Topic 3: Reading Photographs

Reading Photographs - Forum

Task:
Before continuing, post an image of (or a link to) an advertising image in the discussion forum. Write a few lines about what the brand or organisation is trying to communicate about the product or service being advertised. Don’t labour this task: the prose can be as loose as you like, bullet points or note form is fine. Make sure you credit the source. 

My response:
https://www.vogue.co.uk/gallery/benettons-best-advertising-campaigns
 
In 1982, Benetton hired Oliviero Toscani as creative director, which led to a change in advertising focus towards raising awareness for various issues worldwide. This image from 1991 depicts an interracial, homosexual couple with an adopted child at a time when advertising and indeed the media was devoid of such imagery. United Colors of Benetton is a clothing brand renowned for its bold colours, so the interracial colours, along with the contrasting green blanket with burgundy edging is also symbolic of their ‘united colours’ theme. ‘We did not create our advertisements in order to provoke, but to make people talk, to develop citizen consciousness’, Luciano Benetton.

These were the responses from other students:
Great campaign and wonderful photo: the direct gazes, the child in an extraordinary pose - like he/she is giving a rousing speech. I am left concerned about how staged this is - presumably involving models, rather than any kind of genuine family group. Citizen consciousness or building brand loyalty?

I can only imagine the meeting room. 'How do we make the most socially engaging, controversial image possible?' 

I don't really see it so cynically. I think inclusiveness is important and showing a range of families (which is reality) is progressive - the antidote to some of the sexist ads like the ones posted by others. Yes it's 'staged' and yes it uses models, but the image helps to move society toward inclusiveness and representativeness, rather than another white, traditional, nuclear family model. And yes, I realize it's imagery created to sell products. It also speaks to the ethos of the company. 

It raises the question of the spectrum in concerned photograpy that runs from witnessing to raising awareness to actual activism which is a very different question. There is pretty much nobody who will run an ad like this today - perhaps Nike and Colin Kapernick might run it close, but that's also very different...

​READING PHOTOGRAPHS: Activity 

Task:
Consider these two examples of different Afghan women who are of a similar age. 
Write a short post in the forum below (maximum 200 words) reflecting on how you read these two images. What are their similarities and how do they differ? You are free to research further before considering your response. You should also take into account the different dates, the photographers and the titles used here. 

My response:
I feel these two images have more differences than similarities. They are both of young Afghan women, wearing headscarves and with similar poses and composition, both separated from the background by use of a shallow depth of field. When McCurry photographed Sharbat Gula the connection he had was fleeting. He did not even know her name at the time. He was drawn to her piercing green eyes which had an intense haunted look which was quite penetrating. Was it fear from what she had experienced, or was it the fear of McCurry himself, as it is not usual for a girl of traditional Pashtun culture to reveal her face to a man who does not belong to her family? Bieber had more time to take the shot of Aisha on assignment in a women’s shelter and spent time getting to know her and make her feel comfortable. She asked Aisha ‘Would it be possible to not think about what happened to you for a few minutes and just focus on your inner power and beauty?’. Bieber wanted people to see Aisha as a woman before they saw what had happened to her.

​READING PHOTOGRAPHS: Reflection

​

• What challenged you?

Initially I found the whole process of breaking down and reading an image quite challenging.

• What surprised you?

I was surprised that by the end of the week I was feeling much more confident in my approach to reading images.

• What do you feel you learned? 

I have learned more about the process and structure of being able to ‘break down’ and understand an image.
Consider also the points raised in the presentation. What factors influence how you might read and interpret photographs. Think about: 

• Your family and social background and your heritage. 
• Your upbringing, values and education. 
• The kind of art you were exposed to and at what points in your life. 
• The literature and philosophical and/or political ideas you have been exposed to. 
• Significant changes or events in your life that might have shifted your perspective when it comes to ‘decoding’ images. 

I feel that although I come from an English, white, middle-class background with a relatively sheltered upbringing, I do have an open mind and good moral values which can help when trying to get a balanced interpretation of decoding images. I am interested in art, photography and history and find this helps in putting work into context.