On Photography: A Philosophical Inquiry

ISBN-13: 9780415684491 / Angielski / Miękka / 2017 / 166 str.

Diarmuid Costello

Opis

What is photography? Is it primarily a source of knowledge about the world or an art? Many have said the former, because it records the world automatically, others the latter because it embodies human subjectivity. Can it photography be both or must we choose? In On Photography: A Philosophical Inquiry Diarmuid Costello examines these fascinating questions and more. In so doing he introduces some of the fundamental topics and debates about the nature of photography, with the help of photographic images from Paul Strand, Lee Friedlander, James Welling, Jeff Wall, and Gerhard Richter, among others. Tracing the roots of thinking about photography from its discovery, through Nineteenth Century debates about its standing as art, to Twentieth Century Modernism and post-War cultural criticism, Costello identifies the emergence of a powerful "orthodox" view of photography. The features that make photographs compelling documents are precisely those that put pressure on its standing as art; though they provide a wealth of empirical information, they cannot have the unifying vision we look for in art. He draws on the reflections of photographers and theorists, including Paul Strand, Edward Weston, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Siegfried Kracauer, Andre Bazin and Stanley Cavell to illustrate this fundamental tension. The view comes to fruition in the work of Roger Scruton and Kendall Walton. Whether pure photography is capable of representing fictions, or always presents a transparent window onto the real world becomes the key question. Recently, the orthodox view has come under increasing pressure from a new generation of philosophers who reject the contrast between machine and hand made images that underwrites it. He concludes by examining photographic agency in a digital age. Written in a clear and engaging style, On Photography: A Philosophical Inquiry is essential reading for anyone interested in the philosophy of photography, aesthetics, art, and visual studies.

Recenzje

"Diarmuid Costello is at the forefront of a small group of philosophers pushing the debate on the aesthetic and evidential value of photography beyond its traditional boundaries. His work is indispensable as a guide to these traditional debates, their historical origins, and the contemporary possibilities thrown up by both technological innovations and new developments in philosophy. Costello's concise and tightly-argued essay, ranging across diverse photographic practices and discussing both canonical and less well-known photographers, packs a powerful punch, and will be of great value to everyone interested in the special fascination that photography continues to exert upon us." - Murray Smith, University of Kent, UK "On Photography is a lively, intelligent, and very helpful exploration of some of the most fundamental theoretical issues concerning photography, informed by extensive knowledge of the history of photographic technologies and the ways photographs have been understood and used." - Kendall Walton, University of Michigan, USA "Nothing is easier than taking a photograph, so how can photography function as art? Philosophers and theorists have wrestled with the question for decades. Costello shakes up the debate by carefully probing the aspirations of contemporary photography and vigorously challenging the assumptions of the most influential thinkers." - Dominic McIver Lopes, University of British Columbia, Canada "An excellent critical introduction to the main debates in the philosophical study of photography from the early days until recent times. Unlike essays on cultural criticism, the book provides a thorough philosophical argumentation and, unlike other philosophical texts, it is deeply informed by the artistic practices. I very much recommend this book." - Paloma Atencia-Linares, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México "This insightful and engaging book is a valuable resource for all who are interested in photography, whether as theorists, fans, users or practitioners. Costello reveals the tensions inherent in the contemporary conception of photography as both artistically and epistemically important, and makes a compelling case for a renewed focus on the photographic process itself." - Catharine Abell, University of Manchester, UK

O autorze

Diarmuid Costello is an Associate Professor of Philosophy and Co-Director of the Centre for Research in Philosophy, Literature and the Arts at the University of Warwick, UK.