The connection of the nineteenth century European “norm” to
the fascination of “the other” makes for a very interesting catalyst of tourism
leading to fashion photography. It is
human nature for us to be interested in things that differ from our everyday
life, using a camera to document these memories for a later time seems to make
sense. However, the progression of how this tool has affected our society today
is very overlooked. In tourism, it is considered acceptable for those who are traveling
to document their experiences as something to remember them by. But how often
do you take a step back from your perspective and see the image as an exploitation
of the individual and the intimacies of their daily life. Though they may have
a sense of “otherness” to the European standard of ‘normal,’ I don’t believe it
is just for their differences to be utilized as a source of research for
commercial purposes. This is where their exotic traits are carried over into
the fashion realm. Though fashion photography has a tendency to use a generic
model, traits are often taken from ‘the other’ to manipulate a photo as exotic to
capture attention. My issue with this is the abuse of this tool as it results
in the beauty of ‘the other’ being stripped down to a superficial level in
efforts to be capitalized on, opposed to being appreciated for what it is,
something different.
3 comments:
RESPONSE FROM CRISTOBAL ORTEGA:
I think that travel photography is a fascinating genre and experience - it is an intercultural experience that draws on many meanings of photography. Tourism draws heavily on the image as proof of experiencing travel itself - and it also emphasizes what it truly means to exist as the “other.” I’ve brought my camera with me when I’ve traveled to Mexico for three weeks. When I was in Mexico, I spent most of my time in a small town in the southern heart of Mexico, and I photographed mainly two high school brothers to document their story. Their lives were different than mine by definition, and in the intimacies of their daily lives, like being able to photograph them in their house and bedroom, I felt comfortable. They had blessed me with their stories and wanted to work with me to share their story of woodworking and school. I think one of the most underreported photographic technique in travel photography is simply talking to the people who you are photographing and stepping outside your own comfort zone in order to understand what photography means to them as well.
One of the difficulties of travel photography is that in order to make a photograph that transcends the superficial, you need to spend time and invest yourself in the culture of the place. Tourism can sometimes be treated like a scavenger hunt, or checklist, in which it is more important to see landmarks one after the other. The intimacies and unique qualities that make a place attractive might be lost after realizing how hard it is to visualize it. The common gesture of welcoming someone in for tea and coffee culturally is much harder to photograph than the landscape. The landscapes across travel magazines do not need feedback in order to have permission to be photographed. Fashion models who model foreign travel are placed the responsibility of representing a mood, a place, and their own body for desire.
I think your ending statements are so poignant here; society absolutely values traits of 'the Other' without valuing 'the Other' - that is why they are 'the Other' in the first place. They are not ourselves, they do not fit, we like certain features about them but ultimately they are invaluable. Dehumanization, depersonalization. Not only does this idea contribute to the capitalization of these humans, it is also incredibly dangerous.
Kelsey, I really liked that you used the words dehumanization because it really sums up the phenomenon that is occurring with both travel and fashion photography in regards to "the other". Especially in travel we make "the other" out to be souvenirs of our experiences and completely look past who they are as people. They become commodities that we pay to take pictures with.
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