Can art be mechanically reproduced?

When something is reproduced for so many times is that art? What's the importance of the mechanical reproducibility of the art? What was the impact on mechanical reproducibility on the society?

In my opinion, art is still considered art, no matter how many times it is reproduced. Painters have used photography as a sense inspiration, change of view point by painting an object or subject in a number of angles. However, there is a sense of ethical issue when it comes to reproducing art. The feel of originality sometimes gets blurred because it is difficult to determine which pieces are the original and which ones are the duplicates. The importance of mechanical reproducibility of the art is that art is evolving. By this, I mean that art is embracing digital technology. Although, painting is not a dead form, graphic designing is increasing and a lot of artists are using this medium more and more because of the variety of techniques that can be done using technology. Because of this, mechanical reproducibility on the society due to the increasing technology. There are many masterpieces that have been duplicated and from what I said previously, there is an ethical issue involved. People have been made to believe that some art pieces are original and they are sold these pieces. Also, currency from many countries have been duplicated because of mechanical reproducibility.

Is photography art, or contribution to the art? Is it just a tool used by artists?

As I mentioned previously, photography is a medium of art and I also believe that it contributes to art. Graphic designers and painters use photography as inspiration and as their canvas for their artwork. Directors also use photographs to analyze what would be the best angles for their films because then they'll be able to see where everything is placed in a scene.

How and why Henry Peach Robinson created Fading Away? What was the reason?
Henry Peach Robinson's 'Fading Away' is both an albumen print (a method of producing a photographic print on a paper base from a negative) and combination print (a method using two or more photographic images in conjunction from one another to create a single image - in this case five negatives). He created 'Fading Away' from his imagination to show a human being's experience with something painful, which shows here a realistic portrayal of a grieving family.

Photography has impacted the world of art and influenced some changes in the area of accessibility to art. If mechanical reproduction created revolution, what is happening now with digitalization?

Mechanical reproduction has evolved digitalization in many ways. Photographs can be enhanced to the point where a person's facial flaws can be removed, a person's body or face can be corrected to the point of perfection or a simple landscape photograph can be altered to where adding an object that wasn't there before can be placed to create a totally different picture.

Portrait Photography: Past VS Present

There are many differences of today's photography and portraits compared to the early days. One example is the accessibility of photography. Only those who were privileged or those with class had the chance to have themselves photographed. According to A History of Photography by Lemagny and Rouille, portrait studios had clienteles ranging from industrialists, doctors, lawyers, merchants to politicians, all of whom paid around $2.50 to $4.50 to have their pictures taken. Another example would be the process of having your photograph taken. The high price of having portraits taken was all due to the process of daguerrotype. This process used sheffield plates and was the raw material for having portrait photographs taken with a click of a button. Photos can also be printed at an instant just by giving you memory card to a print studio or by printing it yourself via your coloured printer.

The Daguerrotype Process

There were many different photographers in the past because they all specialized in their own technique. The calotype method was used both by amateur photographers like Victor Regnault and Paul Jeuffrain, and by photographers who were painters like Charles Negre and William John Newton. Those who specialized in the tinted portrait were Louis and Ernest Mayer. On top of those who were privileged, portrait photography captured the attention of other social classes "composed of celebrities in the worlds of politics, the arts, the press, the clergy and the army and those of the world of the theatre and the heads of state, like Queen Victoria and President Lincoln." Anyone who can get a hold of a camera today can pretty much take a picture of anyone or anything. There is a much wider variety of subjects today due to the mobility of small cameras and DSLRs.

Daguerrotype portrait of Abraham Lincoln and Colonel James Duncan

According to Precursors of the Photographic Portrait by Gisele Freund, the evolution of the social development in Western Europe, where the middle class gained political and economic status. Because of the huge population of middle class, demand for goods like portraits, increased, which made art become more mechanized. The technical evolution made it possible for photographs to be more accessible to the middle class. Contrasting to today, photography has been made easier that no matter who picks up a camera, are able to take pictures in a flash. And because technology is increase at an exponential rate, taking photographs in the future will most likely be easier than how it is today.

Evolution of Photography

Photography and the World

For this week's post, I will reflect on the following questions:

• Why the world loved first photographs?
• Who were the first photographers?
• Anybody who inspired you? Why?

I think the world in general first loved photographs because they were able to capture moments that have already happened. People loved how a mechanism could replicate what other people saw. Although it was black and white, it was still something amazing. Of course this all changed when coloured photographs were used. As I read in previous articles, not a lot of people could afford photographs because they were expensive and took a long time to prepare. So it was an honour for your picture to be taken, let alone a portrait of oneself.

I think the cavemen were the first "photographers". They were the ones who described to their tribesmen what they saw during their hunts/explorations. However, mechanically, I believe it was Joseph Nicephore Niepce who was invented the first camera.

My friends who were into the photography business were the ones who inspired to get into photography. At first, I wanted to get into because of the money they were making, but after a while, I enjoyed taking pictures of people just for the sake of taking pictures. There's always a sense of happiness in seeing a candid moment where everyone in the picture is laughing/smiling.

Introduction

While some people like books, music and shopping to help their mind feel at ease, photography keeps my mind focused. The clicking sound and the flashing lights helps me 'mute' the noise around me.

My name is Arwin and I like taking photos of people. Group pictures, photo shoots, candid shots, weddings, you name it. I've always enjoyed capturing the moments of people that I love. I'm still learning to take landscape and still life photos. I hope that my photography class will help me further my knowledge about photography.

Picture from my condo.