Critical Annotation
The recent entries into the dossier, in addition to looking at artists, I am exploring how artists present their work. The body of work = journey which has beginning, middle and an end = experiential. The presentation is the exhibition and book, which are artworks in themselves. When conceived and executed well in addition to embodying the work, it is a means to convey another dimension, further engaging our senses. Art only thrives because of the âin person connectionâ.
So how does one ensure the  âin person connectionâ - ability to interact visually (form, spatial processing), physically (form, sense of touch ) and physiologically. On the physiological, language, perception, reasoning (reflecting on the artwork) and mood (resulting in).
For artworks to be fully appreciated the presentational medium (formats and materials) need be synchronous to the subjects/topics, meaningful thought has to be given to the approach itself.
The photography exhibition, The Family of Man (MoMA 1955) often said to be the most successful photography exhibition. It has received both positive and negative reactions to the exhibition in the social/cultural studies context.
Interesting point to note, some who have been critical of the exhibition had never seen the exhibition in person. So were they misinformed, given they may have only seen the exhibition catalogue. (in future, I am keen to look at The Family of Man from an aspect of race and class, âimperialismâ, â. . . as a capitalist cultural tool levering world domination at the height of the Cold Warâ [Allan Sekulla]).
Edward Steichen coordinated and presented the interactive visual photo essay. Interactive (physical and layout) in so much the varied size of the images, how they were hung and the layout. Viewers were able to walk through the works as how they desired, engaging the viewer. As for the scale and layout, the exhibition consisted of 503 images, works of 273 photographers/artists from 68 countries.
The presentation âengulfsâ the viewer into the greater world it was depicting â âa manifesto for peace and the fundamental equality of mankindâ
As I explore the presentation layers, how the content or body of work is developed is key. It is the essence.
With my work focusing  on faith, culture and heritage the sharing/telling and or exhibiting the story, essence of the story needs to be articulated. The topic being multi-layered and its close to topic of humanity, its essence needs to be âlivedâ understood and portrayal be sensitive in nature.
How does one capture the essence, short of living it. A photograph separates us from the world. It creates a âspatial distanceâ but itâs time bound. Given this, how does one ensure that the photograph (image and the medium (e.g. paper) its printed on) is able to convey the next level and or depth of  âvoiceâ of the image. To convey the embodiment, possible things to consider would be the format, size, colour, type of paper, pigmentation, ink, resolution etc.
Hans Georg Bergerâs work in Laos and his approach of âcommunity involvementâ where the photographer seeks to blend in into the community and works with the community and have them show him where to look, what to portray and how to portray. He went on further to look at the physical aspect of the photograph and how it best it âalignedâ with the Buddhism aesthetics â square images (characteristics of Buddhism aesthetics - cosmology, art and architecture) and black and white images (offers abstraction).
The printed page is a means of recording and disseminating information and ideas, the embodiment (engagement) of the work. In photography, the printed page or the photo-book has become literary art. Photographs in a certain sequence can tell a story, as in photo essays.
Books which are âconstructedâ delivers content in an intricate structure which can create an emotional response. It gives the âin person connectionâ, a one to one engagement, conversation, moments of understanding.
Dayanita Singh, a photographer who is known for her work with different photo book formats, an art object as she refers to them. She used the book medium to showcase her photography. The art object serves as book exhibits and exhibition catalogues. In the traditional nature of books as a record. They are easily re sequenced, intermingled with her other photo-books for an exhibition.
â Iâve always wanted to find this space between publishing and the art gallery. What I love the most about photography is dissemination, and publishing gives me that. But I also love how the art gallery can make you look at things in a very special way.â Dayanita Singh.Â
Having seen and physically interacted with her work, I am exploring how her approach to the book is applicable to my work.
On a recent project of making a maquette of my work titled âBeginning, Endâ, Azelia, book designer and I developed a book , adopting Singhâs approach the book as an art object and the format of a Japanese photo album. This work continues as there are a multitude number of areas that needs to be explored in developing and presenting a body of work.
In summary, the recent entries in the dossier are possibly tangential to some the frameworks we have discussed. However, they remain connected to the development of my work as I work through the helix through time and thought.














