March 1, 2013

"The migrant seems, at first, almost like a hero for being able to carry such an impressive pile."

"But soon, we get the feeling that the objects almost swallow him, and that he’s submerged by the multiplication of the same object — as consumers often are."

Great photos, but let the pictures speak for themselves. That kind of commentary drags down the art.

ADDED: As long as we're looking at photographs, check out these in the International Garden Photographer of the Year finalists.

33 comments:

Cheryl said...

I think that statement is true of most art, and books, too. Much better to experience them without most commentary.

Jim Hanson said...

The problems is those are digitally altered photos. The loads are not what they seem and so the whole thing is just lame. They carry impressive enough piles of stuff, that should have been enough.

Cordially,

Jim

Unknown said...

Fake but accurate

Emil Blatz said...

There is a butt-load of Photoshoppin' goin' on dar!

pdug said...

Tiny Hong Kong apartment pictures

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2013/02/shocking-photos-of-cramped-hong-kong-apartments/#.UTDeXgr58bQ.twitter

pdug said...

clearly they need a teamsters union

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

They left out the photo of the guy carting away the executed prisoners.

Dante said...

Why is this considered art?

I thought it was awesome to see two bicyclists carrying an I-Beam up a hill, but I thought it was economics at the time. Same here.

At the time, I thought how amazing capitalism was, to find the most efficient way to move things from point "A" to point "B".

The overburdened bicyclists here simply seem greedy.

Levi Starks said...

It looks like performance art to me

edutcher said...

If true, it's how they've done things in China for years.

And a Hell of a comment on the Reds.

JMS said...

The commentary at the link is just as inane as the photoshopped "photos" and the faux message/propaganda.

I guess these images should be called faux-tos that are manufactured by a faux-tographer.


(OTOH, I find real photos of hard-working folks with overloaded bicycles and carts to be inspiring).

jacksonjay said...


Hell, that's a bona fide Thomas Friedman wet dream!

Chip Ahoy said...

I can do that. So can you.

And if these images look like completely unimaginable, impossible feats of gravity, that's because they are. The migrants' loads have been digitally retouched and purposefully exaggerated to draw attention to the symbolism within Delorme's work.


The artist wants to contrast worker ant, load, expanding architecture.

But I have no such lofty aims. Big hair contest. Michelle WIN!!! with bird

Anonymous said...

The weight of unencumbered, reckless capitalism and soulless consumerism could not dampen their spirits, any more than could swimming in the smog of unchecked industrial activity or appearing briefly in the lens of a class-conscious Frenchman.

It's one-world now!

Kirk Parker said...

I'm with Jim Hanson--where's the lameness tag?

dreams said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

As a consumer I certainly feel submerged every time I buy hundreds of tires.

dreams said...

I liked the country side scene with the overlapping platforms one higher than the other and both penetrating the fence equally on both sides making it easy to climb over the fence.

dreams said...

"But I have no such lofty aims. Big hair contest. Michelle WIN!!! with bird"

And what about the other end, it could go down in history as the biggest butt ever.

Henry said...

I really like these. Bravo. As far as I am concerned, the migrant is a hero. The balancing act just makes it more so.

I once went to a stunning exhibition of Chinese acrobats. They performed feats reminiscent of these fantasies. A man built a ladder of wooden chairs, flung to him by an assistant one at a time as he ascended. A woman stood on her hands and flipped enormous pots around with her feet.

So I mostly like the guy with the stepladder on the 10-speed. That's completely doable and completely crazy.

rhhardin said...

A tall load is unstable on a 2-wheel bicycle, so I don't see how the first guy manages (except perhaps he seems to be motorized, which may minimize the initial swerve that starts the trouble).

The rest are tricycle, which doesn't have the stability problem.

A tall load is fine if it's absolutely rigid, but any give ruins balance.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
tim maguire said...

And if these images look like completely unimaginable, impossible feats of gravity, that's because they are. The migrants' loads have been digitally retouched and purposefully exaggerated to draw attention to the symbolism within Delorme's work.

Putting that sentence upfront would have saved me 45 seconds, not including the 25 seconds it took me to make this post complaining about it.

Sofa King said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sofa King said...

A tall load is unstable on a 2-wheel bicycle, so I don't see how the first guy manages (except perhaps he seems to be motorized, which may minimize the initial swerve that starts the trouble).

It also helps that it is not a real photograph.

Basta! said...

The International Garden photographs are unexpected in that very few of those shown are of actual gardens or garden plants. Most are landscapes, which it's true have some plants in them, but still. . .

And the overall winning photo, which is a landscape, is IMO one of the least captivating in the bunch. And no, my eye wasn't led on the diagonal, as they claim happens to everyone viewing this photo due to the photographer's deliberate compositional strategy. The winner's other displayed photo is also pretty meh. He must have friends.

Nomennovum said...

What's with the pink skyscrapers in that one photo?

Also, I am skeptical of the guy spinning like a top on his erect penis in the background of that other shot. I am dubious because I don't believe they make them that big there.

tiger said...

I'm in the ''shopped til it dropped' side on this one.

Why?

1) I know a little about how much desks weight to see that guy with about 30 of them on cart would be is almost beyond belief; yeah I know the cart has wheels and counter beams etc

2) I know a little about photography and the pics look manipulated - almost hyper-real.

traditionalguy said...

Meade had better watch out now that Ann has seen a bicycle bicycle has so many practical uses.

TMink said...

The garden photography is lovely!

Trey

Sofa King said...

I'm in the ''shopped til it dropped' side on this one.

Why?

1) I know a little about how much desks weight to see that guy with about 30 of them on cart would be is almost beyond belief; yeah I know the cart has wheels and counter beams etc

2) I know a little about photography and the pics look manipulated - almost hyper-real.



3) It says in the article that they have been digitally manipulated from impressive to impossible.

Methadras said...

Hmmm, what if I want that one, right there in the middle? :D

Nini said...

Ok, the sellers on bike pics were digitally altered.

Nonetheless, in many countries in Asia, a push bike and a tricycle are common ways of transporting goods. We, in the west, may see these scenes as something that will drag our hearts down, but these people have adapted to this activity as part of their daily lives. And they will adapt again to another mode of transport when available.

The positive aspect is that there is less carbon footprint in this activity.

Even if the bike-seller pics are not digitally altered, I would see beauty in them -- it's reality-- as those pictures of the forests, which I believe were enhanced by technology (sophisticated lens? ).