The Photograph as Contemporary Art - Charlotte Cotton (2nd Edition)

I struggle sometimes with the term contemporary art and sometimes when I look at contemporary images some capture my thoughts and some do not.

I have purchased the book The Photograph as Contemporary Art (2nd Edition)- Charlotte Cotton and slowly start to digest elements of it to help increase my understanding and encourage my photography to explore areas I would not normally.

Contemporary Art is that which is produced in our / my current life time e.g. contemporary to us and not historical. It continues on from Modern and Post Modern all times present for certain people reflecting a style of art that has evolved. I think to a degree Art and of course photographic art will follow fashions just like clothing and so at times will go around in a circle and perhaps adapt and mutate slightly from its initial viewing or construction first time around

I like the way Cotton introduces the chapters through the introduction and splits her book across 8 areas of contemporary art photography, in summary these:

Chapter 1 - Finding / waiting for that moment where almost a pre-conceived idea is captured so that viewers will reconsider how they view the world

Chapter 2 - Story telling through art photography, semiotics but perhaps much more intellectual or thought provoking than standard story telling that perhaps reportage photography most commonly achieves.

Chapter 3 -Cotton calls this Deadpan and appears to discuss images with less emotional content and perhaps with less dynamics within them but no less thought provoking

Chapter 4 - Here she discusses and explores the ordinary every day objects within our lives but with a creative mind using elements such as juxtaposition, shape, form, colour etc shows how information can be captured and presented to the viewer in ways they would not normally see them

Chapter 5 - Cotton explores photographers creating images around intimacy within lives, observational but also participation. I found this chapter quite intriguing and its interesting how the photographer is telling a story within them

Chapter 6 - Titled "Moments in History" is an interesting statement as all photographic images are indeed just that. Documentary and reportage images are indeed moments in history and what is the story being told. Do we capture how subjects are seen or how they want to be seen or indeed how the photographer wishes the image to be understood.

Chapter 7 - This chapter appears to look at interpretation and reconstruction of images or styles from the past

Chapter 8 - Cotton considers how photography has become considered an art and perhaps how digital photography allows more active and direct choices in how photography is expressed. More images are displayed electronically now than in in print form and this are now less material. Does this make today's images more fleeting?

There is much more in this book for me to explore, go back and re-read and understand it more in tune as more knowledge and understanding increase. I think I am reading this book at the right time just as my knowledge and understanding of photography is starting to move away from I understood to be basic knowledge. There is much reference to photographer's and therefore investigating these photographers and their work will give me further insight.

Contemporary photography allows the exploration of style, form, subject matter but also individual motivations of the photographer and the message within the image they have created. 

I know have a small insight into contemporary art photography and I have a basic understanding allow me to explore it perhaps in my own practise but also pursue the work of some of these photographers mentioned in the book