Beach Abstract?

[Rachel Foster]

I find this sort of "abstract" fascinating, but I suspect it's an idiosyncratic taste. My question here is does this appeal to anyone else? Honest opinions will help me decide if I should keep this in my "private collection" or make it public. Also, if anyone sees anything at all interesting in this, it would be helpful to me to know what elements are worthwhile and which are not. Of course, as always, comments and critiques are most welcome.

ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/400.

Omaha Beach: Jacob Eliana​

I have debated on whether I should mention that when I viewed this, I was aware of how it might have looked on the day of the Allied invasion in 1945. I imagined the water in this image replaced by the blood of soldiers decades ago.

 

[Asher Kelman]

I find this sort of "abstract" fascinating, but I suspect it's an idiosyncratic taste. My question here is does this appeal to anyone else? Honest opinions will help me decide if I should keep this in my "private collection" or make it public. Also, if anyone sees anything at all interesting in this, it would be helpful to me to know what elements are worthwhile and which are not. Of course, as always, comments and critiques are most welcome.

ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/400.

Omaha Beach: Jacob Eliana​

I have debated on whether I should mention that when I viewed this, I was aware of how it might have looked on the day of the Allied invasion in 1945. I imagined the water in this image replaced by the blood of soldiers decades ago.

Rachel,

It's very nicely presented. What it's role is in your work depends on its neighbors. So you need to look what else you have and then it can be seen in that context. Of course, you'd guess I'd want more! Even for an abstract, there might be something that gives us a reference for scale and localized point of interest, but that's not any requirement.

Asher

 

[Rachel Foster]

I would present them as a triptych:

No labels. no "byline." Just the images.

 

[Asher Kelman]

A total refocussing of my observational energies.

But you might need to think of dimensions to have a set of 3.

How will these be physically framed together?

Asher

 

[Rachel Foster]

Yes, I've been pondering that. But the grave markers doesn't work horizontally. So, I would arrange them like this:

With the center photo moved down a bit.

 

[Ken Tanaka]

Rachel,
To my eyes you've presented two very exclusive propositions here.

Your first image of sand patterns in a low-tide beach is a lovely, placid subject very worthy of a treatise on natural abstrative patterns, a genre for which I am an energeti fan.

But then that image assumed an entirely new meaning when you introduced the wider-angle beach view and what appears to be a military cemetery (presumably in France). Now we're looking at a statement on war and the echoes of D-Day. Such a triptych is extremely powerful, but not for its aesthetic value. It's a completely different exploration than natural abstractions.

It's not uncommon, particularly in books but also in exhibitions, for an artist to lead viewers down a seductive path with a single image and then present a wider view of context to make a deeper emotional point. It's a device that must be used very carefully AND WITH GREAT PREMEDITATED INTENTION but it can be very powerful.

 

[Rachel Foster]

Ken, I value the beach sand photo for the peacefulness, but it overwhelms me when I think of historic events. In my mind's eye, I see it as it must have been in 1945. (This is Omaha Beach in Normandy, where the US troops landed.)

I see it in connection with the wider beach shot and the cemetery but I veer away from it because it evokes emotional turmoil. I'm not sure if I have the courage to present it as a trio. I'm hoping here to get feedback that will help me decide what I want to do with this.

This image, and this set of images, elicit an almost visceral response in me and I'm having trouble "seeing" clearly the best way to approach this.

I want to present what I felt. I want to show the eerie peaceful scene that is then ripped to shreds by ghosts of the mass death that amid such beauty. I believe in ghosts, if by ghosts one means the memory of past tragedy on a massive scale. Over 9,000 men died there during that invasion.

I want to create in others the feelings I had, but I'm afraid to. As you said, it may be too powerful, at least for me.

 

[Tom Robbins]

Rachel,

I like the beach "abstract" for what it is, irrespective of context. What it is, to me, is an absolutely beautiful depiction of the co-mingling sand and water at a beach, a place often rich with such possibilities. In my opinion, this inherently beautiful image is quite capable of standing alone on it own merits.

Of course, it can also certainly be used effectively to support the broader theme, but as already observed, it is an emotional one indeed.

 

[Rachel Foster]

Thank you, Tom.

The image and issues that come with it has caused me to ponder new questions, though. When "art" evokes strong emotion, either in the "artist" or in others, what are the responsibilities of the "artist?" (I use quotation marks because I'm specifically wondering about my own role right now and I'm still in the artist-wannabe category.)

Say a piece of work has potential social value but causes the creator unease. What obligations does the creator of the work have, if any?

 

[Ken Tanaka]

Artists have no "obligation" to their followers. (Of course their agents often make every effort to dictate otherwise.) If you don't want to represent a subject, don't.

While the story of the D-Day invasion has immense human tragedy it's easily one of the greatest stories of courage and international determination in human history. In my opinion there's absolutely no reason to be afraid of representing this subject, other than it having been done to death. You visited one of the invasion beaches, the best known, and you have photographs like the millions of others who have similar photos during the past 66 years. Memorializing the event in your own personal way with your photographs could certainly be considered one of the highest honors that you could bestow upon the people who participated in the invasion force.

 

[Rachel Foster]

Yes, that's a good point. There really is nothing original that can be done (that I've discovered). And, since I'd be adding nothing new, the value of such a proposition is limited to what pleasure/meaning it brings to me, personally.

Looked at in that light, I lean toward either the photo solo or as a member of this triplet:

Sand and Water: Jacob Eliana​

I think solo is best, though.

 

[Ken Tanaka]

These appear to be very nice, at least at this size.

Presented as a triptych of three square frames, expertly developed and panel printed, and then captioned simply:

Omaha Beach, Normandy
May, 2010​

they would crush your portrait in that competition, especially if any of the judges is over 40 and has any history education (wishful speculation). Far, far more gravitas. Far deeper concept than the sentimental portrait.

 

[Asher Kelman]

I'm happy tonight!

 

[Rachel Foster]

Canvas mount?

 

[Ken Tanaka]

No, no canvas! I'd recommend having these printed on board or having something like Lambda prints mounted on board at a pro lab (like Gamma here in Chicago). No border, straight to the edge. Nothing to soften or coddle the images.

The best, most revered bodies of images in the art world today are those that require the viewer to supply the emotional content and meaning. These images, with such a caption, can meet such a norm.

 

[Rachel Foster]

Psychologically, that makes sense. If you give the viewer too much, it lessens the viewer involvement and becomes passive.