- American photographer who studied photography under Berenice Abbott (best known for black and white photography) & Lisette Model (American photographer, Arbus owed much of her early technique to Model’s example), Weegee’s themes of nudists, circus performers, freaks and street people were later taken up and developed by Diane Arbus in the early 1960s
- “It was my teacher Lisette Model, who finally made it clear to me that the more specific you are, the more general it’ll be.”
- Known for her square format photographs of marginalised individuals in society
- Photographer of freaks – heavily criticised by art critics as she was accused of photographing her subjects in a negative light
- Followed her heart in her photography – she took photos of those she was interested in, and felt compassion and warmth to
- “you see someone on the street and essentially what you notice about them is the flaw”
- Initially her images seem to be exploitative of her subjects, until we realise that they are in fact very sympathetic
Method, techniques and teachings – street photography
- Go places you have never been – seemed enthralled by a lack method/control over what she photographed, placed importance on the curiosity of the unknown, “Simply let the shots come to you, and embrace them.”
- Camera is a license to enter the lives of others – Views the camera as a useful tool to approach people you want to find out more about – without a camera it would be more difficult to delve into someone’s personal history
- Realize you can never understand the world from your subjects eyes – photographers intention is not always clearly represented in the photograph, Arbus described it as a ‘gap between intention and effect’ – you have to have an understanding that the subject’s ‘tragedy’ is not the same as your own – e.g. someone dressed ‘as a rockstar with chains and spiked studs, they may feel that they are giving off the image that they are powerful and cool. However an outsider might see this as frightening, and something abhorrent’ – know your own prejudices – therefore your photographs are more a reflection of yourself
- Create specific photographs – specificity creates a stronger message
- Adore your subjects – Arbus put an emphasis on having an affinity for those you are photographing, and she was principally drawn to those who were marginally challenged (at the time she referred to them as ‘freaks’). She was particularly compelled to this group as they were often born with their trauma and had to go through life living with and overcoming it. She found an honour in them and wanted to humanise those which were looked at as despicable members of society. This is an important lesson as it highlights the importance of being compassionate to those you photograph, and can make for more interesting images.
- Inspiration from reading – after reading a variety of books Arbus was able to see something in real life that inspired her imagination for her photography. She considered it important to gain outside inspiration for her photography as this could lead to a spark in creativity.
- Utilizing textures to add meaning to your photographs – As Arbus developed her style she considered the ‘look’ of a photograph to be very significant – i.e. different focal lengths, shooting at different apertures, using a flash or natural light, color vs black and white, formats – she believed that these things would not only affect the aesthetic quality, but also the meaning of the photograph
- Take bad photos – Arbus gained a valuable lesson in taking bad photographs. Bad photos are generally things you’ve never tried before as a photographer as they can make you ‘recognise something you had seen in a way that will make you recognize it when you see it again’ – therefore, taking bad photographs will allow you to see what makes a good one, and this can lead to inspiration at times where you may feel it to be otherwise lacking. Arbus actually sometimes preferred it when she made mistakes as it occasionally did a better job at depicting what she wanted to evoke
- Sometimes your best photos aren’t immediately apparent (to you)
- Don’t arrange others, arrange yourself – Most interesting photos are generally ones that aren’t posed
- Get over the fear of photography by getting to know your subjects – by talking with the subjects it allows the photographer to overcome the fear with taking personal shots and feel more comfortable
- Subjects are more important than the pictures – She considered the people to be more important than the photograph itself, as humans are three-dimensional and evoked a more ‘holy feeling’ in her
Many of her photographs appear to be straight forward on the surface but as we look and begin to read it, underlying meanings are brought to the surface. For example Identical Twins (1967) this photograph that we have already seen in the reading ‘The Photograph’. When we talk about the photographers photographing what they see through their eyes and that a part of them is always within the photograph whether it be physically or revealing something about themselves within the photograph. An example of this is ‘A Family on Their Law One Sunday in Westchester’ (1969). Arbus was in a state of depression at the time this photograph was taken which comes through in the photograph. Such as, the separation of the parents and child playing away from them, the tense, distressed look of the father with his head in his hands .– Lucy Le Lievre, 2014
http://www.photokaboom.com/photography/pdfs/Diane_Arbus_1.pdf