Authorship and Process

How can process contribute to authorship? In response to this please draw upon your own authorship and the work of others.

As an essay question, it sounds deceptively simple, how can process contribute to authorship, but it raises issues of creativity, originality and working practices. In this essay I will explore a concept of authorship and process which involves responsibility and incorporates innovation coupled with originality and motivation. Then to see this definition work I will analyse the photographs of Edward Weston and finally see how this concept of authorship combined with practice applies to my own photographs.

Authorship itself can initially be defined through the concept of responsibility. This possibly might seem to be a strange claim, but is one that does have depth and meaning behind it. As Sherri Irvin, associate Professor in Philosophy at the University of Oklahoma, asserts when writing in the British Journal of Aesthetics:

“When we look at a Walker Evans photograph, we know that Evans made many conscious choices that resulted in the work’s appearance: choices about how to pose the subject, exactly how to frame the image, when and under what conditions to shoot the picture, which negative to print from, what kind of manipulation to do during the printing process to bring out contrasts, suppress details, and so on”

So, when a photographer takes a photograph, they are responsible for producing that image. They have decided when to press the shutter, where to focus, what aperture to use and how to compose the image and this is where the responsibility lies. Because they are responsible for the creation of the photograph, they immediately have authorship of the image. Consequently, this responsibility provides a base, a building block, for other concepts to be employed.

The next step is to decide what constitutes a process. By looking on dictionary.com we are given the simple definition of “a systematic series of actions directed to some end.” So a process could be anything, but by its very nature a process needs a logical structure to it for it to be systematic. It also needs a direction which can be that the end justifies the means, that the desired result is what guides the process.

So, for a process to contribute to authorship, the photographer is responsible for controlling a series of events. This in itself seems a bit bland, but what it basically means is that the photographer has to employ a certain system of working to produce an image that they bear responsibility for.

However, for the authorship to be noticeable then the process that is employed needs to be innovative and original, which basically means that it needs to differ from other processes that have been employed by other photographers, it needs an element of originality. Also, the innovation needs to be visually noticeable to emphasise the originality and innovation which in turn strengthens the authorship of the photographer.

But there is another element of authorship, which is the photographer’s motivation. It is often a case that the motivation of the photographer is what offers guidance and as the process being used is guided by results, the results are guided by the motivation. This is why a process that highlights an aesthetic result becomes embroiled with authorship because the process is chosen through the motivation.

Authorship is a combination of elements. The most noticeable being a process that produces an aesthetic result which is guided by motivation and employs innovation and originality. All of these elements combined then produce a photographic style which is closely linked to the authorship of the photographer with the process being the most noticeable and visual element. It then also becomes a case that because innovation and originality are so visually prominent the photographer becomes responsible for producing them and then they become part of the photographer’s authorship.

Fig 1: Pepper 30 by Edward Weston

(http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2010/aug/18/edward-weston-photography) As we can see from fig 1 and fig 2 Weston’s work is distinctive and original and so they demonstrate originality and created a certain style. This was achieved by using the process of photographing objects close up, in this case vegetables and shells, which made them look different to how they are normally perceived. Consequently, Weston’s style is achieved through originality and innovation with his approach and this style became part of his authorship.

Weston’s style and subsequent authorship was further enhanced with the use of dramatic lighting and shadows, which is another demonstration of his innovation and originality, but he also chose subject matter that complimented this process. He chose objects which had a symmetry in themselves, for example each half of the shell of fig 2 could be a mirror image, and by combining the symmetry with dramatic lighting has produced an aesthetic which is both distinctive and recognisable. As Stephen Bull comments in Photography “Inspired by Stieglitz, who told him to aim for ‘a maximum of detail with a maximum of simplification’ Weston made sharp, refined photographs, the subject matter of which is essentially abstract.” (Bull, 2010, P133)

Fig 2 Shell by Edward Weston

“To clearly express my feeling for life with photographic beauty, present objectively the texture, rhythm, form in nature, without subterfuge, or evasion in technique or spirit, to record the quintessence of the object or element before my lens, rather than an interpretation, a superficial phase, or passing mood – this is my way in photography. It is not a facile way!” (Weston, 1927)

So we can surmise that Weston’s desire to be innovative and original came from a motivation to express a form of beauty which is found in rhythm, symmetry and texture. These elements themselves are classical concepts of beauty but Weston’s innovation came from approaching them in a different way, which was to take the element of realism in photography and to reinterpret it with an emphasis on beauty through the classical forms. By doing so he created photographs that have come to be considered classical fine art photographs because of their concentration on line and form combined with creative use of lighting and viewpoint. Once he had this process of working he then became responsible for the images produced and through repetition he became responsible for creating a style, which then became part of his authorship.

So, with regard for this definition of authorship, the question needs to be asked, how can it relate to my own practice? To help answer this I have concentrated on just two images, both which were inspired by Weston.

Fig 4 Fish head by Dave Macey

through inferring a different reference. With fig 4, a fish head could look like a phallic object and have sexual overtones and with fig 5 a mussel shell looks similar to a butterfly. Consequently because both images share the same motivation they have a similar aesthetic as the motivation guided which process to use. This is one of the defining steps in authorship, a system for working has evolved, a process, which was led by motivation.

Fig 5 Mussel shell by Dave Macey

Fig 6 Bubbles by Dave Macey

Bibliography

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2010/aug/18/edward-weston-photography accessed 27/02/2015

http://edward-weston.com/edward-weston/ accessed 27/02/2015

http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic639739.files/Week%209/CB30-Weston-From%20my%20Day%20Book.pdf accessed 27/02/2015

http://www.ou.edu/ouphil/faculty/irvin/Appropriation.pdf accessed 27/02/2015

Bull, S. 2010, Photography, Routledge Abingdon

So authorship embodies a responsibility for originality, to produce a style which is instantly recognisable and becomes accredited to the photographer. With this being the case we can see how important it is for the right process to be used for the right photographer. Care has to be taken that a suitable process is chosen which suits the photographer’s motivation and will enable the photographer to communicate what they want their work to be about. For instance a landscape photographer motivated by the beauty of a national park would probably not choose to use a process of large telephoto lenses without a tripod and to shoot at midday during the height of summer.

So far, the concepts mentioned for authorship are all very abstract and an example is needed. One photographer with a strong authorship is Edward Weston and the still life photographs he took of vegetables and shells.

Sean O Hagan writing in the guardian comments that “Weston became absorbed by the camera’s ability, in arresting close up, the otherness of the country’s plant and vegetable life as well as rock and cloud formations. An aesthetic was born.”

By employing qualities such as symmetry Weston chose an aesthetic that encapsulated the classical principles of beauty by concentrating on shape and form. With the use of lighting to emphasise the texture and shadows of the object, Weston further enhances the form of the object and produces a classical and timeless aesthetic which became so much part of his authorship. This connection between this style and authorship was further enhanced because Weston then formed this technique into a system, a methodical procedure of working which produced a consistent desired result.

So this has demonstrated how innovation and originality support the style which is identified with authorship and also how by using a certain process enhances this authorship, but what about the other elements of authorship?

With regard to his motivation Weston was driven by an artistic desire to be creative. During his lifetime he produced a journal called “daybooks” which he would make entries in when he felt that a creative change was happening. For instance the entry for March 18 1927, Weston says:

Personally, I feel that my authorship is still emerging. Though I have been taking photographs for a number of years, it’s only since studying photography that the issue of authorship has become relevant. This is due mainly to academic study of the medium, both visual and theoretical, and how photography works as a medium, where as before my main motivation was to produce images which were aesthetically good. This is probably the first noticeable change, my motivation has shifted and this change in motivation is helping an authorship to emerge.

When I took these images I was interested in how one object could be made to look like another and how the definition of an object could change

So, once I had my motivation I could then decide on the innovation and originality. Weston’s and my own photographs are a study of shape and form, both sets are still lives and both are of just the object themselves. But the innovation that differentiates our images is that mine are taken as being high key, whilst Weston concentrated on his images being low key. I also started to use colour as well as B&W, as in fig 6, which was a further innovation and further helped with the originality.

But one important point to stress about originality is that this is something which is developed. When I first became interested in still life it was through practice that innovation and originality started to develop. This is because I have to fully comprehend something before changes can be introduced. If I did not continue to practice photographing still lives, then innovation and originality would not happen because I would not have a knowledge and understanding of what I would need to change. So it became a case that through practicing a certain process, the process became refined through innovation and originality, which led to producing a photographic style. So, even though the images were inspired by the photographs of Weston, there has been an innovation which does create a certain amount of originality.

But once I started this process I became responsible for the development of this authorship, that by using innovation and originality I could create a style which would become recognisable and so embody my authorship. Further innovation happened, such as the development of using colour as well as B&W but it was still the same process of working, which is using a macro lens and being able to isolate details or objects.

Even though my authorship is still emerging it is possible to see how it is developing. By gaining motivation through academic study, this led to some innovation and originality. These three elements, innovation, originality and motivation, have helped to construct a photographic style that identifies my authorship. These elements have also constructed a practice, a way of working, which helps to identify my emerging authorship. By using these elements my authorship will continue to grow and become more apparent over time.

So, in summary, we have a working definition of authorship. The basic issue of authorship is responsibility because the photographer is responsible for producing the photograph. Then the element of motivation gives direction and helps in the creation of innovation and originality. This leads to a photographic style, an aesthetic, which becomes identified with the photographer because they are responsible for its production. This is all achieved by practicing a process that’s been refined through practice and so strengthens the photographer’s claim to authorship.