What are the differences between photographs that are Windows and Mirrors ?
Personal visions take one of two forms. In metaphorical terms, the photograph is seen either as a mirror – a romantic expression of the photographers sensibility as it projects itself on the things and sights of this world; or as a window – through which the exterior world is explored in all its presence and reality. This was showcased in the Museum of Modern Art by John Szarkowski whose work largely reflected the subjectivity of the artist.
The distance between them is to be measured not in terms of the relative force or originally of their work, but in terms of their conceptions of what a photograph is; is it a mirror, reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it, or a window, through which one might better know the world.
– John Szarkowski
This suggests that every image is either a Mirror or a Window and looks into different areas of peoples life’s, or looks into the outside world.
Windows – objective, documentary, realism, candid, public, external, truthful.
Binary Opposites
Mirrors Windows
Studio Street
Inside outside
Subject object
Chosen Image
This is my chosen image, it is a field where a person has worn in a path from the amount of times they have walked it. I have chosen this image because it has elements of both Mirrors and Windows, it looks at the outside world in reality but also peers into someone’s life and why this particular path might of been important or why they continue to walk the same path. This has elements of being a Window because its a realistic image and its external it looks outside the life of a person and their home. This image could also be seen as a Mirror because it does reflect on the persons life in a way. It suggests what was important about this image and why they chose to take this photo.
Texts > Write a short introduction or statement about your picture story, image captions
Typography > creative uses of words, letters, font-types, sizes
Add a selection of your final 10-16 images as a moodboard/ gallery to the blog post too, including any archive material too.
3 words
then and now
A sentence
I have a variety of images showing the now and then of the harbour.
paragraph
For my zine I have used a range of images that I took of the Harbour whilst having a talk and a tour from Captain Brian Nibbs and I have also searched through the photo archive of old images from the Harbour and tried finding images in which were similar to my images and I created a layout that showed the images in a “then and now” sense. Each of my images hold a unique story behind them where some of the images where Captain Nibbs is featured it shows memories of his life and when he used to be a Sea Captain back in the way when some of the Harbour comparison images show how much life has or hasn’t changed throughout the years.
Plan
Where am I taking photos?
For this photoshoot I am going to St Helier Harbour and going to take a selection of images that really show off and represent the Harbour. We are going to be having a tour by Captain Nibbs so I will also try to capture some good images of him in the moment as he’s explaining key information about the harbour and his connections to and around the harbour life.
My zine
For my first zine I have decided I would like to try and use my images along with images from the archive and make a 12-page zine using comparisons as a then and now structure to show how much the harbour has changed in these last few years. I am also going to use the images that I take of Captain Nibbs
What are the differences between photographs that are windows and mirrors?
‘Is it a mirror, reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it, or a window, through which one might better know the world?’- John Szarkowski.
Mirror- A mirror photograph is a romantic expression of the photographer’s sensibility as it projects itself onto things and sights of the world. These images are staged/ tableaux and are subjective. They present the photographer, or a reflection of the photographer, as he reflects himself onto the images. These images are metaphorically described as mirrors, because they are a reflection of the photographer.
Window- A window photograph is when the exterior world is explored in all its presence and reality, so the images are not staged/ tableaux, so they are documentary based. They are also objective. These images are metaphorically described as windows, because they look out onto the world, like you would look out through a window onto the world.
Words and other quotes associated with windows and mirrors
Windows- Film, subjective, fiction, staged, private, bent/ wonky, internal etc.
Mirrors- non-fiction/ documentary, objective, candid, private, external etc.
Analysis of Images
Mirror- Cindy Sherman
About the image- Cindy Sherman is a female photographer, who dressed up as many different stereotypes. In this image she is a generic house wife in the kitchen. This is a powerful image, because back from the 1970-1980’s, when this image was taken, the norm for women was to be very domestic and stay at home with the children and cook and clean, while the husband was out at work.
Mirror- This image is therefore a mirror, because it is a reflection of herself as a women and a reflection of her identity, because this is the stereotype she had to live through and this is what was considered to be socially acceptable of her and all other women in this time. This is also very personal and internal to her, as she is the one who has lived her life this way and being told she must live her life this way. She has also manipulated this image and staged the image, so it is a tableaux, because she has dressed up as this house wife and manipulated her setting to be the kitchen, as well as posing for the camera, so that it is not a candid shot. This image is also very subjective and can interpreted in many different ways by the viewer, because it is such a simple, yet powerful image of her stood in the kitchen, with an apron on. This image is also a mirror, because it is a self-portrait of herself, that she had taken on a timer for her camera.
Window- Rafal Milach
About the Image- This image was taken during a road trip across Iceland with Icelandic writer Huldar Breiðfjörð, from which he made a book called, ‘In the car with R.’ He travelled across Iceland stopping at certain point to take images. This was a image he took in either a bar/ diner of a couple and their friend.
Window- This image is a window, because he travelled across Iceland taking documentary candid images of whatever he saw that interested him, and in this image it was these three people. This image is very external to him, because he does not know these people, and most likely never saw them again, but he spotted a decisive moment and acted. He is looking out onto these people for this image, instead of looking at his reflection, or onto himself. There is also an element of realism and truthfulness in this image, which is what makes it a window, because it is a documentary image, instead of a candid image, which is staged or fictional.
Within the origin of photography, there are two photographic processes; Daguerreotype and Calotype. The Calotype process first produced a photographic ‘negative’ in the camera, from which many ‘positive’ calotype prints could be made, whereas daguerreotypes were a one-off image.
Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was a French artist and photographer, recognized for his invention of the daguerreotype process of photography. The daguerreotype is a direct-positive process, creating a highly detailed image on a sheet of copper, plated with a thin coat of silver (without the use of negative). The process required great care, the silver-plated copper plate had to be cleaned first and polished until the surface looked like a mirror. But the daguerreotype had serious limitations, the mirror-like surface of the image could only be viewed from a narrow angle.
According to John Szarkowski‘s thesis, the daguerreotype can be considered as a mirror image rather than a window image. This is because Daguerre focused on taking photographs of people rather than of the world, and I believe this category of images are more personal and subjective and could possible reflect feelings and emotions of the photographer. This may be due to the fact that images of others hold great value as they capture that moment that one is able to reflect on after the moment passes. This was a useful technique from Daguerre as it also gives the viewer a hint of history and context behind the photograph, while also allowing us to find out a little bit more about the artist himself, and potentially find out why he took these images and what his passion behind his methods was. Additionally, centuries later we are able to see what photographs looked like in the 1800s, seeing how greatly photography has evolved since then, which I think is effective as it reflects historical contexts within photography and specifically portraits. This is because through a portrait, one is able to see a lot deeper than just the photograph, as we can see the expressions of the person, background of the image, clothing etc which can also bring us to ask questions and compare todays photography to Daguerre’s time. Szarkowski states “a mirror – a romantic expression of the photographer’s sensibility as it projects itself on the things and sights of this world.” To a high extent I agree with this quote because sensibility means being able to appreciate and respond to complex emotional or aesthetic influences, which is shown through how the image is taken. For example, a mirror image often expresses a person’s hobbies, habits or personal experiences.
William Henry Fox Talbot invented the original positive and negative process, the calotype is sometimes called a “Calotype.” This process uses a paper negative to make a print with a softer, less sharp image than the daguerreotype, but because a negative is produced, it is possible to make multiple copies. Fox Talbot’s images were made so that when they were exposed to light, they were easy to producer and distribute. However, these images faced many drawbacks such as the people in the images being described as looking ‘on the edge of present’, meaning they did not quite look alive due to low sharpness and graininess. The process was superseded in the 1850s by the collodion glass negative. A lot of calotype photographs show scenery in the image rather than people or things that associate with the artist specifically. This method can ultimately show history because it was introduced in 1941. A lot of calotypes fit into realism, public and optical. John Szarkowski stated: “The distance between them is to be measured not in terms of the relative force or originality of their work, but in terms of their conceptions of what the photograph is: Is it a mirror, reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it, or a window, through which one might better know the world? I personally would agree with this statement because I believe each artist is different with unique and different views 5 on what an image is or the meaning behind it. According to John Szarkowski‘s thesis, in my personal opinion Fox Talbot’s images are more associated with windows in comparison to mirrors, mainly because his common subject throughout his photographs is trees or buildings.
Mirrors chosen image:
Cindy Sherman’s Untitled Film Stills is a suite of 70 black and white photographs in which the artist posed in the guises of various generic female film characters (working girl, vamp, and lonely housewife). Staged to resemble scenes from 1950s and ’60s Hollywood movies, printed images mimic often-staged “stills” used to promote films. By photographing herself in such roles, Sherman inserts herself into a dialogue about stereotypical portrayals of women. I chose this image to analyse for my mirrors as it is a subjective expression and definitely has a staged approach, which immediately makes me question why this image was taken. I find this image intriguing as the context behind it successfully links to the assumptions and interpretations I can make from first glance as a viewer. For example, this image was taken by Sherman in 1977, which was a time when women’s rights were not as valued as men’s rights, when women were not seen as equal to men, rather, they were objectified. I believe this image effectively portrays these historical challenges against women and feminism because Sherman is fitting into the female stereotypes and representations, such as being aesthetically pleasing to men. I can assume this from the minimal clothing she is wearing, as well as wearing an extremely seductive makeup look. These factors contribute to women being sexualised because in the 60s and 70s because women supposedly didn’t have much purpose other than to nurture their children or please their husbands. Therefore, from this I can gather that perhaps Sherman took these images to please men, potentially to gain male attention as back in the 70s it was challenging for women to be seen as worthful. Furthermore, the construction of the overall image executes these representations because Sherman is clearly the main subject in this image, as there isn’t much background and the camera angle is focused on just her body and face. This immediately draws my attention to Sherman’s facial expressions and body language, which indicate her awareness of how she has been viewed and sexualised. In addition, Sherman is portraying the “female gaze” in this image, which is an issue of representing women as subjects having agency and also adds to the ideology of women being objectified. I believe this image is a mirror image as it favourably feeds into representations of women, and by reflecting these historical contexts as a viewer I am able to gather an ideology of how strongly Sherman feels about these stereotypes. Through the positioning of the camera as a deadpan angle directly above Sherman, as well as Sherman gazing away from the camera gives me the impression that this image was staged. As the artist herself is the model in the image, this tells us that the aim of her Untitled Film was to reflect herself as a photographer and perhaps disagree with the challenges women have had to face over the decades.
Windows chosen image:
This image was taken by Henri Cartier Bresson, a French artist and humanist photographer considered a master of candid photography, and is one of his most celebrated images. He pioneered the genre of street photography, and viewed photography as capturing a decisive moment. Bresson was “profoundly inspired by the idea of capturing life as it unfolded in the streets.” This quote from Bresson himself tells me immediately that he was a street photographer who focused on taking objective images that were less personal to him, rather, they focused on capturing a moment that could not be easily replicated or staged. In addition, John Szarkowki stated “… or as a window – through which the exterior world is explored in all its presence and reality.” This also illustrates that window images should be more documentary rather than a reflection of the photographer, which I believe Bresson’s images fit perfectly into because he is known for capturing the Decisive Moment, which he describes asthe exact instance when a unique event is captured by the photographer – when something that may never happen again is frozen in the frame. Through using the scale below, I was able to confirm Cartier Bresson’s images were windows rather than mirrors:
I identified this through the adjectives used on the right side of the scale, which I can associate with his images more accurately as he was a street photographer. Street photography is a genre that records everyday life in a public place, and I believe Bresson’s work executes this successfully as it presents an intersection of artistic skill and journalistic documentation. His works reflect on the most tragic and significant moments of the twentieth century, and can also help us learn more about the recent past. These factors also compliment the idea that this image is a window image as it links into publicity and realism, adding to the theme of objectivity. I have noticed there is often movement throughout his photos which can also interlink with this ideology as it clearly portrays the image as not being staged, which is another element that catches my eye. Despite this, it could be argued that Bresson’s images do not successfully highlight realism as this image in particular is in black and white. Because of this, we can conclude that the image has been edited which overall contrasts with the concept of window images as it does not show the image the way the human eye would see it. Therefore, this brings in the fact that the mirror and windows scale theory shown above can be viewed as a delicate range rather than harshly separated and opposing each other completely. This is because many images by different photographers can be placed on the scale differently as they incorporate unique factors from one another. Shown in Pearl’s review, Szarkowski claims “this thesis is not a rigid pattern, but as a continuous axis, the two poles of which might be described by the terms proposed above”, which compliments this idea. However, I would say this image by Bresson specifically falls into the windows category only as it clearly was not influenced by personal elements, rather, it has a solid expression of authenticity due to the location of the image as well as the movement included. This ultimately concedes a documentative aesthetic as it shows that the people in the photograph have not adjusted or changed their behaviours for the image. Henceforth, I agree with Szarkowski’s statement “… or as a window- through which the exterior world is explored in all its presence and reality” as Bresson’s experimentation with street photography as well as the Decisive Moment acknowledge a more realistic side of photography showing non-staged moments of life.
Conclusion:
In conclusion of the mirrors and windows theory executed by Szarkowski and Jed Pearl, an image by any artist can be categorised into either mirrors or windows, and arguably some images fit into both categories. Szarkowski attempted to categorise photographers whose work reflected the subjectivity of the artist themselves in comparison with those whose work largely sought to see outside themselves. Szarkowski himself stated that photographs are either mirrors- a subjective image that reflects the artists opinions/feelings/beliefs on the world, or windows- an image that portrays the exterior world with an unstaged approach and a more objective expression shown through it. Through the use of the scale which identifies whether an image is a mirror or a window, it suggests that a photographic artist of the twentieth century finds himself, consciously or unconsciously, somewhere along a “continuous axis” from romantic to realist. Yet it can be argued that use of the medium presupposes a “generous and inclusive acceptance of fact, objective structure,” and that the selection among these facts is the personal opposite built into any photograph.
In contrast to Szarkowski, Jed pearl made a review in spring 1978 critiquing Szarkowski’s theory. He started his review by stating ‘Szarkowski is fond of creating categories’ which immediately shows he disagrees with Szarkowski’s ideology, and believes images should not fit into a rigid structure of categorising. He continues with ‘Szarkowski claims this thesis not as a rigid pattern, but as a “continuous axis, the two poles of which might be described by the terms proposed above”, displaying his opinions of how any photograph can fit into either the mirrors or the windows classification. However, I mostly agree with Szarkowski’s theory as I believe it is a successful way of interpreting an image at first glance, and is an immediate way of determining the purpose behind a photograph. By using this theory, as a viewer I can also make accurate assumptions on why the image was taken and what it is trying to illustrate to people. Therefore, Szarkowski’s theory on mirrors and windows is a good approach to use when photographing as it reveals hidden information about the image, yet also still leaves the viewer questioning elements within the photograph.
Similarities and Differences between Sherman and Cartier-Bresson:
Within these 2 images taken by the different artists, immediately I can recognise several opposing concepts between them. Firstly, within the concept of objectivity and subjectivity I can determine an obvious difference, as Bresson’s image executes a clear tone of objectivity whereas Sherman’s image lacks this aspect. This is due to the fact both images have different camera angles: a deadpan angle from a worms-eye view, and a deadpan angle from a birds-eye view. Straight away, this tells me that Sherman’s image is staged as a set-up would be needed in order to portray this, as well as Sherman’s posing in the photograph. Through these factors I can specify that Sherman had a message she wanted to carry out: that message being herself portraying stereotypes of women in the 1970s. Whereas, Bresson’s image shows a sense of documentation through the non-staged approach of the camera angle, therefore forcing the image to lack a romantic expression. However, a similarity between these two photographs is that they are both edited into black and white. The theme of black and white decreases the element of objectivity as we do not see the world in black and white, therefore it is clear that both images have been edited. Another difference between these two photographers is the public and private aspect. Sherman’s portrait is a private image as she was the photographer as well as the model in the image, showing that she was depicting a reflection of herself and her own views on the subject matter. Bresson’s image is clearly a public image as it was taken outdoors with members of the public, decreasing the subjectivity. Additionally, I can infer that Cartier Bresson was an artist that tapped into significant moments of the twentieth century, which increases the likelihood of his work having factual elements rather than being influenced by personal feelings. This idea can also be determined by the people in Bresson’s image, who are performing naturally and are not changing their mannerisms in order to suit the image, which ultimately links back to his Decisive Moment experimentation.
The Mirrors and Windows exhibition of American photography has been around since 1960, and in 1978 opened in New York City at The Museum of Modern Art. The curator, John Szarkowski, wanted to categorise photographers into subjective work, reflective of the individual and objective, documentary work that sought outside the individual.
What is the difference between photographs that are mirrors and windows?
Mirrors and windows are ideas of a binary opposite. ‘…two creative motives…’ [Szarkowski, 1978] that have conspicuous contrasting ideas.
Mirrors is an idea about expression and originality. Multiple, subjective perspectives can be interpreted. Just as mirrors, photos can have a warped or manipulated perspective to emphasise a narrative/point.
This ‘creative motive’ is reminiscent of the theatrical visual art of tableaux vivant, that would recreate artworks with props and actors on stage. Similar to the way a photo recreates ideas with its subjects, composition and themes.
To Szarkowski it was ‘…reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it…’. Early examples of this romantic style photography can be seen in the works of Julia Margaret Cameron, who was directly inspired by tableaux vivants.
Julia Margaret Cameron
Windows is of a single objective perspective. They are descriptive, documentary and formal as they tell a clear narrative in from a fixed point of view.
Examples of ‘window’ photographers are Henri Cartier Bresson – and photojournalist who travelled the world merely observing conflicts, communities and cultures – and Ansel Adams – a photographer and activist of many conservation groups, capturing the candid beauty of national parks.
Gestapo Informer Recognized by a Woman She Had Denounced by Henri Cartier-Bresson, 1945Seville, Spain by Henri Cartier-Bresson, 1933
‘Window’ effect with using the hole as a frame.
Rain, Yosemite Valley, California, Ansel Adams
Windows describe something present whilst mirrors describe the interpretation of what is present.
The compositions are always creative, and can be informative or abstract. Windows and mirrors to me seem to a spectrum to exercise ideas and storytelling.
Photography started with many years ago with a camera obscura, and using this camera obscura we began creating different ways of capturing the light. Some of the first ways where the Daguerreotype and Calotype process. The Daguerreotype process required a perfectly reflective silver plated copper, almost like a mirror, to capture the light. The Calotype process used a sheet of paper coated with silver chloride and exposed to light in a camera obscura, which is basically a small window into the real world, creating a negative image (the Daguerreotype process also used a camera obscura). So the idea of windows and mirrors in practical photography have been around for hundreds of years. However, as cameras become more common with a larger and larger catalogue of images, there became a pattern which most images followed, with some images being more subjective and romantic (a term used to show the indispensable presence of its maker in the picture), and others being more documentary like and objective. These ideas relate to mirrors and windows respectively. However, using the ideas of how a camera works, with view finder, or the window into the camera, and how the photographers view is almost always reflected onto the photo, means its hard to find an image that fits into one category.
Mirror
This image by Cristina-de-Middel is clearly very staged and manipulated. Its one photo in a collection by her to rebuild some a little Zambian story about astronauts, you can learn more here. It is of a person, with homemade clothing walking like there are on the moon almost. The background contrasts the subject in a way that makes it look edited (with the background being dark and rocky and the subject having colourful native clothing on), further enhancing this manipulated look. The covered up face with the helmet adds a sense of curiosity to the image as we don’t know who is under it. Its also a tableau as it has a model positioned by the photographer, reflecting there views on the scene. This also links to John Szarkowski’s quote about mirror in photography, “reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it”, as she added her own twist to the original Zambian story. However Jed Pearl’s review on Szarkowski’s thesis opposes this view of a clear ‘mirrored’ image of the artist, as all of photography by its very nature can create a inclusive acceptance of fact and objective structure, yet the choosing of images and the facts to show for them is the romantic/mirrored part of a photograph. In my opinion, I think Szarkowski’s thesis is the most correct as he believes all photographs are on a continuous axis but most lean towards one side. So with this image, the romanticism side is obvious with the planned shots and the modifications of the original story of the Zambian astronaut, but the fact that there was an original story leans the axis slightly less towards the staged side and towards the factual side.
Window
This picture was taken in 1969 by the Garry Winogrand in Los Angeles, in public. He is a famous street photographer so already the photographer cannot add his own input to the subjects in the photo, only the subjects can change from the photographer being there. For example, the three women that are in the light may notice the camera and make themself appear better. This already makes this image more of a truthful, and natural image, and removing the romanticism from the image, contrasting the tableau image above. The person on the left, with his curved back, contrasting the straight lines of the lights and buildings, further emphases the truthful nature of this image. The photographer can, however, add input to the composition of the photo, like how he tilted the camera to create more diagonals in his images, adding more dynamism and drama, as well as cropping images to remove some of the truth, to create an image that matches the photographers desire. in Szarkowski’s thesis realist is ‘generous and inclusive acceptance of fact, objective structure, and the logic of process and system’, however, this image can never be a realist image by those standards as its already subjective by the photographers modification on the composition of the image. In Jed Pearl’s review of Szarkowski’s thesis, he states that his thesis, ‘gives little value to photography’s a priori status as a realist activity’. I agree with this point as with this photo, its objectively unedited and natural, making it a documentary photo, instead of a tableau, where as Szarkowski believe there is not a definitive line between those two categories.
@t-little14
So, How can photographs be both mirrors and Windows of the world, I believe its because we cannot draw a line between the mirror photographs and the window photographs. Above I said that drawing a line between a documentary and tableau photo makes sense. This is because those words cannot be subjective otherwise they would be pointless to use. However, when it comes to mirror and window photographs, like Szarkowski said, its very hard to leave one photo in one category as even with documentary photos, its hard to not reflect some of the photographers visions (consciously or unconsciously) onto the final photo. I disagree with Pearl’s review, which was that no photos can be mirrors as, by nature, they are a window into the world, because of the fact that the photographers visions will always be reflected onto the photo. The opposing concepts of objectivity and subjectivity with windows and mirrors both features displayed in almost aspects of a photo, as I have explained above with two images. Even with the the image being more ‘Window’ like or ‘Mirror’ like, I have shown that it will still display aspects that oppose its original ‘designated’ category.
Introduction: Photography can turn something ordinary into extraordinary, photography transforms what it describes. Early origin’s of photography starts with Camera Obscura, this is when you have a blacked out room, with a tiny hole from the outside world showing the light into the room. After around 1-2 hours of patiently waiting, there will show an upside down natural photo of exactly what is on the other side of the hole in the wall. a darkened box with a convex lens or aperture for projecting the image of an external object on to a screen inside, a forerunner of the modern camera.
Introduction (250 words): Reflect on the origin of photography and describe in your own words the difference between the two photographic processes, Daguerreotype and Calotype. Consider how they could be viewed as either a mirror or a window of the world according to John Szarkowski’s thesis. Choose one quote from Szarkowski’s text and comment if you agree or disagree.
Paragraph 1 (250 words): Choose an image that in your view is a mirror and analyse how it is a subjective expression and staged approach to image-making. Choose one quote from Szarkowski’s thesis and another from Jed Pearl’s review which either supports of opposes Szarkowski’s original point of view. Make sure you comment to advance argumentation in providing a critical perspective.
Paragraph 2 (250 words): Choose an image that in your view is a window and analyse how it is an objective expression rooted in a sense of realism. Choose one quote from Szarkowski’s thesis and another from Jed Pearl’s review and follow similar procedure as above ie. two opposing points of view and commentary to provide a critical perspective.
Conclusion (250 words): Refer back to the essay question and write a conclusion where you summarise Szarkowski’s theory and Pearl’s review of his thesis. Describe differences and similarities between the two images above and their opposing concepts of objectivity and subjectivity, realism and romanticism, factual and fiction, public and private.
Introduction (250 words): Reflect on the origin of photography and describe in your own words the difference between the two photographic processes, Daguerreotype and Calotype. Consider how they could be viewed as either a mirror or a window of the world according to John Szarkowski’s thesis. Choose one quote from Szarkowski’s text and comment if you agree or disagree.
The daguerreotype photographic process is a positive process. It is a highly detailed image on a sheet of copper with a thin layer of silver and this process has no use of negatives. This process is very delicate, and the sheet of copper and layer of silver must be cleaned before you start the process and must look like a mirror. The daguerreotype process is accurate, detailed and sharp. The Calotype process uses negative and positives and was invented by William Henry Fox Talbot. This process uses a paper negative which results in a softer and less sharp image than a daguerreotype image. To create a calotype image, the sheet of paper needs to be iodized by applying solutions of silver nitrate and potassium iodide under candlelight. The same surface needs to be sensitized using a “Gallo-nitrate of silver” solution and lastly the piece of paper needs to be dried and loaded onto the camera obscura. The calotype process produces a transparent image which can be easily multiplied by contact printing; however, a daguerreotype image can only be multiplied by using a camera. Therefore, the calotype process had an advantage over the daguerreotype process. An image can either be a window image or a mirror image.
Paragraph 1 (250 words): Choose an image that in your view is a mirror and analyse how it is a subjective expression and staged approach to image-making. Choose one quote from Szarkowski’s thesis and another from Jed Pearl’s review which either supports of opposes Szarkowski’s original point of view. Make sure you comment to advance argumentation in providing a critical perspective.
Paragraph 2 (250 words): Choose an image that in your view is a window and analyse how it is an objective expression rooted in a sense of realism. Choose one quote from Szarkowski’s thesis and another from Jed Pearl’s review and follow similar procedure as above ie. two opposing points of view and commentary to provide a critical perspective.
Conclusion (250 words): Refer back to the essay question and write a conclusion where you summarise Szarkowski’s theory and Pearl’s review of his thesis. Describe differences and similarities between the two images above and their opposing concepts of objectivity and subjectivity, realism and romanticism, factual and fiction, public and private.
A Mirror reflects a portrait of the artist who made it, or a window, through which one might better know the world.
In the summer of 1835 William Henry Fox Talbot experimented with various chemicals to develop paper coatings suitable for use in a camera. He placed small wooden cameras that his wife called “mousetraps” all over his estate. The earliest surviving paper negative dates from August 1835, a small recording of the bay window of Lacock Abbey (left). In 1978, the German photographer Floris Neusüss visited Lacock Abbey to make photograms of the same window. He returned again in 2010 for the Shadow Catchers exhibition at the V&A to create a life-sized version of Talbot’s window.
The idea of photographs functioning like windowsmakes total sense. Like the camera viewfinder, windows frame our view of the world. We see through them and light enters the window so that we can see beyond. Photographs present us with a view of something. However, it might also be possible to think of photographs as mirrors, reflecting our particular view of the world, one we have shaped with our personalities, our subconscious motivations, so that it represents how our minds work as well as our eyes. The photograph’s glossy surface reflects as much as it frames. Of course, some photographs might be both mirrors and windows.
“The two creative motives that have been contrasted here are not discrete. Ultimately each of the pictures in this book is part of a single, complex, plastic tradition. Since the early days of that tradition, an interior debate has contested issues parallel to those illustrated here. The prejudices and inclinations expressed by the pictures in this book suggest positions that are familiar from older disputes. In terms of the best photography of a half-century ago, one might say that Alfred Stieglitz is the patron of the first half of this book and Eugène Atget of the second. In either case, what artist could want a more distinguished sponsor? The distance between them is to be measured not in terms of the relative force or originality of their work, but in terms of their conceptions of what a photograph is: is it a mirror, reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it, or a window, through which one might better know the world?” — John Szarkowski, 1978.
