homework #1 Jorge Agredo

http://michaelkenna.net/gallery.php?id=14

The photograph that caught my attention and mesmerized me in a certain way was “twin towers, study one, New York City, Usa, 1978” by photographer Michael Kenna. In the picture we can see the twin towers standing above Kenna like two giants. Taken from a worm’s eye view angle which made the building look taller than what they already were. It creates sort of a majestic feel to it, making the towers bigger than us and not by size, but by importance, magnitude and impact that they would indirectly eventually have in our lives, creating an emotional connection, a direct relationship between the photograph and the viewers. In my opinion, developing that relationship is just as important as capturing the desired image. I believe the mood can be interpreted in many ways because of what unfortunately happened to the world trade center on september 11th 2001. Therefore I believe the mood is a bit melancholic and sad. In the picture, the day appears to be cloudy and with little light to indicate otherwise, and although the photograph was taken in 1978, as years passed by, and events occurred, the importance of the picture has increased dramatically.

The diagonal alignment of the towers guide our eyes towards the little light that the photo has, which is located right on top of the buildings, making it look kind of like a halo and giving it a godlike feel to it in a sense. The asymmetry of the photograph which can be found specially on the left tower help create and develop the mood. The contrast between the dark of the buildings and the light of the sky contributes to develop that sense of magic that the picture portrays. The dark of the towers allow the top to pop up due to having more light, creating a more appealing looking picture.

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One Response to homework #1 Jorge Agredo

  1. rmichals says:

    You bring up a very good point. the photo when taken in 1978 used a low angle of view to make the towers look imposing. In 2013, the photograph looks sad, not because of anything the photographer did but because of the history that we know about the buildings including the number of people that died there. Our interpretation of photographs is strongly influenced by all we bring to them not just the formal elements within the photo.

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