Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/12/04
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I think the only problem with AA work is that we see it so often. It just
starts getting boring after awhile. Like some music, such as many of
Beethoven's symphonies which are heard over and over and over again.
But I do recall vividly the first time I saw Ansel Adams photographs, may
years ago as a teenager, and the profound effect they had on me at the
time. I think this is what really counts, not the jaded view of a much
older person.
Dan C.
At 11:12 AM 04-12-00 -0800, Mark Rabiner wrote:
>Johnny Deadman wrote:
>>
>> on 3/12/00 4:04 pm, Dean Chance at mreyebal@pacbell.net wrote:
>>
>> > As for the complaints that Mapplethorpe is technically adept photographer
>> > who is only well-known because of his subject matter...well, couldn't you
>> > say the same of Ansel Adams? ("He's only famous because he took
pictures of
>> > Yosemite. It's all high-class nature porn.")
>>
>> Well, I happen to think you're exactly right about Ansel Adams. I am
full of
>> respect for the old bugger because technically he has all the answers, and
>> he had an enormous heart, I'm sure of that. But to me there is a complete
>> emptiness at the heart of many (not all) of his pictures. All those
>> photographs of half dome... again and again... and churches and receding
>> mountain vistas... there definitely IS something of pornography in it... in
>> the sense of repetitious exploitation of subject matter.><Snip>
>
>
>Jeeze!! does " Ansel Adams" and "pornography" belong in the same paragraph?
>Let's ask Susan Sontag!!
>For me the answer would be… let me see… NO!!!!!!! NON!!!
>I don't catch the repetitiousness and unfeelingfullness of Ansels work.
>These qualities elude me.
>Some if it is grandiose but it's GOOD grandiose and hell the think what he
was
>shooting WAS grandiose and what the hell is wrong with grandiose???!!!!
>Ansel goes for the big effect. He's not into boring subtlety You WILL look at
>his images for more than one second. This does set him up for employment with
>Larry Flynt.
>
>mark rabiner
>:)
>http://spokenword.to/rabiner/
>http://people.oven.com/jbm/temp-displays/Mark_Rabiner/Marks_Zone_System.pdf
>
>