The Search for Truth
When photography was developed in the early 19th century, it was seen as a tool for artists and others to create images based solely in reality. Over time, photography was adapted and manipulated for its ability to create “images.” What do you think this means for the overall production of art and visual culture in the modern age? How did a mechanical means of reproducing images disrupt traditional image-making techniques and subject matter? Do you think this had any affect on the development of art styles such as Realism and Impressionism? The traditional trope is that photography “freed” artists to create images that were divorced from a direct reproduction of the natural and visible world. Do you agree with this idea? Do you think Realists or Impressionists would agree with this? What were the goals of both the Impressionists and Realists and how do you think they differed in their definition of what the “real” actually was?
