Tonight Alec Soth came to speak at VCU. He was born in Minnesota, and if you look him up Wikipedia you can read about all of the awards he has won (and that's about it).
Before he took to the stage, Soth ran a short film of his friend Lee Friedlander (?) on a road trip taking pictures. This was not only confusing (it had no introduction), but it was unentertaining. Our audience of students and faculty continued to talk to each other, not turning our focus to his weird inside joke of an intro until a few minutes in. It also had short pseudo-broadcast messages from the 50's or 60's, which were absolutely pointless.
After his intro finished playing, he introduced himself and talked a little about his work and explained that the reason he wanted to show the film was to emphasize the adventures that one can have with the world and their camera (barf). He admitted that his love of photography comes from the wonder, intimacy and honesty that comes with it - which I thought was kind of silly because traditionally, photography is so often very deceitful.
To briefly summarize what I took from Alec Soth's lecture, I'll say I think he strives to use this available medium of photography and make it his own - but ultimately ends up taking commercially and accessibly successful images. It was an interesting, blatant contradiction.
Soth also included quotes from some of his favorite photographers, like Robert Frank and William Eggleston. He took a lot of these quotes and combined parts of them to make his own, ridiculous titles for his 'concept' (including: "A Paralyzed Cyclops in the Democratic Jungle", and "The Narrative Machete".) I appreciate his love for other photographers and how they inform his work, but I also believe that he relied on their well-known photographic styles a little to heavily.
The series of work that he presented were: "Moving Through Space, Connecting the Dots", which was mainly about the fragmented narrative aspect of photography and how viewers must connect the dots and fill in the blanks.
Before he took to the stage, Soth ran a short film of his friend Lee Friedlander (?) on a road trip taking pictures. This was not only confusing (it had no introduction), but it was unentertaining. Our audience of students and faculty continued to talk to each other, not turning our focus to his weird inside joke of an intro until a few minutes in. It also had short pseudo-broadcast messages from the 50's or 60's, which were absolutely pointless.
After his intro finished playing, he introduced himself and talked a little about his work and explained that the reason he wanted to show the film was to emphasize the adventures that one can have with the world and their camera (barf). He admitted that his love of photography comes from the wonder, intimacy and honesty that comes with it - which I thought was kind of silly because traditionally, photography is so often very deceitful.
To briefly summarize what I took from Alec Soth's lecture, I'll say I think he strives to use this available medium of photography and make it his own - but ultimately ends up taking commercially and accessibly successful images. It was an interesting, blatant contradiction.
Soth also included quotes from some of his favorite photographers, like Robert Frank and William Eggleston. He took a lot of these quotes and combined parts of them to make his own, ridiculous titles for his 'concept' (including: "A Paralyzed Cyclops in the Democratic Jungle", and "The Narrative Machete".) I appreciate his love for other photographers and how they inform his work, but I also believe that he relied on their well-known photographic styles a little to heavily.
The series of work that he presented were: "Moving Through Space, Connecting the Dots", which was mainly about the fragmented narrative aspect of photography and how viewers must connect the dots and fill in the blanks.
Soth's simple "longing to drive and capture" was enough for him to spend five years shooting and documenting along the Mississippi River. "Sleeping by the Mississippi" gained critical acclaim while exhibited in the Whitney Museum of American Art. He said the River is about wandering, traveling through and learning the different ways you can live your life. He started making books of this work and soon it was published and exhibited.
I think he should take up filmmaking and make "Journey Films" similar to Ingmar Bergman.
Fontaine Bleu (Niagra), Alec Soth, New York, 2005. 50 x 40 inches. http://www.gagosian.com/artists/alec-soth
Peter's Houseboat (Sleeping by the Mississippi), Alec Soth, Winona, MN, 2002. size unknown.
http://www.alecsoth.com
Civic Fest (Presidential Office) (The Last Days of W), Alec Soth, Minneapolis, MN, 2008. 24 x 30 inches. http://www.gagosian.com/artists/alec-soth
http://www.alecsoth.com
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