American Photography: Walker's Photography

The first photograph I am going to discuss is photo of Ellery Shufelt with his children in Albany County, New York. Arthur Rothstein took this photograph in 1937, which was when the Great Depression was taking place in the United States. This photograph depicts many of these formal elements and techniques such as, framing, lighting, composition, and space to help portray the true meaning of the image. Arthur Rothstein uses the technique known as composition, which can be defined as the organization of the photograph by inserting elements in particular places and sizes. This assumption can be made because Rothstein places the Ellery Shufelt and his children in specific areas of the photograph to help capture an emotion or option about how people live and work American society at this time. Also, the framing and position of the door and chair outlines the photograph asymmetrically for the viewer. The door offsets the image by dividing the image with a vertical line. This basically crops the photograph making the viewer focus on the father and his children rather than the background itself. In addition, the level the camera intensifies the feeling and framing by making you feel eye level with the subjects. The use of framing allowed the photograph to make you focus and control how you perceive the image.

John Szarkowski, a photographer and director of the Department of Photography of the Museum of Modern Art. Not only that, but based on the reading he’s also critic. Throughout the years Szarkowski had influence many American photographers, a forward thinker person who at that time had control of the art institution change photographer’s point of view. He taught American photographers how to look at photographs, from proving representations of the world, to making a story real, and to unique angles and perspective through photography.

Lewis Wickes Hine, from the beginning of his career at University of Chicago, where he looked himself as an artist, but he define his work as “social photography” in 1908 Charities advertisement, and he stated that his goal was “to offer graphic representation of conditions and methods of work.” (“Lewis W, Hine-Biography”, academic.uprm.edu).

Slave owners kept their slaves uneducated in order to keep them oppressed. Slave owners felt that educating a slave would be a danger to them and their way of life. They believed that an educated slave would be able to realize that slavery was unjustified and fight back, even though most slaves already knew what was being done to them was wrong. In Walker's Appeal, in Four Articles; Together with a Preamble, to the Coloured Citizens of the World, pg. 2, David Walker states, “A law has recently passed the Legislature of this republican State (Georgia) prohibiting all free or slave persons of colour, from learning to read or write; another law has passed the republican House of Delegates, (but not the Senate) in Virginia, to prohibit all persons of colour, (free and slave) from learning to read or write, and even to hinder them

John Augustus Walker was an artist based out of Mobile, Alabama. He was born February 9, 1901 to John L. Walker and Lilly Roche Walker. “Walker was first encouraged to pursue art by his teacher Maud Mayme Simpson during his years at elementary school in the Mobile County School System. At age 16, Walker entered the work force as a stenographer for real estate agent F. M. Backes to augment the family

My paper literary artist Alice walker and visual artist Van Goth are best artist in the world, they have many similar things and different things, they are come from different century, different country, they have different family background, they have different work and life. People have different views on them. They both well know and both have a lot of fans in the world. Compared their difference and similar, life and work. We could links the two lives and their work together.

Four years after White made his first photographs, he began receiving awards for his artistry. He saw his photos as a work of art that were crafted as any other art medium revealed by their makers had. His prints typically displayed richness and subtle details that other artists rarely achieved. Clarence White along with other pictorialists had the goal of elevating photography into the more respected art realm. Unlike other pictorialists, White used light in his photos as one of the most fundamental visual effects. White has said that photography was a very personal matter for him. The essence of photography to him is the discovery and the development of the vision inside your head.

An exhibition never fails in taking the spectator on a journey through the chosen art’s narrative. The vast selection of exhibitions that were available at the National Gallery of Art made it difficult to narrow down the preferred choices. While examining the exhibition list one word seemed to capture my attention. Urban. I had the privilege to be born in a foreign city and to grow up in yet another city. This perspective colored my gallery selection and placed emphasis on the word “Urban.” Located in the West Wing of the Natural Gallery of Art, “Urban Scene 1920-1950” is an exhibition that reveals the four century-old artistic interpretation of the dynamic life that comes with residing in a city. Part of the beauty of the exhibition is the incorporation of less recognized American artists that worked on various printmaking techniques to create these astonishing achievements. The installation utilized minimalistic styles that introduced the viewer to various cities in the US. During the

John Vachon was one of the many photographers that helped take photos to document the 1930s. John was born on May 19th, 1914 in Saint Paul Minnesota. He died in 1975 at the age of 60 years old. John didn’t always start out as a photographer. He didn’t ever have the feeling that he was destined to be a photographer like many others had. “...Stryker had bigger hopes for him yet. He lent Vachon a camera and encouraged him to take photos around Washington.” John was introduced to photography by his boss in Washington. Striker kept pushing him towards photography and encouraged him to do what

Winogrand symbolized a new generation of photographers on the rise in the mid-1960s known as “street photographers.” While each photo is of simple, everyday life, they each contain an individual message and meaning much deeper than what was seen through the lens. His impact is still being felt in photography today and has been identified as a turning point in American photographic history.

There is an average of 7.125 billion people in the world, and every single person has their own culture. Which means there is a little over seven billion cultures are in the world. Every single culture has its own story behind it, and it has a way of making the person look at the world that is different from others.

Robert Frank is one of the most acclaimed photograhpers of the 20th century, Robert Frank is best known for his seminal artist in the mid 1950s as he tarveled across the U.S. on a Guggenham fellowship. The photographs that he took featured glimspes of highways, cars , parades, jukeboxes , and diners as iconic symbols of america while suggesting an underlying sense of alienation. Frank was loose casual and appraoch was often generated blurred imagery and titled horizons which caused his style of photography to be contversial as his subject matter. In the 50s he was a contributor to images to filmmaking and created classics of american subculture such as Pull My Daisy in 1959. Robert Frank was born on November 9, 1924 in Zürich, Switzerland .

Alice Walker truly values her culture and heritage. So much so that many of her books tell a story of her upbringing. Alice Walker uses symbolism, character development and setting to express her own feelings about culture and heritage. She feels that it is extremely important to maintain and respect the value of family and traditions. The bench, butter churn with the dash and the quilts help show the history of African American culture and heritage. Character developments takes place with Mama, Maggie and Dee which allows the reader to see each person’s point of view when it comes to African American culture and heritage. Mama has an epiphany close to the end of the story and realizes which daughter truly appreciates African American culture

In “Ways of Seeing”, John Berger, an English art critic, argues that images are important for the present-day by saying, “No other kind of relic or text from the past can offer such direct testimony about the world which surrounded other people at other times. In this respect images are more precise and richer literature” (10). John Berger allowed others to see the true meaning behind certain art pieces in “Ways of Seeing”. Images and art show what people experienced in the past allowing others to see for themselves rather than be told how an event occurred. There are two images that represent the above claim, Arnold Eagle and David Robbins’ photo of a little boy in New York City, and Dorothea Lange’s image of a migratory family from Texas; both were taken during the Great Depression.

“Everyday Use” Cultural Studies explored the disconnections that people can have even though they share same background and heritage. Alice Walker successfully shows the disconnection by showing different the character’s personalities and characteristics that express the dissatisfaction of not acknowledging how each value their own culture in their own way. Alice Walker shows some of the cultural influence, by having Dee describing some household items as unique items to show off. She describes Dee as this strong willed person, not afraid to speak her mind. It is a mixed with her mild temper sister Maggie and mother/narrator, who don’t really share the same perspectives that Dee does. This does not deter the idea that there was not only a cultural influence from the time that this short story was written but, also forms the character that brought the ideas. It describes different struggles from different perspective it also shows how they want to handle the same situation in different ways. This short story if nothing else brought the struggles to the public eye. It showed how there was a determination in showing that there is a cultural value and individuality that has to be shared with the world because it is important to talk about. It also shows value and pride in the way a person takes a hold of their culture and how each person values it. Another side where the narrator describes her culture and take it as enjoying the small thing for their own purpose. Alice Walker