Re: [Leica] Political Correctness

[Barney <barney@ncep.noaa.gov>]

Tina,

I am one of the LUG's lurkers. Let me de-cloak for a moment. I have read so
much of your stuff and have seen so many of your photos that I think of you as
a friend, even though we've never communicated.

The origins of political correctness may be innocent enough.... a way to
remind people that it's not a good thing to be offensive to women, or blacks,
or gays, or other minorities. I'm a mannerly person. So are you. Who could be
opposed to manners? But, it's grown into something far from innocent. I think
that  there are people who have seized on it as a way of controlling and
manipulating what other people say, do, and perhaps even think.

For me to say that your artistic vision is politically incorrect and to then
go on to say that this is what you must do to make it correct is for me to
control your vision and manipulate your work. It's turning your project into
my project. Not only is what your were told bunk, it's dangerous bunk. It they
feel that strongly that that's what they want to put in their gallery than let
them hand out cameras and do their own project! Stand your ground and have
faith in your vision. When you give these things up, you also give up being an
artist.

On a practical note.....not every gallery is going to like your work, and not
every gallery can be sold on your vision. That's just life in the big city, as
it were. If  someone has something helpful to say then take it for what it is
worth. Otherwise..... the woods is full of fools. Move on to the next gallery.

Barney






Tina Manley wrote:

> Dear LUGnuts -
>
> The Project Workshop in Santa Fe with Sam Abell was very good.  Sam is a
> wonderful teacher; however, I learned something that was both enlightening
> and disturbing.
>
> My project is "Las Familias" - an exhibit (possibly book) of my photographs
> of Honduran families.  I learned that many galleries will not accept my
> project because it is politically incorrect - I am a photographer from the
> first world photographing people in the third world.  To make the project
> more acceptable it was suggested that I involve the families in the project
> by (a) giving them a camera and letting them photograph their own lives (b)
> getting them to write comments about the photographs.  (a) wouldn't work
> because the people I visit don't have time to take photographs - they spend
> all of their waking hours trying to feed their families (b) might work with
> a tape recorder but many of the people I photograph don't read or write -
> and several of the families in the project were killed by Hurricane Mitch -
> do I exclude those photographs?
>
> What do you think about political correctness?  Gallery owners and
> publishers who reviewed our work seemed to think it is an important issue,
> but it honestly never occurred to me.
>
> Leically,
>
> Tina
>
> Tina Manley, ASMP
> http://www.tinamanley.com