Literature Review - 2nd November 2012
The focus of this dissertation is that of the self-portrait and the
circumstances surrounding its creation and inception. My interest mainly falls
upon the act of creating a self-portrait and if one could really ever create a
completely unbiased portrayal of oneself, which is both honest and truthful. I
would predict not. It would seem to me that if one were in complete control of
the camera’s faculties and editing process then we would wish to be represented
in the best possible fashion. Perhaps this leads to an idealized version of
oneself that famous celebrities are accustomed to but then is it not preferable
to appear this way than not? Without reference to any source material I would
assume it would seem almost rude if a photographer did not at least retouch the
skin (mainly thinking in terms of spots) in an image as opposed to leave them
in. Human vanity becomes ever more prominent in a photograph because it is a
static image, a snapshot of ones life which can be studied for an extended
period of time.
In creating a self-portrait we are still giving a representation of
ourselves that can be decoded and interpreted in a number of ways. This then
introduces the idea of the viewer into my thesis. Our visual culture and
references are so vast and varied that a picture may signify something
completely different from person to person as is discussed in ‘Another way of
Telling’. This would inevitably be problematic to the photographer as they wish
to be portrayed a certain way and may in fact be perceived in an entirely
different fashion. So I return to my main interest in the act of creating the
self-portrait and making conscious decisions that will affect how we are
viewed. Perhaps there is indeed a ‘one interpretation’ image that exists, which
I’m certain is aided by text but what of on it’s own? How much can a photograph
really tell us about a person is a subject of much debate. Diane Arbus would
certainly contest to the camera’s power to strip away that mask to reveal what
you would not normally want to be revealed. I question how much of this is
really down to the photographer and how much is in fact the viewer, the critics
who have the power of deciding what is and what isn’t? Perhaps myself as the
photographer has no say in it. Berger’s text Death of the author would seem to
support that the author is unnecessary and indeed irrelevant. I see this myself
as the intention – perception problem. How does one relate (or in this case
perhaps not matter much at all?) to the other and is affected by each other? Is
perception/opinion simply subject to the subjective views of an individual or
perhaps deemed to be so by some authorative figure (a critic perhaps) and then
accepted by the majority.
This is the basic idea I have towards the subject at present. In
developing my ideas and deciding upon a definitive question to answer I aim to
look at this from a philosophical and photographical point of view. The ideas
that I am talking about, perception and truth remind me very much so of Plato
and Descartes work regarding the subject but I feel more recent texts would
better aid me. In particular texts addressing language and identity would be
important. Furthermore, aid in addressing the visual language of photographs is
essential so Vilem’s ‘towards a philosophy of photography’ (an essay in
response to photography being the second surge in communication, the first
being the written word), would be interesting to look into.
I think it is important to have these philosophical texts to help
refine ideas and apply them to an area that it may not have seemed applicable.
However, the practical side should be investigated in the primary research of
the photographer. In my mind Diane Arbus is a perfect starting point for this
and then I would search for other photographers who have created a
self-portrait and it would be interesting to analyse these in relation to my
subject interest. Other photographers such as Nan Goldin, David LaChapelle and
Cindy Sherman would give me a deeper insight into photographing the self and
how one might subvert this and portray a certain identity for the camera.
In addition, I have ascertained that the ever-growing world of
social media portrays much of what I am interested in but of course in an
amateurised fashion. Using Facebook as an example, one has a profile and can
choose a picture to represent that profile. These pictures are our choice; they
are how we wish to be perceived by others, they are the identity we wish to
assume. However, I would argue this is slightly different from the
photographers self-portrait as you have an entire profile of context (status
updates, events, other pictures, profile information etc) which would serve to
inform the photograph and so influence a viewer. Also, the viewer (your
Facebook ‘friend’) would presumably already know you, there has already been a
choice made in the friendship having been acquired online. My point here is that
the inclination towards your picture would be positive. For the photographer,
perhaps it is impossible to present a self-portrait to a viewer without knowing
who they are or being influenced by anything else?
Lastly, another resource at my disposal is my own body of work which
deals with analytical self portraits of student life and development. This
project has evolved since it’s creation in September 2011 and has become more
about seeing the extraordinary in the everyday but also deals a lot with truth
and many issues I speak of here. However, this work fulfills half of the
equation I am attempting to analyse. The viewer or interpreter role cannot be
assumed by myself but must be from someone I do not know. Therefore is possible
for me to use this work to form my own kind of primary research if it is
appropriate to do so.
From what I have written about, my dissertation seems likely to be
split into the following chapters: (preliminary thinking of course)
·
Directly analyzing a particular
photographer’s work in relation to the question
·
Comparing two distinctly
different photographers and see how their reception differs to each other
·
Social media and how the
context of ‘friendship’ applies to opinions formed about an image
·
Analyzing my own work in
relation to the question
This is my thinking at the moment, but I think after further
research into my philosophical texts, and photographers practices I will gain a
deeper understanding into this subject and be able to formulate a more coherent
plan and ultimately question to attempt to answer.
post - 011
Simon Johnson
www.thephilosophicalphotographer.co.uk
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