Discussions

A photograph is a visual representation of matter within space. This matter may come in the form of tangible and intangible elements such as objects and culture respectively.
Photographs show the visual field of rhe photographer, his likes, interests and even thougts. Similarly, they convey the physical form of their subjects.
Photographs preserve moments in time, allowing them to be viewed and referenced in future.
Photographs are closely related to the real because they represent real events, people and objects.

Question 3: In what ways would you say that the writing reveals a certain tension, or discomfort, within the different types of languages used? Is the discomfort a sign of respect?

“They drag the primal drama, the irreversible tragedy of having dashed their minds against a symbolic labyrinth in a confrontation that lethally weakens their defenses. “

Question 3. Yuyanapaq: Think about the conversion of an archive, with 1,700 photographs into an exhibit with a specific narrative. How is the production of the archive affected? Roland Barthes will tell us that photography is a message without a code (all photographs “speak,” but its codes are established before and after the photograph, they are not the photograph itself or are not in the photographs themselves). How then, are we to read the codes of these photographs? What is the role of the exhibit in making the photographs speak?

Converting a large archive into an exhibit is certainly challenging because you cannot possibly include every image. So how do you decide which images make it into the exhibition? Are some images more important or more powerful than others? In a way, “shrinking” an archive to produce a well-executed exhibit helps one decode a photograph. This is because most exhibits either have a certain theme or are divided into different sections, each section having a specific theme. This enables a photograph to automatically gain meaning since it is much easier to understand an image when it is juxtaposed with other images that are of a similar theme and/or meaning. As such, exhibits may be selective in regards to which photographs are represented, however, they also give the chosen photographs a voice.

“The women, the soldaderas who followed their men like slaves, and at times would go ahead of them in search of provisions, told of stupendous and wonderful events. Those dusty, filthy, ragged females, those brave human dogs, wearing huaraches, carrying heavy baskets filled with pots and pans, marching at a trot in front of the column, appeared like a migrating horde. . . . They were a source of both tenderness and horror….Their dark, haggard faces, their shrew-like appearance, their rapacious hands. They were a sinister and tortuous vision. . . .mirthful, unrestrained, inebriated, swarming the public plazas, the barrios of Mexico, bathed in filth, lust, homemade hooch and pulque.”
This quote portrays the women as anonymous camp followers and prostitutes, which is a negative portray goven that it makes more sense for her to side with them and give them a positive image in the public eye.

“Zapata’s army was unique in that he allowed women to join the ranks and serve as combatants. Although other revolutionary armies had many women followers, in general they did not fight (although there were exceptions). Only in Zapata’s army were there large numbers of women combatants: some were even officers. Some modern Mexican feminists point to the historical importance of these “soldaderas” as a milestone in women’s rights.”
This passage shows that she admires Zapata and his willingness to incoroprte women into his troops, a practice that was relatiively new at the time.

Forward: Kyoto
“Japan is a country with a password. Everything has a code,” Naomi had said. “You’ll be happy here, as long as you don’t know the password.” (3).

It’s possible I needed to feel particularly chagrined about some invention or other. Neurosis has its idiosyncrasies, after all. The truth is, digital cameras made me feel like I was in reproduction hell. Nobody picks their shot. There’s zero waste. Anything can be deleted. Analog photography has to do with choice, the special treatment of a moment. Digital photography is an indiscriminate continuum where the decisive image doesn’t depend on willpower, but chance. (9).

“The photographer tends to remember what was left outside the frame, and instant when he fired the shutter.”

This quote is a reference to a photographer’s power in manipulating the content of her/his photograph and the way the viewer perceives it. This idea extends to what we discussed in class in that most of the time, an image is staged — a reality, which is inevitable given the fact that the photographer chooses a specific angle, a specific frame, and so on. I think that this idea of leaving certain content outside the frame and thereby staging a photograph can be applied to social media and our technologically dominated world, which is once again something we touched on in class. Precisely, I think that this quote has to do with a fake reality that platforms like Instagram create, in that the majority of the time, a user posts very specific and carefully chosen content, leaving out all the “bad” or simply unwanted things, only to show what he/she wants his/her followers to see. Yet, the user never forgets what was left outside the frame, or what failed to make it to the “gram,” since the omitted content continues to be a part of a daily reality that cannot be faked by instagram or other technological tools. (14)

“The truth is, digital cameras made me feel like I was in reproduction hell…Anything can be deleted. Analog photography has to do with choice, the special treatment of a moment. (9)

I chose this quote because I find it to be an accurate description of how much photography culture has changed over the years. When the art form first originated and way before technology experienced such a dramatic “explosion”, a single photograph (you were lucky if there were 2, while 3 was a dream) was the norm. This norm made both the event and the photograph so much more special. Indeed, now that I look back at my family’s old photo albums I cannot help but admire the images, both for their vintage appeal and uniqueness…there is only a single photograph from my mom’s high school graduation ceremony, but there are well-over 40 from mine, not even mentioning the 100 other ones that have been clogging my camera roll. Interestingly, I looked at the graduation pictures on my phone once. In contrast, I often look back at that one picture of my mom in her graduation dress, somehow managing to find a new detail every time I look at it. This distinction applies to analog and digital photography in that with analog photography, the film roll carries a certain “preciousness” because with each new snapshot there becomes less of it. Meanwhile, digital photography is representative of a new age, one in which a single event can get hundreds of images since there is no need to worry about the fleeting film roll.

Me interesa que “Nuestro tiempo” representa una pareja con un matrimonio abierto. Creo que he visto matrimonios abiertos en peles antes pero siempre son malas o son un intento salvar un matrimonio que está moriendo. Es interesante ver una pareja con un matrimonio abierto que es feliz y contenta con la situación. La representación de la relación en “Nuestro tiempo” no cambia mi opinion porque entiendo que cada pareja es diferente pero era bueno ver algo que no he visto antes.

Una otra tema que me interesa es como las relaciónes entre mujeres y hombers cambia por edades. Al principio “Nuestro tiempo” muestra una pelea entre niñas y niños y como los jovens tratan a crear relaciónes. Y entonces, la pele enfoca a la pareja central y como la relacion entre Juan y Esther es muy complicado y más complicado que los niños o los jovenes pueden entender.

Luvina:
“The people from there say that when the moon is full they clearly see the figure of the wind sweeping along Luvina’s streets, bearing behind it a black blanket; but what I always managed to see when there was a moon in Luvina was the image of despair–always.” (114)

The Invention of Morel:
“I have the uncomfortable sensation that this paper is changing into a will. If I must resign myself to that, I shall try to make statements that can be verified so that no one, knowing that I was accused of duplicity, will doubt that they condemned me unjustly.” (12)

“The people who live hear are dreadful snobs–or else they are the inmates of an abandoned insane asylum!” (24)

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