a person who watches or notices something. “to a casual observer, he was at peace.
a person who follows events closely and comments publicly on them.”some observers expect interest rates to rise”
a person posted in an official capacity to an area to monitor political or military events. “elections scrutinized by international observers”
‘Observe’ within Photography
”The Art of Observation: Observation lies at the heart of street photography. It goes beyond just seeing; it involves truly looking and actively seeking out the details that make a scene come alive.”
Observation involves immersing ourselves in listening and looking, taking in sounds, sights, and smells in a careful, unbiased manner. It is a key attribute of any seasoned photographer; the difference between an average photo and one that speaks to an audience in a meaningful way. From nature to urban spaces to people and objects, there are many key takeaways that artists can find by observing surroundings. Taking note of direction of light, softness of shadows, and featured colours can lead to a successful finished product.
Seek
VERB
attempt to find (something):“they came here to seek shelter from biting winter winds”
attempt or desire to obtain or achieve (something):“the new regime sought his extradition” · “her parents had never sought to interfere with her freedom”
ask for (something) from someone: “he sought help from the police”
‘Seek’ within Photography
”Seek” in the context of photography signifies a purposeful action of actively searching for subjects, moments, or compositions to capture. It implies a proactive approach to photography, where the photographer is not merely a passive observer but an engaged seeker of visual opportunities. By seeking out interesting subjects, unique angles, or compelling moments, photographers can create impactful and meaningful images that tell a story or evoke emotions.
Challenge
NOUN
a call to someone to participate in a competitive situation or fight to decide who is superior in terms of ability or strength: “he accepted the challenge”
a call to prove or justify something: “a challenge to the legality of the banning order”
VERB
invite (someone) to engage in a contest:“he challenged one of my men to a duel” · “organizations challenged the government in by-elections”
dispute the truth or validity of: “it is possible to challenge the report’s assumptions”
‘Challenge’ within Photography
”Challenge” in the context of photography, it represents an opportunity for growth and exploration. Challenges in photography can come in various forms, such as capturing difficult lighting conditions, mastering complex techniques, or finding unique perspectives in familiar subjects. Embracing these challenges can push photographers to expand their skills, creativity, and vision. Encouraging them to step out of their comfort zones and experiment with new approaches. Overcoming these challenges can lead to personal and artistic development, resulting in photographs that are more impactful and visually compelling.
A call to someone to participate in a competitive situation or fight to decide who is superior in terms of ability or strength.
“he accepted the challenge”
2. A call to prove or justify something.
“a challenge to the legality of the banning order”
verb:
invite (someone) to engage in a contest. “he challenged one of my men to a duel”
2.dispute the truth or validity of.”it is possible to challenge the report’s assumptions”
Below I have created a mind map of words in which associate with the theme of observe, seek and challenge. By doing this I have come up with many things that I could do for my project.
a person who watches or notices something: ”to a casual observer, he was at peace.
a person who follows events closely and comments publicly on them.”some observers expect interest rates to rise”
a person posted in an official capacity to an area to monitor political or military events.”elections scrutinized by international observers”
SYNONYMS: spectator, onlooker, watcher, voyeur, looker-on, fly on the wall, viewer, witness, eyewitness, bystander, sightseer, commentator, onlooker, reporter, blogger, monitor.
SEEK
VERB
attempt to find (something):“they came here to seek shelter from biting winter winds” Synonyms: look for, be on the lookout for, search for, try to find, look about for.
attempt or desire to obtain or achieve (something):“the new regime sought his extradition” · “her parents had never sought to interfere with her freedom” Synonyms: pursue, go after, go for, try, attempt, endeavour, strive
ask for (something) from someone:“he sought help from the police” SIMILAR: ask for, request solicit, call on, invite, entre, beg for
(SEEK SOMEONE/SOMETHING OUT) search for and find someone or something: “it’s his job to seek out new customers” SIMILAR: discover, detect find (out), unearth, uncover, disinte
CHALLENGE
NOUN
a call to someone to participate in a competitive situation or fight to decide who is superior in terms of ability or strength: “he accepted the challenge” Synonyms: dare, provocation, summons
a call to prove or justify something: “a challenge to the legality of the banning order” Synonyms: opposition, defiance, ultimatum, confrontation with.
VERB
invite (someone) to engage in a contest: “he challenged one of my men to a duel” · “organizations challenged the government in by-elections” Synonyms: dare, summon, invite, bid, throw down the gauntlet, to defy someone to do something
dispute the truth or validity of: “it is possible to challenge the report’s assumptions” Synonyms: question, take exception to, confront, dispute, take issue with
MINDMAP
MOODBOARD
INITIAL IDEAS
OBSERVE: I want to create photographs as a form of observation; observing individuals like my friends and documenting them in a way that captures teenage life. I also want to explore capturing photographs of my family and nostalgic environments to communicate a sense of myself, drawing upon the previous nostalgia project.
SEEK: I will explore the ‘seek’ aspect of the project theme through the concept of teenage life. Drawing upon past projects of identity and femininity vs. masculinity, I want to show exploration of finding yourself during your teenage years and finding a sense of belonging within friendships. I will explore aspects of exploration and disguise through documenting teenage girls challenging elements of the male gaze.
CHALLENGE: Through my project I could aim to challenge gender stereotypes; particularly those directed upon girls and femininity. Challenging these stereotypes by creating sets of images showing typical views of femininity on teenage girls contrasting against atypical behaviours which oppose these ideas of femininity.
The gaze, as a visual act, generates modes of power, domination, and control. It has the ability to categorize people, generate feelings of shame, and assert one’s superiority. The gaze of the superior and privileged person, specifically directed toward oppressed and less privileged groups of people, is one type of the manifestation of power and control. The camera lens is another demonstration of a powerful gaze, referred to as the photographic gaze, simulating the gaze of the naked eye. Indeed, the former could even be more powerful than the gaze of the naked eye due to photographic permanence. Janina Struk defines a photograph as: “a two-dimensional object, a fraction of a second framed and frozen in time” (4). Susan Sontag in On Photography notes that “photographs are a neat slice of time, not a flow” (17). It is the stillness of a photograph that gives it power and makes it more effective than television broadcasting or film. Photography, then, has the ability to capture in “still time” the expression of oppressed subjects as the camera gazes at them.
To understand what is meant by the photographic gaze, explore Daniel Chandler; Notes on ‘The Gaze’: ‘The gaze’ (sometimes called ‘the look’) is a technical term which was originally used in film theory in the 1970s but which is now more broadly used by media theorists to refer both to the ways in which viewers look at images of people in any visual medium and to the gaze of those depicted in visual texts. The term ‘the male gaze’ has become something of a feminist cliché for referring to the voyeuristic way in which men look at women (Evans & Gamman 1995, 13). My aim here is to alert students to existing material and frameworks which may assist them in their own investigations of the issue of the gaze in relation to media texts.
Forms of gaze
In the case of recorded texts such as photographs and films (as opposed to those involving interpersonal communication such as video-conferences), a key feature of the gaze is that the object of the gaze is not aware of the current viewer (though they may originally have been aware of being filmed, photographed, painted etc. and may sometimes have been aware that strangers could subsequently gaze at their image). Viewing such recorded images gives the viewer’s gaze a voyeuristic dimension. As Jonathan Schroeder notes, ‘to gaze implies more than to look at – it signifies a psychological relationship of power, in which the gazer is superior to the object of the gaze’ (Schroeder 1998, 208).
Several key forms of gaze can be identified in photographic, filmic or televisual texts, or in figurative graphic art. The most obvious typology is based on who is doing the looking, of which the following are the most commonly cited:
the spectator’s gaze: the gaze of the viewer at an image of a person (or animal, or object) in the text;
the intra-diegetic gaze: a gaze of one depicted person at another (or at an animal or an object) within the world of the text (typically depicted in filmic and televisual media by a subjective ‘point-of-view shot’);
the direct [or extra-diegetic] address to the viewer: the gaze of a person (or quasi-human being) depicted in the text looking ‘out of the frame’ as if at the viewer, with associated gestures and postures (in some genres, direct address is studiously avoided);
the look of the camera – the way that the camera itself appears to look at the people (or animals or objects) depicted; less metaphorically, the gaze of the film-maker or photographer.
In addition to the major forms of gaze listed above, we should also note several other types of gaze which are less often mentioned:
the gaze of a bystander – outside the world of the text, the gaze of another individual in the viewer’s social world catching the latter in the act of viewing – this can be highly charged, e.g. where the text is erotic (Willemen 1992);
the averted gaze – a depicted person’s noticeable avoidance of the gaze of another, or of the camera lens or artist (and thus of the viewer) – this may involve looking up, looking down or looking away (Dyer 1982);
the gaze of an audience within the text – certain kinds of popular televisual texts (such as game shows) often include shots of an audience watching those performing in the ‘text within a text’;
the editorial gaze – ‘the whole institutional process by which some portion of the photographer’s gaze is chosen for use and emphasis’ (Lutz & Collins 1994, 368)
James Elkins offers ten different ways of looking at a figurative painting in a gallery (Elkins 1996, 38-9):
You, looking at the painting,
figures in the painting who look out at you,
figures in the painting who look at one another, and
figures in the painting who look at objects or stare off into space or have their eyes closed.
In addition there is often the museum guard, who may be looking at the back of your head, and
the other people in the gallery, who may be looking at you or at the painting. There are imaginary observers, too:
the artist, who was once looking at this painting,
the models for the figures in the painting, who may once have seen themselves there, and
all the other people who have seen the painting – the buyers, the museum officials, and so forth. And finally, there are also
people who have never seen the painting: they may know it only from reproductions… or from descriptions.
Looking at someone using a camera (or looking at images thus produced) is clearly different from looking at the same person directly. Indeed, the camera frequently enables us to look at people whom we would never otherwise see at all. In a very literal sense, the camera turns the depicted person into an object, distancing viewer and viewed.
We are all familiar with anecdotes about the fears of primal tribes that ‘taking’ a photograph of them may also take away their souls, but most of us have probably felt on some occasions that we don’t want ‘our picture’ taken. In controlling the image, the photographer (albeit temporarily) has power over those in front of the lens, a power which may also be lent to viewers of the image. In this sense, the camera can represent a ‘controlling gaze’.
In her classic book, On Photography Susan Sontag referred to several aspects of ‘photographic seeing’ which are relevant in the current context (Sontag 1979, 89):
‘To photograph is to appropriate the thing photographed’ (ibid., 4);
‘Photographing is essentially an act of non-intervention… The act of photographing is more than passive observing. Like sexual voyeurism, it is a way of at least tacitly, often explicitly, encouraging what is going on to keep on happening’ (ibid., 11-12);
‘The camera doesn’t rape, or even possess, though it may presume, intrude, trespass, distort, exploit, and, at the farthest reach of metaphor, assassinate – all activities that, unlike the sexual push and shove, can be conducted from a distance, and with some detachment’ (ibid., 13).
The functions of photography can be seen in the context of Michel Foucault‘s analysis of the rise of surveillance in modern society. Photography promotes ‘the normalizing gaze, a surveillance that makes it possible to qualify, to classify and to punish. It establishes over individuals a visibility through which one differentiates and judges them’ (Foucault 1977, 25). Photography was used in the second half of the nineteenth century to identify prisoners, mental patients and racial types (Tagg 1988). However, looking need not necessarily be equated with controlling (Lutz & Collins 1994, 365).
John Berger: Ways of Seeing
John Berger, Ways if Seeing, BBC episode 1, 1972
In Ways of Seeing, a highly influential book based on a BBC television series, John Berger observed that ‘according to usage and conventions which are at last being questioned but have by no means been overcome – men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at’ (Berger 1972, 45, 47). Berger argues that in European art from the Renaissance onwards women were depicted as being ‘aware of being seen by a [male] spectator’ (ibid., 49).
Berger adds that at least from the seventeenth century, paintings of female nudes reflected the woman’s submission to ‘the owner of both woman and painting’ (ibid., 52). He noted that ‘almost all post-Renaissance European sexual imagery is frontal – either literally or metaphorically – because the sexual protagonist is the spectator-owner looking at it’ (ibid., 56). He advanced the idea that the realistic, ‘highly tactile’ depiction of things in oil paintings and later in colour photography (in particular where they were portrayed as ‘within touching distance’), represented a desire to possess the things (or the lifestyle) depicted (ibid., 83ff). This also applied to women depicted in this way (ibid., 92).
Writing in 1972, Berger insisted that women were still ‘depicted in a different way to men – because the “ideal” spectator is always assumed to be male and the image of the woman is designed to flatter him’ (ibid., 64). In 1996 Jib Fowles still felt able to insist that ‘in advertising males gaze, and females are gazed at’ (Fowles 1996, 204). And Paul Messaris notes that female models in ads addressed to women ‘treat the lens as a substitute for the eye of an imaginary male onlooker,’ adding that ‘it could be argued that when women look at these ads, they are actually seeing themselves as a man might see them’ (Messaris 1997, 41). Such ads ‘appear to imply a male point of view, even though the intended viewer is often a woman. So the women who look at these ads are being invited to identify both with the person being viewed and with an implicit, opposite-sex viewer’ (ibid., 44).
We may note that within this dominant representational tradition the spectator is typically assumed not simply to be male but also to be heterosexual, over the age of puberty and often also white.
As Jonathan Schroeder notes, ‘Film has been called an instrument of the male gaze, producing representations of women, the good life, and sexual fantasy from a male point of view’ (Schroeder 1998, 208). The concept derives from a seminal article called ‘Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema’ by Laura Mulvey, a feminist film theorist. It was published in 1975 and is one of the most widely cited and anthologized (though certainly not one of the most accessible) articles in the whole of contemporary film theory.
Laura Mulvey did not undertake empirical studies of actual filmgoers, but declared her intention to make ‘political use’ of Freudian psychoanalytic theory (in a version influenced by Jacques Lacan) in a study of cinematic spectatorship. Such psychoanalytically-inspired studies of ‘spectatorship’ focus on how ‘subject positions’ are constructed by media texts rather than investigating the viewing practices of individuals in specific social contexts. Mulvey notes that Freud had referred to (infantile) scopophilia – the pleasure involved in looking at other people’s bodies as (particularly, erotic) objects. In the darkness of the cinema auditorium it is notable that one may look without being seen either by those on screen by other members of the audience. Mulvey argues that various features of cinema viewing conditions facilitate for the viewer both the voyeuristic process of objectification of female characters and also the narcissistic process of identification with an ‘ideal ego’ seen on the screen. She declares that in patriarchal society ‘pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female’ (Mulvey 1992, 27). This is reflected in the dominant forms of cinema. Conventional narrative films in the ‘classical’ Hollywood tradition not only typically focus on a male protagonist in the narrative but also assume a male spectator. ‘As the spectator identifies with the main male protagonist, he projects his look onto that of his like, his screen surrogate, so that the power of the male protagonist as he controls events coincides with the active power of the erotic look, both giving a satisfying sense of omnipotence’ (ibid., 28). Traditional films present men as active, controlling subjects and treat women as passive objects of desire for men in both the story and in the audience, and do not allow women to be desiring sexual subjects in their own right. Such films objectify women in relation to ‘the controlling male gaze’ (ibid., 33), presenting ‘woman as image’ (or ‘spectacle’) and man as ‘bearer of the look’ (ibid., 27). Men do the looking; women are there to be looked at. The cinematic codes of popular films ‘are obsessively subordinated to the neurotic needs of the male ego’ (ibid., 33). It was Mulvey who coined the term ‘the male gaze’.
References: Berger, John (1972): Ways of Seeing. London: BBC/Harmondsworth: Penguin Burgin, Victor (Ed.) (1982a): Thinking Photography. London: Methuen Caughie, John, Annette Kuhn & Mandy Merck (Eds.) (1992): The Sexual Subject: A Screen Reader in Sexuality. London: Routledge Evans, Caroline & Lorraine Gamman (1995): ‘The Gaze Revisited, Or Reviewing Queer Viewing’. In Burston & Richardson (Eds.), op. cit., pp. 13-5 Dyer, Richard ([1982] 1992a): ‘Don’t Look Now: The Male Pin-Up’. In Caughie et al. (Eds.) op. cit., pp. 265-76; also in Dyer (1992b), op. cit., pp. 103-119 Elkins, James (1996): The Object Stares Back: On the Nature of Seeing. New York: Simon & Schuster Foucault, Michel (1977): Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison. New York: Pantheon Fowles, Jib (1996): Advertising and Popular Culture. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Lutz, Catherine & Jane Collins (1994): ‘The Photograph as an Intersection of Gazes: The Example of National Geographic‘. In Taylor (Ed.), op. cit., 363-84 Messaris, Paul (1997): Visual Persuasion: The Role of Images in Advertising. London: Sage Mulvey, Laura ([1975] 1992): ‘Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema’. In Caughie et al. (Eds.), op. cit., pp. 22-34. Also published in: Mulvey 1989; Mast et al. (Eds.) (1992), op. cit., pp.746-57; abridged version in Bennett et al. (Eds.) (1981), op. cit., pp. 206-15; originally published in Screen16(3): 6-18 Schroeder, Jonathan E (1998): ‘Consuming Representation: A Visual Approach to Consumer Research’. In Barbara B Stern (Ed.): Representing Consumers: Voices, Views and Visions. London: Routledge, pp. 193-230 Sontag, Susan (1979): On Photography. Harmondsworth: Penguin Tagg, John (1988): The Burden of Representation. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press Willemen, Paul ([1980] 1992): ‘Letter to John’. In Caughie et al. (Eds.) op. cit., pp. 171-83; originally published in Screen 21(2): 53-65
John Berger, Ways if Seeing, BBC episode 1, 1972
Looking is not indifferent. There can never be any question of ‘just looking’. Victor Burgin (1982c, 188)
Tasks/ Assignments/ Activities – see photopedagogy
How does the gaze function active vs passive within social media, popular/ celebrity culture at large, such as our desire for gossip, tabloid journalism, post-truths, AI generative content? Who controls what we are looking at? How can we manage/ curate our own information and what we are looking at, or directed towards Images = knowledge = power =control = consumerism = money = power.
Liminal space is the idea of transferring from one “thing” to another “thing” or also known as phasing from one to another, this can be explained through transport, like from your house to what ever your destinations going to be, everything in-between that is liminal space. Another example is emotionally, the transition from one emotion to another. OR even a building that is close to built, but not quite there yet aka “something that is on the boarder of being something”. This Concept of the “liminal space”, is observable because of its ability to be observed by someone within that present moment of witnessing the event or “thing” that might be occurring or present. But is also challenging because, it is for some people an uncomfortable state to be in or to even witness, because of its unpredictability and unknowingness it presents. Liminal space can be defined in many different ways and concepts, but there isn’t any set in stone place or thing that can be specified to being only liminal space, rather a part of it.
Where is a Liminal space?
A liminal space is once again the space between one area or “thing” to another, I’m using “thing” because it is literally what occurrence that is happening, and the space between it that defines “liminal space”. Examples of liminal space is a hallway, the space within one side of the hallway/building to the other. you could see it as the journey of the “aim”. Another example is the waiting rooms for an appointment, this could be the doctors, dentist, therapist, anything. Even a breakup is an example of liminal space.
The aesthetic of liminal space is also represented through abandoned areas, waiting rooms, empty office buildings and can easily be captured with a camera, but is challenging because of the timing, setting, and look of the image, which is commonly seen through grainy, foggy, or 1990’s – early 2000’s styled images.
What emotions does a Liminal space convey?
The look of a liminal space is supposed to be very creepy and uncomfortable, whilst showing a sense of familiarity within the image. This creates conflicting emotions which isn’t easily processable, so a lot of these images make people anxious, or others intrigued in what they are looking at and how it makes them feel that way.
Liminal spaces can express a lot of emotion depending on the setting and the aim behind the image. Mostly if there is an obvious subject or subjects in the image it is used to convey a specific emotion or connection between the subject and you. Others (mostly) are captured environmentally and used to put the person in that context to create these emotions intentionally of uncomforting and confusion, which puts people in a docile state.
I highlighted quotes I believe are significant as well as adding my own notes about the ideas I have for my project. One of the quotes: ‘the human desire to seek and explore the unknown’ was in my eyes a perfect portrayal of the topic- since I would like my project to be a exploration of something that is different to my everyday life. Moreover, ‘the diversity, complexity and geometry of nature’ I found was also interesting, as it puts into perspective the many different layers of nature photography. Another quote ‘Artists frequently use metaphors in their work to disguise the messages; some are blatant some are obscure’, implies how the use of metaphors and indirectness is important in photography, since it what causes each project to be individual. The theme description also outlined many points of interest, such as nature, society and landscapes, which proved to be useful when developing my own ideas.
I thought of three main ideas for my project: stereotypes (specifically surrounding gender), abandoned (historical) locations and animals (specifically cats).
Stereotypes are one of the biggest flaws our are society and I think it would be interesting to create a project that challenges gender stereotypes and seeks out why and how they are created. I could take self portraits for this project- linking my work with artists such as Claude Cahun and Francesca Woodman. I would also link this with places- abandoned as Woodman tends to use as her background. I could create portraits as well as landscapes- the abandoned Jersey Lunatic Asylum being a place I could focus on. Woodman focused on femininity as well as mental health, which could be something I could explore. I would use a slow a shutter speed to create blurry and multiple exposure photographs, in Woodman’s style.
Next, Jersey is a island with many different interesting places, that are very significant in relation to it’s history. It would be interesting to develop a project that investigates such places (like the war tunnels, the abandoned Jersey Lunatic Asylum in St. Saviour, etc.) and challenge why their existence- why they were created but also closed, left, abandoned). A photographer which would inspire me for this theme is Matt Ememett- his portfolio Forgotten Heritage Photography being pictures of abandoned places- capturing their diverse beauty.
Lastly, my final idea would be about animals; their day to day survival, our impact on them. I would like to capture detailed, micro photographs of them that captures their beauty and the complexity of their life. A more specific idea would be to focus on cats (found around Jersey) and it would focus on how they view our world/ their point of view, how they observe, seek and challenge the world. I could include photographs of cats themselves as well as landscapes from low angles, exploring how cats physically see our island. I could create dreamy, detailed images- romanticising their life or I could take harsh images- perhaps in black and white, capturing the reality of their lives. Walter George Chandoha is a inspiration as throughout his career he photographed cats over and over again, capturing beautiful pictures of the animals. Jo Stephen takes beautiful, dreamlike landscape photos and he could be my inspiration for the style of my photographs. Another photographer, Ekin Küçük, created a project called Cat Fever which captures black and white pictures of cats in their natural environment (the streets of a busy city), capturing the harsh reality of cat’s lives.
Mind Maps
mind map we created in class- highlighting the definitions and general ideas surrounding the theme.
“to observe, watch over, follow” (10c.), from Latin observare
sense of “watch, perceive, notice” is from 1560s, via the notion of “see and note omens.”
meaning “to say by way of remark” is from 1600s.
moodboard
Seek
verb.
to attempt to find (something).
to attempt or desire to obtain or achieve (something).
to ask for (something) from someone.
synonyms
search for, try to find, look for, look about for, look round for, look around for, cast about for, cast round for, cast around for, be on the lookout for, be after
etymology
old English sēcan, of Germanic origin
related to Dutch zieken and German suchen, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin sagire ‘perceive by scent’.
from PIE *sag-yo-, from root *sag- “to track down, seek out”
Challenge
noun.
a call to someone to participate in a competitive situation or fight to decide who is superior in terms of ability or strength.
a call to prove or justify something.
verb.
to invite (someone) to engage in a contest.
to dispute the truth or validity of.
synonyms
noun.
dare, provocation, summons, confrontation with, dispute with, stand against, test of, opposition, disagreement with, questioning of, defiance, ultimatum
verb.
question, disagree with, object to, take exception to, confront, dispute, take issue with, protest against, call into question, demur about/against, dissent from, be a dissenter from
etymology
Middle English (in the senses ‘accusation’ and ‘accuse’)
from Old French chalenge (noun), chalenger (verb)
from Latin calumnia ‘calumny’, calumniari ‘calumniate’
