Krish P

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Photography and Art in 2020

Krish Potluri

"A picture is worth a thousand words."

Thanks to modern technology, I believe there are very few humans on our planet who don't know what a camera or a photo means. I also think that the percentage will be negligibly small. I'm confidently stating these because I'm looking at my grandfather, who grew up in a village and was a farmer in rural India, knows about pictures, cameras, and how important they can be.

How important can they be?

Going back to the early 1830s, it took decades for researchers to come up with a simple, easy-to-recreate procedure to create a picture. It's funny how standards change over time. "Easy" back then means about a minute or two of the subject not moving while capturing the photograph and hours of development work after the picture is captured. Oh, don't forget the super heavy equipment and costly peripherals.

At that time, photography was the only way to freeze time. People were immediately fascinated by this invention. All the wealthy ones who could afford to get a camera and a photographer started posing with their prized possessions as they realized a picture could show off their wealth even after they’re dead.

As decades passed by, thanks to the development in photography, the tech got cheaper and more mature. Enabling people to capture a moment whenever they want opened up countless possibilities. Although not many milestones of humanity were pictured back then (before the digital age), people loved making memories with their kids and family. We gotta agree, a picture of his daughter or son smiling will always be the most important thing to any father out in the field.

Art and Photography?

During the same period, on the other hand, a few first-gen photographers started looking at things from a different perspective. They started trying to apply their skill and imagination to create something that is instantly admirable or emotionally powerful. Yeah, you just read the textbook definition of 'art.' Slowly, art galleries and exhibitions started featuring this kind of photographs alongside paintings and sculptures. This was around the late 1850s and early 1860s when photography was understandably new to people.

As one would expect, there was a constant debate about whether or not photography is an art form, and if it should be excluded from art shows and exhibitions. People like Louis Figuier, a French naturalist and scientist, came up with logical explanations comparing photography with other art forms. This debate went on for years, but couldn't stop the people from trying an artistic approach. Many great photographers already started exploring different genres, and meanwhile, the technology consistently developed over those years.

Thanks to great artists like Ansel Adams and Alfred Stieglitz, photography was finally declared as an art form in the 1940s in the United States, followed by Europe and others.

Now what?

Besides being one of the most influential art forms, photography also turned out to be the most loved art form. A little too much, I'd say.

Now that everyone loves pictures, photography was commercialized, resulting in cheaper and more portable cameras which lead to an exponential growth in sales and usage. Fast-forwarding to the 2000s, where the digital age took over literally every field, including photography. The very same digitalization and software boom created many new art forms like mixed media, digital art, comics (yes), animation, etc.

It's funny how the terms change. Before digitalization, if someone said "a picture", that means they are referring to a physical object. Now you have to explicitly mention, like "a photo print."

Somewhere during this digitalization, which I believe is good for the environment, also started the trend of showing-off over social media. People began trying super hard but with very little effort to prove their "artistic vision" and also to one-up fellow photographers who might be better. 

In a matter of a couple of decades, I believe everything flipped over. Back in the day, people used to go to places to experience it and to learn about it. Now? People are rushing to places to get “that shot” for the ‘gram. There is a difference between “I wish I can visit that place in my life” and “I wish I can get to that place so that I can get a better picture,” only the latter being the worse. Now I know not everyone thinks that way, but I can see this mindset increasing in the last couple of years. I’m meeting more and more people who want to be there only to get that shot, yet call themselves artists. I believe when the desire to be famous on social media dies, that’s when an average person can start looking at stuff from new perspectives, i.e., in an artistic way.

Okay, so no more art then?

An object being artistic is relative. It has always been that way and will always be that way. (ELI5: A sculpture might look artistic to my eyes. But the very same sculpture at the very same point of time might not make any sense to someone else.) And of course, that applies to photographs as well. Try googling “most artistic photos” and observe how you might not even like most of those pictures. People often forget about this and often judge others a little too quickly.

Combining this logic with the aforementioned "artists" makes no sense in my head. Now, I'm aware of the fact that the universe is under no obligation to make sense to me (as said by Neil deGrasse Tyson), I want to remind people that, as a photographer,

“Not every picture you make can be artistic to everyone.
At the same time, any picture that others make is not obligated to look artistic to you.”

Besides, we really like taking pictures, don't we? Ever thought about it? Wondering why? Well... That's going to be a story for another day.

Until then,
Stay curious, people!

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