What makes photography art? and Why my photography isn’t.
As coincidence might have it, i was reading “Aha” by William B. Irvine discussing the many revelations that were pivotal to the development of mankind’s history. I had just completed the chapter discussing how in science, there are no universal truths to the world, all that exists are general consensus of what is true by the scientific community. Each scientist and similarly, each indivudual will hold their own truths to the world (Be it spherical or flat). In a similar vein, the definition of art can hold many truths and it comes to a personal level what we define to be art.
On a day i was taking photos after work, a stranger excitedly approached me inquiring if the camera i held was a panasonic. Unfortunately, it was not. The conversation went on, asking to view some of my photos and what i liked to shoot. As such, I obliged. Upon seeing some of the photos, he cliamed some of my photos were “rather artistic”. Upon hearing that, I immidiately scoffed with a remark, no way i thought what I did was considered art. Taken aback, i was inquired with many reasons why i seemed to hold an opposing idea to himself.
Tunnel visioned
The idea I had in my head when i passed by without a camera seemed greater than the outcome created by my camera during my return.
The stranger, I later found happened to be a broadcast and media student, learning about cameras and their applications to media. I however came from the rigid background of accounting. He, dabbling with many publically recognised “artists” had a very broad definition of art being any piece of work that invokes an emotional response. as William Irvine mentions, there are scientists who also think of their research work as art in itself. I do think that in both art and science share a fate that is forever intertwined. All art forms uses a medium of science to present itself and all science in its development shares a thought process that is similar to what are recognised as artists. They both can never exist in a vacuum from each other. Understanding the relationshop between art and science led me to a question of how the world determined what or who was between art and science or artist and scientists respectively. It was clear now that beween the 2 definitions it lived on a spectrum resulting in my definition of what was to be considered art.
Moving through liminal spaces
Life and its influence were really showing through in the set of images taken during the same period of time
Art would have to be defined to live on that spectrum between art and science similar to how street photography lands itself on a spectrum between “documentarian” and “fine art”. For what we want to consider art, I would have to be convinced that there has to be a creation aspect to majority of what is portrayed in the medium. Simply put, in street photos, what constitutes majority of the actual end result of the photo is not the masking or editing done to the photo but the moment in time frozen by the camera. Rather, for us to even begin to consider if the photo is worth our time to edit, the raw moment captured by our camera has to be decent. I would argue that we have 0 control over the moment. I am no omnipotent being that can move people and clouds to my will creating the perfect scenario and perfect light to be captured. As a photographer, all we do is maximise our practice and luck by going out more often so that when that “moment” happens, we have the reflex to caoture whatever it is in front of us. Following this definition,I I basically was not involved in the mindful creation of the majority of the photo. Therefore what i captured was and forever is not art in my eyes.
Now it begs the question if I ever think photographers are artists. In my eyes, majority of us are unfortunately not. However, there are those of us involved with gallery and photobooks which I do consider to be artists. The careful act of curation or sequencing photos for galleries and photobooks respectively each can elevate the overall experience of their work. I however look at the gallery or photobook as the artwork itself, not the individual photos.
Just like how art is the freedom of expression through different mediums, we are free to experience the definition of it freely as well. We each hold a personal definition in our own hearts be it the paradigm for its generally accepted definition similar to how scientists have their own set of beliefs for what is to be true.
