Random Excellence: 'A State of Limbo and a Game of Illusion' (Andrea Land)

Andrea Land, Elizabeth

"I enter into the process of creating a photograph on both a conscious and subconscious level. My portraits of children contain various layers of information relating to the artist, the subject, and a mutual exchange between the two. The work seeks to explore the psyche of complex individuals. Each young girl, while physically existing in the natural world, also thrives in another realm, an insular dream state, with her gaze turned inward...."

-                                                                     —Andrea Land (from her website)
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"...Giving specific advice on what to photograph would not be appreciated even if it was possible. The answer is provided by a question: What are you really interested in? In other words: What is it that can sustain your enthusiasm for a long time? I advise young photographers to be overly pragmatic in answering such questions. First, list all those subjects which fascinate you—without regard to photography; i. e., what would you be doing if there was no such thing as a camera? After the list is made, you then start cutting it down. Eliminate those subjects which are not particularly visual. For example, existential philosophy can be deleted. Then cut out those subjects which are impractical, for one reason or another. For example, I have always been fascinated by Patagonia but, as I live in Arizona, it is not a subject which I can shoot at available hours and weekends. The subject must not only be practical but also accessible. Also eliminate those subjects about which you are ignorant, at least until you have conducted a good deal of research into the issue. For example, you are not making any statement about urban poverty by wandering back streets and grabbing shots of derelicts in doorways. That's exploitation, not exploration.

"Continue similar reductions in your list of interests until two or three subjects remains, all of which a.) fire your enthusiasm b.) lend themselves to images, as opposed to words c.) are continuously accessible.

"Let me give you an example. As a teacher I encounter a great number of photographic students who are active in college life, naturally emotional about many aspects of education, and who spend the greater part of their waking life on campus. But in the past 15 years, and over 1,000 students later, I have never seen a photographic project based on what it is like to be a college student. In fact, it is rare indeed to see a photographic student carrying a camera."

-                                                                     —Bill Jay, from "The Thing Itself"

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Rereading this passage from Bill Jay's essay "The Thing Itself" yesterday (it was mentioned by Robin in the comments), I thought of Andrea Land. Who would think that there was a series of pictures to be made by photographing something so ordinary as young girls in their rooms, attempting to imply or signify their inner life? And yet Andrea has done it, by some synchronous alchemy of ability, intent, and insight. It is for her a subject that fulfills Bill's three conditions, a., b., and c. And yet I think very few people could do it.

Her pictures in "French Male Adolescent" might also be interesting, but I suspect they are a case where web representations fall too far below the threshold of acceptability to permit them to be adequately seen.

Mike

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Comments

[john robison]

"In fact, it is rare indeed to see a photographic student carrying a camera"

I find this incomprehensible. I never went to college but from the time I purchased a Minolta Hi Matic 9 in 1969 I have seldom been without some camera on my person. It's usually loaded with Tri-X and that gets souped in Diafine. What could be simpler?

[Chris Sheppard]

Coincidentally, I’m just reading Robert Adams “Beauty in Photography” where he makes a similar argument that familiar and accessible subjects of everyday life are underrepresented in photography. And the life of a student at a large university is one of the examples her gives

[Dennis]

Not to be picky, just to give credit where due: I pointed to another related essay while Robin recommended "The Thing Itself". Thanks to Robin for providing that link - of all the books and articles pertaining to photography I've, extracting bits and pieces that help me slowly shape my own photography, nothing has been so smack dab apt, so necessary as this essay. It seems so familiar, I wonder if I've read it in this same form before, or only the chapter "The Subject" in OBAP.

[charlie d]

Beautiful

I wish I had that sort of focus.

[Craig Norris]

"I can't see the photo for all the subject matter" is the new version of "can't see the forest for the trees."

Thanks for the link to Bill Jay's web site. It's a treasure trove of wonderful reading.

[Andrew]

I'm not sure I agree that college students are underrepresented as photographic subjects, but Jay's main point is well taken.

[Karsten Schmidt-Hern]

Bill Jay's text seems to me to be a summary of what David Hurn explains in the chapter "Selecting a Subject" in "On being a photographer".

And, to me, Andrea Land's statement does not add much to the image, but borders on being a truism.

Karsten

[Andreas]

I also feel what Bill says very true and as if I have read that some times before: this could be true in face, since we are roaming in a certain "phototope", that is TOP, Shutterfinger, Luminous Landscape. Some days ago I have browsed thru Mikes SMP articels on Photo.net, and indeed there is some kind of repetition - wich is a not a bad thing, it just is.

"attempting to imply or signify their inner life...": i don't understand why this is the case, honestly. I see that Andrea has got that focus Bill is talking about, but these are girls in their rooms, or thinking of Gary Winogrand, these photos are new things, not the girls themselves. Well, but I don't see some inner life of these girls nor that "...various layers of nformation relating to the artist, the subject, and a mutual exchange between the two." Sorry, but I only see interesting, perfectly composed and lighted photographs, a bit creepy and disturbing btw, for me at least. Not saying I could do that so easily, I am still searching for that kind of focus, but the subtext is just what one would expect, filler. I could have invented some similar sophisticated explanation after the fact for my first exhibition (which you can see at my site), but I don't like such things. I could state that I have tried to get in touch with the ambivalence between hard work and privacy of the people and so on. Considering that being at the restaurant, with or without familiy, with customers and friends, with employees, makes 95% of these peoples time, my pictures are close to the essence of their lifes. But honestly I just tried to get some environmental portraits in the limited time frame I was granted, and that's it.

[Mike Johnston]

"But honestly I just tried to get some environmental portraits in the limited time frame I was granted, and that's it."

Can't be an artist if you don't have a rap. [g]

Mike