ON & BEYOND

First assignment for my design sketch course; sketch 3 things you use on a daily basis: Leica D-Lux3 / Porter Briefcase / Nike Lunarglide+ 3.

“Jake Davis has revolutionized fashion films by shooting some of the world’s most stylish and beautiful people. “NY Made Us This Way” is an exhibition of his most unique Test Shots filmed in the city’s iconic streets and landmarks with subjects ranging from artists to icons.” If you’re in the big city anytime from sept 7th to oct 20th, head over to Nepenthes to check out the body of work.

My buddy Paul sent me these stills from his exhibit in Gastown at the Catalog Gallery.I Wish I coulda made it out there to see the space myself. I asked him two questions about his show: What nuance this show brings from his previous exhibit (Photographs Inspired by the Rap Music that once Inspired me)? – And the reason he decided to put in a painting.

If you are in YVR, make sure you write it in your schedule, it ends on sept 4th.

I wanted this show to look like a tumblr or a mood board style blog. So there isn’t really a theme, it’s images I shot that are either black and white or are earth tones. There are few winks to the photos inspired by the rap music that once inspired me project on the wall. Most of the original pictures from that project cycled around on those type of websites so it’s kind of a no brainer to tie it back in I think.

I made a sculpture and some letterpress stuff as well that didn’t make it into the show. The space was too small and it didn’t fit with the overall theme. Why did I paint? I guess I’m exercising my license to ill. The painting is my first and it won’t be my last. I did it with Dan Buller from HVW8. It’s a collaborative painting project. It’s new for me and it’s fun. We painted a 1992 16V Gti. The car has an amazing front end. One of my favorite designs from the late 80′s and early 90′s. It’s also a pretty rare car to find intact as it was very popular back then; most of the ones in Quebec were stolen.

Andy meets Tet.

ACRYLIC with Matte Medium on CANVAS

45″ x 45″

Andy meets Tet.

ACRYLIC with Matte Medium on CANVAS

19″ x 15″

Attended a Q&A seminar hosted by Rick Klotz at the OTH gallery. Some inspiring words from someone who has clearly seen it all.

I’m pretty mad I wasn’t playing in that match against the PanthersFC, I hate that team, and I’m glad we won. Peep the amazing clip Johnny made for us.

The Ringleaders FC
SHOT BY JFK

As I peruse through my regular list of inspiration blogs or properly known as moodboard blogs, I came to an interesting comparative theory. These modern day curators like JJJJound, The Impossible Cool or One Man’s Style, are no different from the classic ones like Newhall, Steichen or even Szarkowski.

First let’s examine the evolutionary line of being that defines photography as Art. We first heard of this theory through avant-gardist Newhall’s conception of what it means to consider photography on the same plane as high art painting or sculpting. While he failed to penetrate masses with the idea, it was undoubtedly a stepping stone for this unclaimed ideology. His focus on curation was purely artist-based; in other words, he preached personal expression and the photographer as an autonomous artist. Public mass wasn’t ready for this. A photographers work was imcomparable to the time and competence needed to achieve an oil painting. Visitors didn’t comprehend the concept of a presence by absence of the photographer which, at the epoch was seemingly viewed to be snobbish and pontifical; often criticized for being submerged in some esoteric fog. Of course, the rise of mechanical reproduction made it impossible to praise the uniqueness, singularity and authenticity of a photograph.

This is where it gets revealing. His successor however, Edward Steichen remapped the idea of what it means to curate an photo exhibit. With the help of Bauhaus designer Herbert Bayer, four guidelines became the appraisal of curation’s organizational logic: space, color, elevation and most importantly typography. His goal? Penetrate and endoctrine an idea and specfic reaction by persuading the visitor to a, not so much biased opinion, but definitely a planned one. Much like these blogs, the photographers were almost or nearly considered a run of the mill. While I, myself as a photographer, hold no belligerent thoughts, it is simple historic fact and modern day truth. The photographer now became an illustrator of another artist’s ideas(in this case, Steichel); the designer’s hand soon became more important than the photographer’s eye. Nonetheless, he succeeded in grabbing the public eye, not because of the talented photographers, but because of the installations and the way photography was being displayed. During Steichen’s 15 year stay as the photographic curator and director at the MoMA, some of America’s most notable photographers went through unnoticed: Callahan’s formalistic style or Robert Frank’s romantic and poignant style slipped through the editting and cropping that Steichen allowed himself to do.

So where do we, as photographers, stand? or as Bloggers? While the 60′s had John Szarkowski to re-establish the balance between curation and photography. The internet is a much bigger Art Museum than the physical institutions…

Share your thoughts. Please.

-Vincent Tsang

Trolly, New Orleans by Robert Frank

The Americans by Robert Frank

Cuzco, Peru by Harry Callahan

Untitled (#372) by Harry Callahan