Increasingly, we are documented through the power of the image, succumbing to selfie sticks, under surveillance – but should this picture of modern Western society be embraced or rejected? Framed or deleted? Liked or untagged? I could go on…
Universal access to photography could be resisted and labelled as the death of an art form, if only for the association of “selfie” with words such as “narcissism” and “exhibitionism.” With the dual power of images and social media, we are at risk of an invasion of privacy and a complete loss of mystery evoking George Orwell’s 1984. Living in the context of Snowden’s revelations of mass-surveillance and the phone hacking scandal, this dystopian fiction is not so far from reality. However, didn’t Orwell once write that “he who controls the past controls the future”? And isn’t the will of the populace to capture their lives on camera – albeit tiresome – an indicator of happiness?
Surely, then, our eyes can afford to be reddened. At least for art history’s sake. Somerset House recently exhibited photography pioneer William Henry Fox Talbot’s early works of the 19th Century, and his “Veronica Bloom” was valued at £300,000. Reportedly a bargain. This figure illustrates the rarity of photographs in 1840, compared with the prolific output of William Eggleston, Joel Meyerowitz and Bill Brandt in the 20th Century, who all exhibited in the same space this May as part of Photo London. Brandt’s beach series, in particular, is an example of the potential intimacy of photography, and the unique perspective it can offer.
Photography is pertinent not solely in the art world, but also in politics and current affairs. Looking back to the Vietnam War, also known as the “television war,” the impact that visual media has had on public consciousness is clear. This war was the first to be televised, and therefore politicised the American youth, leading to the anti-war movement. This in turn led partially to the defeat of the American army. Fast forward almost half a century, to now, and John Moore wins L’Iris d’Or for his photo series “Ebola Crisis Overwhelms Liberian Capital,” a collection of photographs which help to communicate the extent of the tragedy. Photography past and present, therefore, is a vital part of human expression. It is becoming more and more accessible in the digital age, and gone are the days when only the elite could afford self-portraits.
Red Eye is something to be celebrated if it means photography is prospering. Never again will we have to resort to a handful of clumsily captured photographs on a Kodak Fun Saver circa 1993. We can look at the past and use it to shape our future, even if that sometimes comes at the price of sharing every intimate personal detail, and hence every goddamn meal containing an avocado on Instagram. So long visual amnesia.
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| Talbot |
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| Eggleston |
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| Meyerowitz |
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| Brandt |
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| Moore |
