MARCEL website and UB's involvement

So, after the MARCEL lecture, I went to the website to check it out. I really dislike the beginning. But anyways, I started to look at some of the projects, but I didn't see anything that spectacular. One thing that I do like about MARCEL though is how it is all over the world. I think it is very intriguing, to see projects from all over. And the website allows anyone to see them. I am actually quite surprised that UB is not involved with the MARCEL network considering Don Foresta graduated from UB. I am very interested in finding out why UB has not shown any interest in the MARCEL network. I'm not really that interested in it, but it seems like something UB would want to participate in.

MARCEL Lecture

I thought that a lot of the information that Foresta spoke to us about was quite confusing. He mentioned so many people and things that I had never heard of. I felt like a deer in headlights. I thought the video clip he showed was very interesting though. Especially for the time that is was taped. I can imagine though that it would get old pretty fast, I noticed he did mention that most everyone stayed for no longer than an hour before they just walked out. It was a good opportunity to hear what he had to say, but at the same time a lot that he spoke about, I didn't understand. One point that he brought up that I thought was interesting was how he got the name MARCEL. I thought it was a very crafty idea.

Appropriating Images

I was reading some blogs again, and came across Caitlin's about appropriating images. I couldn't agree more with her. I guess I never understood why people do appropriate images. If I were to do something like that, I think that I would feel like I was cheating. It just has never seemed right to me. I had never even thought to do anything of the sort, until I came to UB, where I feel like sometimes it is almost encouraged. I feel guilty if I piggy-back an idea off of another artist. Like Caitlin said though, where do you draw the line? I guess I have just never understood the logic behind it.

blogs

I have been reading through some blogs, and I came across Chris's. I thought the one blog he posted about photographers on the Internet was quite comical. I actually was recently doing a search on photographers, and came across the same link he posted. It is sad how nowadays everyone is a photographer. As much as I do love digital photography, sometimes I feel that it can ruin it for people that have studied or really taught themselves the ins and outs of photography. I feel that it takes away from people that are professionals. With Photoshop these days and newer versions coming out every year, you can pretty much build a photograph that was never taken. But I guess I just wanted to add a little to Chris's blog, because I thought it was funny.

Presentations

I thought it was quite interesting when we had the discussion about Timothy White. I found it rather humorous that nobody in the class really appreciated White's work. I found his work to be very aesthetically pleasing and I thought that the photographs were well done. I don't think that photographs should be discounted just because there is a celebrity in it. He is a good photographer technically and he is a good businessman in the sense that these famous people want him as their photographer. I guess this is my problem with UB. We are taught to criticize photographers that work in the commercial field of photography. I guess all I can say is, White is incredibly successful, and it sounds like he enjoys everything he does, so in my opinion, I think that he is a strong photographer and successful businessman.

Presentations

I thought that Amy's presentation brought up some very controversial issues. I thought that the discussion we had about the topic after was also very interesting. I think it is so sad to see how far women will go to make themselves "Beautiful" in their eyes. I think documenting what these women do, is a good way to try and document this problem with society. I was wondering during her presentation how these women that were being photographed reacted to the photographs being published in Vogue. Are they that brainwashed to not be moved by the images? Jennifer brought up a very strong argument when she said that people that look at magazines such as vogue, it is not that they cannot think for themselves, it is the interest. I completely agree with her when she said that we are all influenced by someone or something. That is what society pushes people to do, to follow a certain trend, or buy some cool new gadget. Another point I thought was so true that Bleu mentioned was that when people "read magazines" they are looking at the photographs and moving to the next page. At least I know I do that. I might read a few articles in a magazine, but for the most part I thumb through it. I guess that shows how important photographs truly are in magazines. They need to really catch the reader's attention for the person to consider reading the article.

Class Today

I thought that class today was quite interesting. The photographer the Joseph chose to talk about was very interesting, and at the same time very controversial. I think that the photographers work is one you would have to see in person, to get the real effect. It is blatant that he wanted to stay out of the comments which these children were saying, just by the way that he typed them out. I think that comment that Jeannine brought up was a very good point; just the fact that the photographer used correct punctuation, but used word for word what the boy was saying, including "um..." I understand that he is trying to get the point across about the environment these children are living in, but they don't know any better, and to put them down the way the photographer did was wrong. Just what the children are saying shows who they are and what environment they are living in. I don't think typing out every little mistake they made was truly the right choice. I personally think that just having an audio would get the point across. I understand that it is nice to have words to read along with sometimes, when it might be hard to understand someone, or they might be quiet, but typing out every little error is not needed in the least bit. But again, I don't think that looking at these photographs and listening or reading the comments online would compare to seeing it in an actual gallery. It would be interesting to find out what the photographer was saying to the children; to know exactly the whole conversation between the two.