Portrait photography is again being scrutinized as an art form. The portraits of one particular artist are his way of reacting to the traditional confrontational character of portraiture. In the course of taking a number of portraits of individuals, usually commissioned by a group of magazines and journals, he became unsatisfied by the rapid and somewhat glib characterization that was the inevitable result of a smile please hold it thank you goodbye technique.
What he says is valid. Although it may be widely accepted as a cool thing, media portraiture can sometimes be bland. The photographer gives the instruction, then the subjects do different gestures and poses in unexpected settings.
His solution to the banality common in this type of work has been to engage the sitter in a more extensive way. It took collaborative effort for the 13 portraits of people from Pittsburgh to be made. Sitters have the freedom to choose where they want the shot done, and can give other suggestions. In this profession, this is different.
There are no preconceived thoughts made by this artist for a project. Essential to the collaboration is a preliminary meeting whereby the general concept of the photograph is drafted. He then sets out to find a suitable site, often helped by the sitter. Sometimes a set is constructed, and it is usually made with a steel sheet and mirrored glass box to create a confined cell.
In conceptualizing the photograph, a sculptor decided to have his picture taken with his work, and a writer decided to have his picture taken in a bar scenario. In one case involving an actor and director, the possibility of bridges as a site came out, but it came out subordinate compared to other details in the photo.
He is able to create complex and difficult lighting effects in his photographs, which displays his great skill. These effects were not added in later processes like developing and printing. Through the use of colored gels, he is able to use his lighting equipment to create saturated and enticing color effects. The exposure times for these photographs are lengthy, almost Victorian, in duration. While waiting for the exposure time of the portrait of a person outside a bar, a sitter could actually walk in and out of the camera's range.
After which, he could come back and write letters on the air using a wand of light. During the exposure, people went in and came out of the bar, and there was no proof on the film that they were there. A set of nocturnal photographs which were taken in a factory's garden reveals the simple and sensible effect of lighting.
It's curious to note that while he just taught himself photography, he is very professional about how he does his work. Often, collaboration becomes challenging since he seems to want to dominate the decision making process. The artist still decides on the final outcome. The photographs, being reversal prints, have all been professionally printed.
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