FALL 2021
New Jersey, 2017. © Arielle Bobb-Willis
The truth of photographic images has been challenged since the 19th century when the means for making them were invented. While the medium was embraced by the public at large, photographers have continued to grapple with the methods and techniques available to them, experimenting with technologies as they emerged and discovering the capacity of the medium to represent the world they experienced.
Photographs are inherently subjective in the ways in which they are made and perceived. There is no absolute truth in the photographic image. Photographers frame the reality that they see, whether the process is spontaneous or planned.
The truth of photography relies not only on the integrity of the image, but on its accessibility. If truth in image making is a commodity, how much is it worth, and how do we determine its value?
Photographs are inherently subjective in the ways in which they are made and perceived. There is no absolute truth in the photographic image. Photographers frame the reality that they see, whether the process is spontaneous or planned.
The truth of photography relies not only on the integrity of the image, but on its accessibility. If truth in image making is a commodity, how much is it worth, and how do we determine its value?
VIEWING TRUTH IN PHOTOGRAPHY
The exhibitions can be viewed in sequence or in whichever order the viewer chooses. Select a theme from the menu bar at the top of the page, or click one of the buttons below.
LOOKING FOR TRUTH IN A DIGITAL AGE
Twenty years after 9/11, the world is forever different. The knowledge of the tragic events of that day reminds us of the looming uncertainty about what can happen. On any given day, what appears to be ordinary can become catastrophic. Questions about what transpired are imprinted in our minds, and the documentary evidence raises complicated questions about truth in photography.
Today, we are inundated with photographs at an ever escalating and alarming rate, but instead of becoming iconic, many of these images sow more confusion than clarity. Misinformation and photo-manipulation pose overwhelming challenges to our ability to make sense of what we hear, see, and read.
Today, we are inundated with photographs at an ever escalating and alarming rate, but instead of becoming iconic, many of these images sow more confusion than clarity. Misinformation and photo-manipulation pose overwhelming challenges to our ability to make sense of what we hear, see, and read.
In this installment of Looking for Truth in a Digital Age, we feature:
- a blending of selfie and self-portrait through iPhone images by Quil Lemons
- Nancy Burson's deep fascination with luminous flashes of light
- an exploration of improvisation in photography with Arielle Bobb-Willis
UNDERSTANDING FAMILY
Family is both what we inherit and what we make. It is inherently the way we bind with one and another and understand the essential elements of kinship. Defined by relationships we perceive to be genuine, family is remembered and memorialized through individual photographs and family albums that may or may not represent the truth.
SENSE OF PLACE
Sense of place is often revealed through the landscape and filtered through human experience. Can photographs reveal the truth of a place? How do we see the world differently if we are from a particular place or if we are a stranger or visitor? The way we photograph a place depends on our prior knowledge, biases, beliefs, and an awareness of the significance of what we are seeing and feeling. Framing, composition, and the relationship between light and dark are telling, but ultimately, the perception of a place is personal and the truth is never absolute.
