Comments on: Anasazi abstraction http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=anasazi-abstraction a multi-disciplinary dialog Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:08:50 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: June http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14650 June Wed, 02 May 2007 18:48:32 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14650 Steve, Terrific photos.I didn't sense clouds or anything soft -- the slices in the rock, its very gltter, seem hard. Steve,

Terrific photos.I didn’t sense clouds or anything soft — the slices in the rock, its very gltter, seem hard.

]]> By: David http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14632 David Wed, 02 May 2007 16:48:19 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14632 Steve, I especially like the first photo. But I can't say I really see the ruins. I mean, knowing there are ruins there, I can make a guess as to what shapes they are, but otherwise I would never notice them. What I like about the first image is that, especially in the upper 2/3 of the photo, I can really feel my eyes adjusting back and forth to see the detail in the light and then in the shadow. It evokes the experience of walking around in a canyon on a sunny day. I don't much respond much to the color version of #2. It feels more like a colorized b&w image than a color photo, and I think it works better in b&w. I look forward to seeing more images from your trip! Steve, I especially like the first photo. But I can’t say I really see the ruins. I mean, knowing there are ruins there, I can make a guess as to what shapes they are, but otherwise I would never notice them.

What I like about the first image is that, especially in the upper 2/3 of the photo, I can really feel my eyes adjusting back and forth to see the detail in the light and then in the shadow. It evokes the experience of walking around in a canyon on a sunny day.

I don’t much respond much to the color version of #2. It feels more like a colorized b&w image than a color photo, and I think it works better in b&w.

I look forward to seeing more images from your trip!

]]> By: Steve Durbin http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14608 Steve Durbin Wed, 02 May 2007 12:28:53 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14608 I've updated the images to show the ruins better, as this was clearly a problem. Alas, one of the weaknesses of the web vs. actual prints for viewing images. Part of what I'm still working on is the balance of clarity vs. hiddenness, which varies for different viewers as well as different media. Birgit, That's a good point about the B&W vs. the color version. I like the color better than I expected to, but it does have a less oppressive feel. On the other hand, I don't want to over-dramatize that. Karl, Interesting you should mention clouds. In fact, we seem to expect clouds in the sky over a house -- think of a typical kid's drawing of home. In some of my other shots (not yet processed) I consciously play on that association, which I think can be effective in drawing us to the image even if unconscious. I’ve updated the images to show the ruins better, as this was clearly a problem. Alas, one of the weaknesses of the web vs. actual prints for viewing images. Part of what I’m still working on is the balance of clarity vs. hiddenness, which varies for different viewers as well as different media.

Birgit,

That’s a good point about the B&W vs. the color version. I like the color better than I expected to, but it does have a less oppressive feel. On the other hand, I don’t want to over-dramatize that.

Karl,

Interesting you should mention clouds. In fact, we seem to expect clouds in the sky over a house — think of a typical kid’s drawing of home. In some of my other shots (not yet processed) I consciously play on that association, which I think can be effective in drawing us to the image even if unconscious.

]]> By: birgit http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14542 birgit Tue, 01 May 2007 21:15:57 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14542 I prefer the b+w. the Rock looks more interesting and the shock value of the fear to be crushed is greater for me. I prefer the b+w. the Rock looks more interesting and the shock value of the fear to be crushed is greater for me.

]]> By: Sunil Gangadharan http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14540 Sunil Gangadharan Tue, 01 May 2007 20:50:43 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14540 Steve, Now it is abstraction with meaning ;-). The color brings out the silhouettes of the ruins and I think that is key. Steve,
Now it is abstraction with meaning ;-).
The color brings out the silhouettes of the ruins and I think that is key.

]]> By: Steve Durbin http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14535 Steve Durbin Tue, 01 May 2007 19:52:01 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14535 For comparison, here's a quick job of a color version of #2. The ruin is also slightly lighter, therefore more visible. <p><img alt="7878b-400.jpg" src="http://www.artandperception.com/v01/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/7878b-400.jpg" /></p> For comparison, here’s a quick job of a color version of #2. The ruin is also slightly lighter, therefore more visible.

7878b-400.jpg

]]> By: Karl Ziper http://artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html/comment-page-1#comment-14531 Karl Ziper Tue, 01 May 2007 19:29:10 +0000 http://www.artandperception.com/2007/05/anasazi-abstraction.html#comment-14531 Hey Steve, Welcome back! In the first image I don't see the ruins really, although I can identify them because you mentioned them. The second image makes me shiver. It looks like that dwelling will be crushed. What I see in the second image is a representation of real rocks. That's where the image gets its power. If you blurred some subtle details of the rocks so that they became abstractions, the picture would have an entirely different meaning. The rocks would lose their weight. There is nothing about those rocks that conveys a sense of hardness or weight that can be separated from their identity as rocks. At an abstract level, the contrasts are soft. Aside from some jagged lines, the rocks could almost be clouds. In the first image, there is more abstraction in the rocks. The strong shadow, without a clear shadow casting form, becomes abstraction. It breaks the form of the rocks, and they lose their weight. Hey Steve,

Welcome back! In the first image I don’t see the ruins really, although I can identify them because you mentioned them. The second image makes me shiver. It looks like that dwelling will be crushed.

What I see in the second image is a representation of real rocks. That’s where the image gets its power. If you blurred some subtle details of the rocks so that they became abstractions, the picture would have an entirely different meaning. The rocks would lose their weight. There is nothing about those rocks that conveys a sense of hardness or weight that can be separated from their identity as rocks. At an abstract level, the contrasts are soft. Aside from some jagged lines, the rocks could almost be clouds.

In the first image, there is more abstraction in the rocks. The strong shadow, without a clear shadow casting form, becomes abstraction. It breaks the form of the rocks, and they lose their weight.

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