The "Must Know" List

Wascovich listed a few people during class on Monday that we should get to know. Here is a little something about these fine folks...



John Gossage:

This American photographer was born in 1946 in Staten Island, NY. He became interested in photography extremely early, and now photographs places and sites that tell an everyday story: paths worn through abandoned tracts of land, corners where debris collects, markings on a wall, a table after a meal. By asking us look at what we have misplaced or abandoned he brings us face to face with the present as it becomes history. I would assume Gossage is an influence in Wascovich’s work and interests, as common themes are present in the work he has done at the toxic waste sites.

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Art Sinsabaugh:






From New Jersey, and made his big break in 1961 after creating images with an enormous view camera that produced 12 X 20 inch negatives. Using this format, he then created similar pieces of American locations, such as Chicago and Baltimore to farms and deserts. Sinsabaugh was one of the first photographers to finish his work in small editions, usually not more than three prints at a time. Because of this, his exhibitions are rarely seen by the public.





"At some point I became aware of the unbelievable infinite detail on the horizon; this is what drew my attention. So I set about to pursue the distant horizon." -- Art Sinsabaugh (1924-83)


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William Klien:




As a photographer and film maker, Klien insisted that his models “act”, and never “pose”. His innovations have not only been technological, but a philosophical element is considered to be consistent throughout his images. His street style opened an enormous door into the realms of fashion photography.

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Robert Heineken:

Robert Heineken uses technically sophisticated photographic methods to mingle erotic images with visuals from TV and advertising. He takes an interest in the audiences' ability to respond to images without necessarily knowing how they are created.

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John O’reilly:

Using razor blades, paper clips and an old Polaroid camera, O'Reilly has constructs visual passion plays and elaborate fantasy scenario. O'Reilly produces aesthetically dazzling, thematically rich body of work that addresses issues of sexuality, creativity and self-definition. By piecing together Polaroids of himself with pictures from family photo albums, beefcake shots from porn mags, and reproductions of paintings by the likes of Vermeer, Corot and Degas, O'Reilly reflects upon his own experiences as a gay man drawn to disparate cultural traditions. "I love the clash of pornography with the righteousness of a beautiful masterpiece," he says, adding that he relies on magazines for his hunky subjects because "I'm too embarrassed to hire models to pose for the photographs."






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Chuck Close:















Painter, photographer and printmaker. His work is based on the use of a grid as an underlying basis for the representation of an image. This simple but surprisingly versatile structure provides the means for "a creative process that could be interrupted repeatedly without…damaging the final product, in which the segmented structure was never intended to be disguised." It is important to note that none of Close's images are created digitally or photo-mechanically. While it is tempting to read his gridded details as digital integers, all his work is made the old-fashioned way—by hand. While a painting can occupy Close for many months, it is not unusual for one print to take upward of two years to complete. Close has complete respect for, and trust in, the technical processes—and the collaboration with master printers—essential to the creation of his prints. The creative process is as important to Close as the finished product. "Process and collaboration" are two words that are essential to any conversation about Close’s prints.




(The color pic to the right is a self portrait)





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Gary Winnogrand:



Winogrand was known for his portrayal of American life in the early 1960s, Many of his photographs depict the social issues of his time day and in the role of media in shaping attitudes. He roamed the streets of New York with his 35mm Lecia camera rapidly taking photographs using a prefocused wide angle lens. His pictures frequently appeared as if they were driven by the energy of the events he was witnessing. While the style has been much imitated, Winogrand's eye, his visual style, and his wit, are unique. Winogrand died of gall bladder cancer in 1984 at age 56. As evidence of his prolific nature, Winogrand left behind nearly 300,000 unedited images, and more than 2,500 undeveloped rolls of film. Some of these images have been exhibited posthumously and published in an exhibit catalog entitled Winogrand, Figments from the Real World, published by MoMA.

Two quotes of his that I love:
" A photograph is the illusion of a literal description of how the camera 'saw' a piece of time and space."
"Photography is not about the thing photographed. It is about how that thing looks photographed."

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Sally Mann:
Sally Mann was born in 1951 in Lexington, Virginia, where she continues to live and work. She received a BA from Hollins College in 1974, and an MA in writing from the same school in 1975. Her early series of photographs of her three children and husband resulted in a series called “Immediate Family.” In her recent series of landscapes of Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia, and Georgia, Mann has stated that she “wanted to go right into the heart of the deep dark South.” Using damaged lenses and a camera that requires the artist to use her hand as a shutter, these photographs are marked by the scratches, light leaks, and shifts in focus that were part of the photographic process as it developed during the 19th century. Mann has won numerous awards, including Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships. Her books of photographs include “Immediate Family,” “At Twelve: Portraits of Young Women;” and “Mother Land: Recent Landscapes of Georgia and Virginia.” Her photographs are in the permanent collections of many museums, including The Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.



Ps- I think her work is absolutely amazing. She has taken the king of the mountain as my new favorite.



Maybe this is the photograph that Wascovich was thinking about when he sawAmelia's shoulder showing? How cool is this picture?! The kid in the back out of focus on stilts so so great.. I want this picture framed in my home. Hey, you! Girl! Don't you know cig's bring out ugly in a gal?!
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Photo-Eye



You gotta check this out! The main page gives you catagories to chose from, like books or galleries, mag's or newsletter feeds, etc. Under Gallery, I discovered Carl Burton. How absolutely amazing is this picture!? You should give his stuff a looksie, the colors are fab.