A few weeks ago we went to Chelsea in Manhattan to view galleries of famous photographers. I found this trip to be intriguing especially the pictures some of these photographers took. One of the galleries i found quite interesting was the first place The Pace Gallery. Photographer Irving Penn had some weird, strange, creepy, elegant and dark-looking photos.
They indeed were strange but very fascinating. What’s fascinating is the mysteriousness, texture and composition of his photos. As well the mood and the pictures that make you want to look a few times. He had many pictures of portraits of different body parts of people and he had one with this ostrich looking creature. The photographer’s intention were to create different things, to create a very dark mood and tones, photos that are kinda of creepy that makes you look more than twice, as well as very elegant images especially the sophisticated vogue magazine shots. The lighting the photographer use is not a bright one but, more like diffused lighting I would have to say. I could also say its direct lighting one the subject matter. The graphical elements that important i would have to say is composition of the some of the pictures. The emotionally impact it gave me is hmmmmm….. don’t know how to feel exactly because it was interesting.
One of my most favorite gallery was Hasted Kraeutler, photographer Nick Brandt. The exhibit titled “Across The Ravaged Land” was outstanding work by the photographer. Once you go in there you see gigantic animals in huge frames hung on the wall. The photographer subject matter is mainly wild animals in Africa and hunters of elephant tusks. The photographs show hunters of elephant carrying the elephant tusks, holding up the elephant tusks with a bunch of hunters gathered up and most of the animals in the photos were animals such as Lions, Cheetahs, Elephants and many more.
The photographer intention was to show endangered species that live in Africa; especially the hunters of elephant tusk harming elephants to get ivory. If i hadn’t read the press i would’ve not known. I thought these were pictures that he liked and saw in his trip to Africa. The artist favors diffused, black-white photography all of his panels are in black-white. The important elements in the photo is the black and white color, how he makes the animals the important figures in the foreground, his portrait skills, depth of field shots, the usage of low angle and high angle’s to make the animals huge.
The emotionally impact this gallery gave me was sad, depressing, shocking and also amazed feeling of how great the photography was. Its like the panels all tell a story of something in Africa. One of picture made me shed manly tears because it was so sad it was the one with a mother elephant and next to her was her child lying down dead.
My other favorite gallery was David Zwirner, photographer Phillip Lorca DiCorsia the exhibit is called “Hustlers”. The types of photos in this gallery are basically people on the street pretty much street photography and photography of people that were hired to model. The exhibit was filled with pictures of people mostly men, but all doing something and posing but, all have a different lighting effect. One was a picture of a man in his 40s sitting at the bus stop with his arm around a female hips probably a prostitute since the gallery is about hustlers. The pictures looked like they were taken a during the 80s and 90s.
The photographer intentions were to get photos of people (male prostitutes) in different settings such as motels, fast food chains, bus stops and on the street in Santa Monica Blvd in L.A. Without reading the press i had no idea what it was about. I honestly thought it was just a random street photography. The kind of lighting he likes is light on the subject, background lighting, foreground lighting in each picture his lighting varies depending on the time of day and also uses shadows.
The graphic elements that this photographer is concerned with is the subject manner and lighting that is facing the subject. The emotional impact this gallery gave me was a surprising, shocking, and curious i was completely mind blown of the way this photographer used his lighting I wish I was that good.
