Recreation Numero Dos

Blind Woman (1916)

Paul Strand

Born: October 16, 1890

American Photographer and Filmmaker

-       Along with fellow photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Weston established pictures and photography as an art form of the 20^th century

-       Strand began a movement known as the era of modern photography

“First valid synthesis of contemporary themes and artistically mature vision appropriate to the photographic medium”

History

-       During World War I

o   Strand believed there to be a great deal of unrest in America

o   He began portraying anonymous human beings on the streets of New York City

§  Strand was not concerned with creating a sociogram of New York City

o   He sought everyday characters drawing simple people to the center of his work

§  He wanted them to be the unconscious ‘object’ of a psychological investigation

Method

-       Used specially fitted cameras in order to photograph without being noticed

o   Initially side-mounted objective

o   Later with a prism lens

-       Goal = Striving for the greatest degree of objectivity

Strands work is pure

Strand work is brutally direct

Strands work is a direct expression of today

Personally I truly enjoy the work of Strand. I like the realness in his photos. I like that his subjects are not posed but rather completely unaware of the picture being taken. Being able to achieve the sense of rawness is incredible not only for his time but for today. Some photographers still struggle with capturing raw emotional portraits and Strand was able to do without the subject even realizing what was happening. 

My Recreation

When doing my recreation I had a little bit of trouble with it. I wanted to recreate this picture with a more comical feel to it. Strand was known for portraying the pure and directly brutal photography of his day. While I truly appreciate and admire his work I wanted to put my own spin on his picture. And it is very difficult to create a recreation when the original was a candid the woman didn't even know was being taken.

Balance...It was difficult to get the background the way I wanted. As you can see in the original the background is a bit crooked and through my pictures I attempted to subtly turn them in order to create the background as in the original. You can see in my recreation that the background is actually crooked the other way which I ended up really liking. I thought it fitting having the background opposite along with the lights and darks in the photo. 

Contrast...In the original the woman along with the scene behind her is very dark. But I attempted a more light hearted take on the original so I thought brighter would be more fitting. 

I wanted to keep their faces very similar. I liked seeing the contrast of the colors while still embodying the Blind Woman of New York City. But I also included another picture that definitely depicts the light hearted expression to go along with the theme of the recreation.