Dorothea Lange is best known for her documentary photography taken during the Great Depression, notably "Migrant Mother", and of Japanese internment camps. Commissioned by the Farm Security Initiative, Lange strove to humanize economic hardship and find beauty in everyday existence.
I've always though of these as like, real life Steinbeck sorta things. The expressions and landscapes just embody the ideas of the depression and the feeling of hopelessness that hung over everyone's heads.
ReplyDelete-Elliot
It was interesting looking at these for me, because the photographer I'm emulating worked as an assistant for her, yet his work is so different. She has a real talent for capturing the raw emotion in each scene. Looking forward to seeing your interpretation of her work.
ReplyDeleteshe always makes me laugh...not the great depression stuff but some of the other moments....like what are people doing!
ReplyDeleteLoving the depression photos! The poses however are ridiculous, this type of work is similar to my photographer, just in different time periods. I'm excited to see where you choose to shoot, and if you did portraits, who you choose to capture
ReplyDeleteThese portray the period well. I wonder how much she had to do with placing everybody.
ReplyDeleteLange is another photographer who is immensely talented at capturing someone's humanity in a photograph. All of the ones that you posted evoke an emotional response, which was her intention for she hoped to raise awareness about the depression. I like her high contrast, it adds a harsh feeling to them.
ReplyDeletethis is so excellent! these are truly wrenching photos that get straight at the core of the human condition. one cannot help but feel for these subjects. one interesting aspect is the palpable divide between male subjects and female subjects. the two females portrayed here are doing things like rearing children or doing non-manual labor. most, if not all, of the men here are doing just the opposite.
ReplyDeleteI wrote my final paper in AP English last year on Dorothea Lange so I am quite familiar with her work and his personal history. These pictures are famous and timeless and I am really excited to see your take on her documentary-like style of photography.
ReplyDeleteThese are great in the way they capture people in the midst of their lives - not posed, but completely in their way of life.
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