unique however is the fact that while traditional cameras have viewfinder in a position where the user would bring the body of the camera up to their face the Rolleiflex viewfinder is positioned on top of the camera body. Having the user look down to farm their picture instead of blocking their face making the the act of capturing a moment that much less conspicuous, and allows for a more candid photograph. The natural angle in which the photo is taken is lower than with other more traditional cameras as well resulting in some subjects possessing a dominating appearance over the camera, while at the same time things such as children, those who are sitting, and animals are much more in line with the lens allowing for more of the emotion carried in the eyes to be portrayed.
Compare and contrast:
One difference between Maier's photos and mine are the angle in which they were taken. She had a camera who's viewfinder made up the ceiling of the camera body allowing images to be captured at a lower angle also because the camera did not have to be brought up the face face the frame the picture it was considerably more inconspicuous when actually taking a picture allowing for a more candid photo. Another difference between our photographs is the subject & background composition. While she backgrounds are more in focus giving the photo a more environmentally forced tone, my subjects for the most part are more isolated from their background giving them a more portrait like appearance.
One difference between Maier's photos and mine are the angle in which they were taken. She had a camera who's viewfinder made up the ceiling of the camera body allowing images to be captured at a lower angle also because the camera did not have to be brought up the face face the frame the picture it was considerably more inconspicuous when actually taking a picture allowing for a more candid photo. Another difference between our photographs is the subject & background composition. While she backgrounds are more in focus giving the photo a more environmentally forced tone, my subjects for the most part are more isolated from their background giving them a more portrait like appearance.
Artist Statement:
The story to my images is that there is no story. From about 1967- to present day people's perception of Detroit was of a monochromatic, desolate, violence ridden blight town, and now only after gentrification has paved over "old school Detroit" has it become the new trend haven for small business and self expression. The people both old and new are just going about their lives, nothing extraordinary, in a city that has really always belonged to them it just that outsiders have just started to notice to.
The story to my images is that there is no story. From about 1967- to present day people's perception of Detroit was of a monochromatic, desolate, violence ridden blight town, and now only after gentrification has paved over "old school Detroit" has it become the new trend haven for small business and self expression. The people both old and new are just going about their lives, nothing extraordinary, in a city that has really always belonged to them it just that outsiders have just started to notice to.
Links
- New Yorker Article: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/vivian-maier-and-the-problem-of-difficult-women
- Vivian Maier Website: http://www.vivianmaier.com/about-vivian-maier/
- New York Times Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/31/books/review-vivian-maier-biography-pamela-bannos.html
- The Guardian article: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/jul/19/our-nanny-vivian-maier-photographer