"The camera is an eye capable of looking forward and backward at the same time. Forwards, it does in fact, shoot a picture, backwards, it records a vague shadow looking straight back through the eye...to the photographer's mind and soul." Wim Wenders...Photographer, Director ("Salt of the Earth") What an exceptional meeting and discussion of one of the foremost photographers of our generation: Sebastiao Salgado I can't even begin to create a summary of all the comments on his life and work...but before I try, let me tell you several "factoids" we did NOT discuss: First, Salgado was present at the attempted assignation of Ronald Reagan: Second, Salgado visually studied coffee workers around the world (2002-2014) traveling to Brazil, India, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Colombia, China, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Tanzania. The series was called "Scent of a Dream" http://www.illy.com/wps/wcm/connect/en/art/sebastiao-salgado We started off our exploration of Salgado's life and work by viewing aTED talk he gave in 2013...here is the link: https://www.ted.com/speakers/sebastiao_salgado You can review his biography on many different websites and books. It suffices to say his wife, Lelia, was also his artistic partner at home through his career. She planned his long excursions and curated his work. She also gave Salgado his first camera (Leica) launching his remarkable career. Since you asked, he shoots with Leica and Canon cameras. We approached our discussion today by posing a series of questions about his work. (Note: did the best I could in translation...but you really needed to be there...sorry) Q: What is the role of a photojournalist in social change in general? Charles: "photojournalists need to be the eyes of others; responsibility to inform" Q: Why was Salgado uniquely qualified to foster social change? unique background...farming in Brazil and training/working as economist Q: How does his visual aesthetic enhance his narrative? Gareth: "power of art to inform" "provides more credibility as both spectator and activist" Salgado clear on bias and passion Carel: "shows contrast between "misery" and "aesthetics" Q: Does the quality of “the print” matter in his work? yes, larger prints while not as clear may provoke a larger emotional response Howard: may allow both art and subject to be seen more readily interesting to see his "contact sheets" for his work Q: How is photography influencing public thought and action? yes, especially now with social and political citizen activism in streets and countries Q: What is the role of social media in Salgado’s work? spreads message he wants increases our ability to believe the message Q: Does Salgado’s environmental actions further and add credibility to his message? yes...especially his re-foresting his farmland in Brazil Q: How does his humanity fit into his ecosystem of photography? very necessary for photographing his subjects and conveying message Q: Is Salgado an artist..an activist…or a social scientist? Kathy: "people who make significant impact start with small changes" All of above... The last thing we discussed was the recently released documentary on Salgado directed by Wim Wenders in collaboration with Salgado's son Juliano.... "Salt of the Earth" Salt of the Earth shows an in depth continuation of Salgado's TED talk in 2013. It portrays the humanity and social activism and gives insight into his career changes from economist to agency photographer (Magnum) to independent social photographer and finally to an environmental activist. Salt of the Earth was nominated for the Oscar for best documentary film, won a prize at the Cannes Film Festival last spring and was also awarded a César, the French equivalent of an Academy Award. Wim Wenders is a well known director of such movies as "Paris, Texas,""The Buena Vista Social Club,"and was responsible with Ry Cooder in getting the Social Club into the US from Cuba. Last comment about Wenders...he himself is a photographer. Bill brought in one of his publications "Once" ...a combination of his writing and photography. Well worth the time reading, looking and the price at Vroman's Almost done with Salgado... Gareth noted a film done in 2002 about Salgado...see below Final Doo Dah for the day...
Paris Photo not a great show; Photo Independent much better Met our f8 Pasadena "doppelgänger" in Chicago... a group of women photographers who formed "f8 Collective" 4 months ago
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
|