Sunday's Best: Redefined
This piece explores how the outward appearance of faith can change over time while the meaning behind it can remain the same.Traditionally , "Sunday's best" was associated with dressing formally for church, so I intentionally photographed myself in a modern hoodie while holding a Bible. The casual clothing creates a contrast between present-day church culture and the more formal traditions of the past.
I placed myself in front of a historic church image from the library of congress. The church acts as the connection to the past , while the clothing shows the present. The contrast encourages the viewer to question whether Sunday's best is about the clothing someone wears or the intention they bring with them.
Overall Ziah did a solid job at creating a composite image. The concept was sold well and is evident through her arrangement and presentation. She seems to understand the core aspects of what makes a wet-collodian photograph, a wet-collodian, with the only major critique I have being that I would’ve liked to see those edits pushed further.
ReplyDeleteZiah’s “Sunday’s Best: Redefined” is a composite photo of herself, holding a bible, in front of an older church. The most obvious subject is herself, and secondarily, the bible she holds, as they are the most clearly defined and take up the most space in the composition relative to the tertiary subject, the church. The overall piece appears heavily damaged, as if timeworn, featuring heavy darks that frame the entire image and even bleed onto the main subjects. The composition is arranged in a diagonal, where the main three subjects lead the viewer's eyes from the bottom left-corner to the top-right.
ReplyDeleteThe intent of Sunday’s Best: Redefined is quite overt. She places herself as a modern person in the setting as an affront to it and what it stands for. The contrast is the conflict and also the resolution from how Ziah describes her own work. This is done strictly through her choice of clothing, and it’s in service of making the point that faith is faith, regardless of presentation. The intent of the composite is that the intent is what really matters, despite what the supposed “church culture” of the time and place might’ve been. The traditions changed, but the importance of the faith, to Ziah, did not.
I think the wet-collodian aspect of the work is shown primarily through the damage the image appears to have endured. There’s scuffs, scratches, emulsions, and stains, so much so that it almost makes the image feel claustrophobic (which isn’t an inherent negative of course). As far as how the subjects have been treated, I think it could’ve been healthy to have some heavier blur effects in some areas. Specifically the background and maybe around the corners of the body or the tips of the hair. Also, I believe that the amount of contrast on Ziah herself could’ve been pulled back to create a more even value range. The darks are very dark compared to the whites. The grain is a nice touch, and the sepia coloring was handled well. It doesn’t feel like it was over-saturated.
Overall Ziah did a solid job at creating a composite image. The concept was sold well and is evident through her arrangement and presentation. She seems to understand the core aspects of what makes a wet-collodian photograph, a wet-collodian, with the only major critique I have being that I would’ve liked to see those edits pushed further.