Gerald Cyrus

On Friday March 25, I attended an event which featured photographer Gerald Cyrus. He talked about his years of photography, what he loved to use as subjects and about his book. What I was most fascinated with is how the first ten years of his adult life he spent them as an accountant and was just doing photography as a hobby. It really helped me to understand that I can do anything I want and you don’t have to know what your passion is, or what you are going to do your whole life, when you are only 18 years old. What I liked most about his photography was that he mostly focused on his family and things he really loved like jazz.

The picture above was one of my favorite ones from his slideshow. What I find so interesting about this picture is that it stops time in a moment of happiness. Something that wasn’t planned or staged but just a moment in someone’s life. A moment that people look past and don’t really appreciate until the time has passed. I love that it captures the feeling of family but it also captures the feeling of happiness. When Gerald Cyrus was showing these pictures on the slideshow, this one especially caught my eye because it is such a sweet innocent moment in time.

I also really loved all of his pictures from the jazz clubs. They had such intense focus and precision and they showed the movement of the artists in such a different way. What I really love about his pictures is that you can tell he is focusing on things that he is very deeply interested in. I think it is important for photographers to capture something they love, rather than just something they think will sell. All of his pictures contain heart and soul. Every singly picture he showed were all unique and special in their own way, and I was really fascinated by his story and his career. 

Cigarette-Candy

Cigarette-Candy, Sally Mann, 1989

Cigarette-Candy is a photograph created by Sally Man in 1989. The main focus of the photograph displays a young girl holding a cigarette (candy). The image contains three figures; the iconic blonde holding a cigarette, another young girl in the right foreground and a young boys lower body can be seen in the left background where he is climbing a ladder. The main girl in the photograph is slouched away from the path behind her, unlike the other children in the picture who face the path ahead of them. Her stubborn pose, and cigarette in hand could symbolism the rebellion phase of a teenage girls life. Due to this cigarette in hand it may cause her to go down a different path in life than that of the other children in the photograph

I think one big thing that Mann was trying to do with this photograph is to illustrate the problem of children trying to mature too fast. A girl that age shouldn't be smoking a cigarette and I believe that is what she is trying to address. That children now think adulthood is so glorious and amazing that they try to speed up their childhood to get to it. What they don't realize though is that childhood is one of the greatest times of someones life and there is no point in trying to speed up that process.

It seems like Mann almost purposely added light on the young girl, because it seems as if she is so clear and in focus that she is glowing, as to signify her importance. As the viewer I felt very drawn in by the apathetic expression on the girls face. I feel like the further we try to look into this picture the more we will see. There is more than meets the eye. This is something that I think is very crucial. You never know what someone is going through and why they make the choices they make, but like this little girl, guidance is the best thing for them.

The Violin of Ingres

The Violin of Ingres by Man Ray, 1924

This photograph taken by Man Ray in 1924, transformed the female body into a musical instrument by having sound-holes painted on her back. This photograph is used to display the idea of objectification of a female body. However, this picture also creates a tension between objectification and appreciation of the female body. Man Ray's intentions are not completely clear in the photograph and it is so interesting how it operates on so many levels. It’s still confusing as to why he doesn't show the woman's arms, and it makes it harder to contemplate. He points out the irony of the shape of the women's body in comparison to a violin. He depicts this portrait of the woman with such delicate care given to her back and profile. The colors of this photograph seem so smooth and light, and create a sense of delicacy. The light grey and whites of the picture creates a warm touch to her body and the photograph. 

As he represents the woman as an instrument, it seems as though he is trying to assert things about women. I believe that he created this photograph to show that women are predictable and can be manipulated just like a violin. Man Ray models this women with the care like one would use upon an instrument of high craft. Her head and back make up the frame, modeled in precision like a violin. I love how he can use her body to make it look more than just a body, but something more interesting. Also what makes this photograph so interesting is that her head is wrapped, so that her hair doesn't fall down her back, which makes the subject slightly more ambiguous. This photograph depicts a time past, however, it’s meaning and representation is still true and relevant today.