Art and Photography, Photography and Art

This weeks reading, Art and Photography, Photography and Art by Andy Grundberg, discusses the evolution that photography has seen as an creative medium. As it traversed different artistic movements it began showing a certain versatility that wasn’t available in mediums such as painting and sculpture. Photography became a means of commenting of culture rather than itself as art. It did not possess the vanity that John Szarkowski believed it needed in order to become the artistic medium that it sought to be.

Photography is unique in that it can not only stand as its own individual medium, but also can take the form of other mediums such as painting, drawing, sculpture, performance, collage, even non-art. It has been embraced by so many different types of artists while still maintaining a very “common” reputation. When I say common I mean that photography struggles to gain prestige in the art world because of its versatility and availability. As I discussed with last weeks readings, those factors become an obstacle as well as a tool for photographers and artists seeking to set themselves apart through the use of photography. Perhaps the key is in embracing the very elements that make success with photography seem difficult