In modern times we are bombarded with so many images in our everyday existence it can often be difficult to distinguish what is “true” and what is a falsity. In the days of CGI filming and overly airbrushed photos, it seems that people are more willing to except photographic trickery than they are to accept photography as a documentation of truth (Mirzoeff 89 ). Photography was originally thought of as the ultimate truth, documenting people and events in real time, however this is often no longer the reality. By looking at images in our everyday life with an analytical eye we can better distinguish photographic truths or better appreciate them for their artistic merit (Mirzoeff 89).
Ethnographic films and photography have two opposing conflicts, scientific and aesthetic, work together to bring order to an experience. The ethnographic process is an ever changing process to resolve this tension. The union of art and the skills of filmmakers work together with insight into the subject (Heider 3). Film and photography can be important mediums to show the ethnographic process. Photographers must be able to accept the scientific demands while bringing their own vision to screen.
Dorthea Lange’s photography is considered in the forefront of historical photography. Her photos are life altering because she carefully chooses each subject for its significance. She tries to find images that demand our attention; this can be an everyday object or something extraordinary. She challenges us to look at the world around us and find something brilliant within it. Her photographs take a single moment and expand upon it by exploring the emotion response it evokes. She considers her work to be images of “truth”. She teaches a new visual process in which to view the world around us. One must remember that a viewer’s own cultural perspective comes into play in the selection of the subject, as well as the interpretation and presentation.
Her photograph “Migrant Mother”, taken in 1936, chronicles the harsh realities of Depression era life and changes how we think about portraiture. The aim of the picture is to evoke emotion, not be a pretty portrait. The woman looks haggard and worried while the children look sad. Lang’s photograph depicts what many American’s must have been feeling at that time and expresses the great need to address these concerns on an individual level. The woman in the portrait is symbolic of the emotional toll the Great Depression took on Americans.
When discussing ethnography in relation to film and traditional photography, it is important to realize the differences between the two. Photography has its own sense of history and technology, but ethnography’s goal is scientific research carried out with field experience, in this case the documentation of the working class during the depression.
I feel that this photograph fits well into our current lesson. The photo holds a historical significance because it chronicles the emotional toll of a historical event. It also changes how we look at portraiture. The portrait is not of a famous person, but the message is that every person is important and worthy of being photographed. The woman in this portrait has an important story to tell, one that has become synonymous with a particular time period. This photo illustrates that a common everyday person can be as important to history as someone well-known.
Works Cited:
Heider, K. Ethnographic film. University of Texas Press.2006. Print.
Mirzoeff, N. An Introduction to Visual Culture. 2. Routledge, 2009. Print.
