My triptych aims to portray the hidden details that people often ignore or overlook. It will inspire the audience to see the beauty hidden in plain sight. In our daily lives, we are always swamped with work, and even when we can relax, we spend time on our electronic devices; thus, my triptych will encourage people to see, observe, and appreciate the world around them.

My final triptych will conflict with my original vision. While I once believed that buildings, paintings, and remnants of the past were better than nature, I now see it differently: like photography, there are no such things as “good,” “bad,” or “better.” It’s all about the goal. My goal for my triptych is to include elements of haphazardness, chaos, and messiness, while also presenting order, structure, and grandeur, evoking a sense of disoriented beauty in the images. Therefore, as long as my triptych fits my goal and new vision—whether it features architecture or nature—it will be the most appropriate triptych I can create.

Although I personally believe the triptych matches the goal, the haphazardness of the grass creates a sense of chaos, while the straightness of the plants conveys a sense of structure and order. The meaning, however, is difficult to interpret without context. Instead, the meaning of the triptych is often misunderstood as representing the “meaning of life” or a similar concept. However, some people still believe the triptych represents chaos or order, which aligns with my original intention when creating it.

Who inspired me to create this triptych, especially in this style? Aaron Siskind inspired me to capture photos of unnoticed, overlooked objects, as his work often focuses on the corners of architecture that people typically ignore. But then, as I looked at Harry Callahan’s work as my second set of inspiration, I realized that while focusing on overlooked corners is good, I shouldn’t limit myself to architecture. Harry Callahan photographs a variety of subjects. Just like in the ‘Wrong!’ unit we studied, we shouldn’t judge whether a photo is good or not. Therefore, we shouldn’t settle on a single subject for a photoshoot or consider that subject to be the best (in my personal opinion). Instead, we should photograph different subjects and decide which is the most “appropriate” for the theme under the circumstances.

When I took the photos, I tried to place my camera at different angles and positions to capture various images of the same subject. I also used different levels of clarity and zoom to control which elements I wanted to include in the composition and which I wanted to exclude. These strategies benefited me in the final editing process because I didn’t need to adjust many aspects to achieve a simple, clear view of the photos.

Thinking about this triptych, I now realize I haven’t fully explored the basic concept of abstract photography. Yes, I have photographed texture and patterns, but I still have many other interesting styles to explore. For example, out-of-focus techniques, motion blur, and manipulation of exposure…etc. In the future, I want to explore abstract photography further and capture my surroundings and the world in new ways.

https://www.jacksonfineart.com/artists/harry-callahan/rhode-island-grasses/

I found this photo particularly interesting in Harry’s collection. The patterns of the grass, formed by different lines, create a strong sense of order and stability with a chaotic vibe. The grass gives an initial impression of messiness, while the patterns convey a sense of order and structure. These two contrasting concepts merge in this photo, evoking a sense of calmness that arises from the interplay of chaos, structure, and the timeless quality of the black-and-white tone. Among all these elements, I believe the patterns contribute the most to the sense of solemnity. They add texture and establish a sense of orderliness. This order contrasts with the chaos in the photo, and combined with the ancient feel conveyed by the texture and tone, it creates a sense of solemnity.

https://www.moma.org/collection/works/125491

Harry Callahan – Wall (1945)
byu/bil_sabab inSmorgasbordBizarre

https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/106PG5

https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/106PHF

https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/106PFZ

https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/114SR7

Lake Michigan by Harry Callahan (1950)

Explanation:

The contact sheet:

Yellow Selections:

Green Selections:

I then chose the green selections from my yellow selections. I made these choices based on my vision, aiming to explore the combination of chaos and order. These images demonstrate Harry Callahan’s use of texture and pattern to show chaos and order. The patterns—of the floor, wood, grass, and wall—and textures—wood and floor—are used together to demonstrate my vision: the combination of chaos and order.

Red Selections:

I eventually decided to choose these images as my red selections, as they represent both Harry’s orderly and chaotic style. The flat surface and the lines evoke a sense of structure and orderliness, while the scratches and broken layers outside evoke a sense of chaos.

Aaron Siskind

Aaron Siskind

Aaron Siskind

Aaron Siskind

https://www.ideelart.com/magazine/aaron-siskind

https://www.icp.org/search-results/Aaron%20Siskind/all/all/relevant/0

https://www.icp.org/search-results/Aaron%20Siskind/all/all/relevant/0

https://www.icp.org/search-results/Aaron%20Siskind/all/all/relevant/0

https://www.artnet.com/artists/aaron-siskind/north-carolina-28-a-YZlPH9LidacbUGAtaUCVjg2

I found this photo particularly interesting in Siskind’s collection. Compared to his other photographs, the patterns of the blocks, formed by different shapes, create a strong sense of solemnity within an overall chaotic vibe. The torn paper with block images gives an initial impression of messiness, while focusing solely on the blocks conveys a sense of order and structure. These two contrasting concepts merge in this photo, evoking a sense of calmness that arises from the interplay of chaos, structure, and the timeless quality of the black-and-white tone. Among all these elements, I believe the patterns contribute the most to the sense of solemnity. They add texture and establish a sense of orderliness. This order contrasts with the chaos in the photo, and combined with the ancient feel conveyed by the texture and tone, it creates a sense of solemnity.

The list:

The photos all seem to share at least two common traits: texture and tone. I think Siskind uses these elements to create an atmosphere of antiquity. The texture, often seen in missing materials or unique ‘textures’ not originally present on the wall, conveys a sense of age in the photos (#1, #3, #5, #9). Meanwhile, the black-and-white tone evokes a feeling of oldness, as such tones are often associated with the past (all photos). Furthermore, Siskind seems to have a particular interest in depicting the chaotic nature of his subjects—he could have simply photographed a wall in images #1, #2, #4, #5, and #9, but instead, he chose to capture the messy, disorganized state of otherwise ordered, structured objects.

Paragraph of explanation:

The photographer I chose is an abstract photographer who focuses on small details that others might overlook. But why are his photos considered abstract? As mentioned, Aaron Siskind prefers to capture details such as the texture of architecture. In the nine examples, all but picture #6, which focuses solely on architecture, prominently feature texture—his primary focus. Siskind’s style, which I find fascinating and unique, involves zooming in and angling the camera to capture images with elements of order. Yet, by focusing on damaged or broken walls, this sense of order is layered with a feeling of chaos. This approach makes Siskind’s photographs abstract, as he uniquely combines the concepts of chaos and order by zooming in on different architectural traits.

Siskind once said, “When I make a photograph, I want it to be an altogether new object, complete and self-contained, whose basic condition is order,” and “Ambiguity may be the clue: there is the material, and there am I intruding my private intent… strong tensions are inevitable, pleasurable and disturbing.” These quotes align with my interpretation. Siskind, as I discovered, always ensures that there is a layer of orderliness inside his photographs: “…basic condition is order.” He also believes that a pleasurable photograph may be inevitably disturbing—chaotic—matching the chaotic layer in his photographs.

(Photo Quotes, photoquotes.com/author/aaron-siskind)

I chose Aaron Siskind as my inspiration because his vision aligns closely with mine. My goal is to focus on the small architectural details that are often overlooked in daily life. Siskind captures both textures and broader architectural elements, which resonates with my aim to explore the hidden details beneath the surface. Additionally, I believe that my photographs should balance elements of order and chaos, a concept that also appears in Siskind’s work. To adapt his style to my own photography, I would begin by closely observing the patterns, colors, and textures of walls and architecture, seeking out the coexistence of order and chaos. I would then zoom in on these details, experimenting with different camera angles.

The contact sheet:

The Yellow Selections:

I filtered the yellow selections mainly for the theme of architecture. For this selection, I did not choose photos based on my personal vision; instead, I selected them based on a general theme of architecture—where as long as the photos were clearly visible and aligned with the theme, they passed. I also used the yellow selection to differentiate the visually appealing photos, which I then used as a benchmark to determine which sets would move on to the green and red categories. Additionally, the yellow selections helped me refine my ideas for the final red selections—establishing the desired vibe and understanding how the red selections differ from others—by adjusting the contrast, exposure, highlights, shadows, etc., of each yellow photo.

The Green Selections:

I then chose the green selections from my yellow selections. I made these choices based on my vision, aiming to explore the combination of chaos and order, creating a sense of antiquity that ultimately evokes a feeling of solemnity through the merging of these elements. The first six pictures primarily focus on the chaotic aspect, where the chaos—represented by the paintings—overlays the order and patterns of the brick walls. These images demonstrate the texture of Siskind’s photography, showcasing how he often prioritizes the chaotic elements as a visible first layer, with the more orderly aspects forming a foundational second layer. The second-to-last picture also fits this definition. The remaining images emphasize order and structure. Like Siskind’s photos #2, #3, #7, and #8, they place greater emphasis on contrasting chaos and establishing a hierarchy within the ordered or structural elements. Unlike the first set of images, these tend to focus more on order than chaos.

The Red Selections:

Evaluation of the #1 red image:

The dot in the center creates a strong hierarchy, capturing the audience’s attention, while the surrounding lighting and shadows add contrast subtly. This hierarchy conveys a sense of order and structure, guiding the audience to the photo’s focal point. The circular shape of the dot also contributes to this sense of hierarchy. The contrast in lighting and shadows not only adds visual interest due to their structured positioning but also introduces a touch of chaos. The texture of the floor and the black-and-white tone evoke a sense of antiquity. This combination of ancientness, chaos, and order/structure comes together to create a sense of solemnity, aligning with my vision.

I eventually decided to choose the more orderly images as my red selections, as they represent both Siskind’s architectural style and his focus on textures. Additionally, I believe that these two red images, despite their similarity in traits, will be useful in my final presentation because they contain more photographic elements than the others—such as texture, shape, tone, line, and hierarchy.

During the process of taking photos, I gradually realized that my selections of Siskind’s work were not very consistent, which posed a challenge. Which traits or elements in these photos should I prioritize? Sometimes, I captured imposing buildings to reflect the theme of order; at other times, I focused on stable scenes, but I also photographed street art to represent chaos. Because the general themes of the photos I selected from Siskind were not the best matches, it affected the final quality and outcome of my selections. Next time, I will aim to design a better plan, conduct more research, and establish clearer goals.

The hidden magic in plain sight:

The message of my triptych will inspire the audience to see the beautiful architecture, the texture of them to be specific, hidden beneath the sight. In our daily lives, we are always swamped with work, and even if we can relax, we spend time on our electronic devices; thus, my triptych would encourage people to see, observe, and appreciate the world around us. Many people, in this case, would believe nature would be the best option for us to lock our eyes on – which I do not disagree with but wish to address a different claim; I believe the buildings, the paintings, the remnants of past(the textures), ancient or not, are the most gorgeous things and we should give it the respect and attention it deserves. Therefore, in this case, I wish the audience, after seeing my presentation, would have an entirely different perspective on those common traits of society in our daily lives. For my presentation, instead of trying to evoke a sense of structure, imposingness, and order like other artists often do, I would try my best to depict a world and take images that are intentionally captured to include elements of haphazard, chaotic, and messy, but presents the order and structure and the imposingness of them hidden beneath the surface to the audiences. Looking at the pictures, despite the element of order, structure, and imposingness under the look of haphazard, chaotic, and messy, I would also like to evoke a sense of disoriented beauty in the pictures, leading to a feeling of fascination and combining with the awe that comes from the imposingness I also tried to evoke, eventually leading toward the complexed but simple feeling of “awe” towards the world, the buildings surrounding us in daily. In my research, I would find photographers who focus on the countryside and the daily, “ordinary” architecture surrounding us and explore the vast universe of the beauty and lies beneath – the things that we scan through with our eyes and ignore. In simple words, I wish to find abstract photographers who see the world differently and explore the magic architecture possesses. We need to see the world around us more and notice its beauty instead of spending our free time on our devices.

This is my mind map:

https://isbeijing.padlet.org/anthony_huang1/my-remarkable-padlet-9r1pw2fjilmsyzqx

This photo demonstrates a contrast of the colors brown and red. It is taken when I push the chair so that it touches the table.  I believe this photo demonstrates some aspect of the drawing as it is indeed a contrast that stands left to right; however, because the chair isn’t straight, it resulted in a way so that the mid-line is a bit off. Thus, I believe this photo in the middle between “worked” and “doesn’t work”. The photo illustrates the element of Alignment & Contrast & Lines.

This photo portrays a pink magnet on the whiteboard. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo was pretty successful in mimicking the aspect of having the subject at the upper right corner of the entire photo and having everything else just with negative space. Thus, I believe the photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the element of shapes initially – but I then thought that a lack of focus in this context would make it more interesting; the element of focus is then added.

This photo portrays a series of puzzles scattered and on top of each other. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is successful in mimicking the aspect of scattering repetition in this image. I’ve intentionally made the puzzles haphazard and chaotic so that it demonstrates the orderless that was in the image. Thus, I believe the photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the element of patterns as the surroundings and subjects were designed to match that concept.

This photo portrays two pipes on the ceiling of an art room. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo isn’t so successful in mimicking the aspect of the structured, ordered, and organized lines in the image because firstly, the lines in the photo only consist of two while the image possesses three; secondly, lines looked a bit curved due to the position and angle I took the picture in; lastly, the overall tone of the photo failed to demonstrate the contrast that I wish it had – looking from left to right, it is Little bit of shadow -> Large area of light – > Medium area of shadow. Thus, I believe the photo didn’t “work” for the image. The photo tries to illustrate the element of tone and demonstrates patterns as well as the lines.

Similar to photo #4, this photo portrays a file container in the front view. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is some-what successful in mimicking the aspect of structured lines in the image. The two sides of the file container correspond with the two lines in the image, but I have to blur the photo because of the crowded surroundings around the file container – therefore, I believe the photo, to a certain degree, has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of patterns, lines, and focus.

This photo portrays a light source front view. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is successful in mimicking the aspect of the attention-grabbing shape in the image. The light by itself seemed dull and uninterested. Therefore, I blurred it so that the colors of the light and its contour blended together into one thing, creating a hierarchy in the center. Thus, I believe this photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of shapes and focus.

This photo portrays a sticker. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is somewhat successful in mimicking the aspect of the image because it does indeed have the shape and look of the image, but due to the angle problem, it made the photo look a bit weird. Thus, I believe this photo, to a certain degree, has somewhat “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of lines and patterns.

This photo portrays a blanket. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is successful in mimicking the aspect of repeated circles. The repetition of the holes corresponds with the circles in the image. Thus, I believe this photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of shapes and patterns.

Similar to photo #9, this photo portrays another blanket. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is successful in mimicking the aspect of the grid-look image. Because I believe the blanket by itself is boring to look at, I found that I could actually photo the two layers of the blanket and create a double layer of grid shape. Thus, I believe this photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of patterns and shapes.

This photo portrays a light bulb. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is successful in mimicking the aspect of the line crossing over the left-down corner to the upper right corner. During the process of capturing this photo, I discovered that focusing on the light could make the surroundings black, demonstrating a contrast of black and white, aka, tone. I used the same angle approximately and created a similar look. Thus, I believe this photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of line, focus, and tone.

This photo portrays a table knife. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is not successful in mimicking the aspect of the attention-grabbing shape in the image. I blurred the subject so that it doesn’t look dull. However, because of the wrong angle, I took the photo in, it does not mimic the image, and it looks terrible. Thus, I believe this photo has not a single bit “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of line and focus.

This photo portrays the wooden wall. Comparing the photo and the image, I believe this photo is successful in mimicking the aspect of the haphazardness in the image. The wooden wall, like the image, creates a texture of rough, fabric like look. Thus, I believe this photo has “worked” for the image. The photo illustrates the elements of texture.

What are the formal elements of Photography? It is the six traits – line, shape, pattern, texture, tone, focus – that, maybe not all, but would definitely be consisted in a photograph. A photo can include as many elements in it and could just have one element in it. For example, you could just capture a focused or not photograph of pure white and nothing else – it still has the element focus in it but without any other elements.

Line is literally what it is, a line or lines that either intertwine or exist on their own – it is often used to emphasize a certain object. Furthermore, by using lines, you could use them to emphasize or to create direction towards an object. For example, the image below uses stairs as a way to emphasize and create direction towards the person sitting. Additionally, it could also be used to create a focus point – all the lines below point toward one single direction, and because of the proportion, it grabs the viewer’s attention.

Shape is when a group of lines works together to create a geometrical shape; it often occurs with repetitions/patterns as it then becomes a group of shapes. In the image below, it uses shapes in different positions and postures as the subject of the photo. In fact, shapes are often used as the subject of the photo because they exist almost everywhere, and their size/physical traits often allow them to become the center of attention.

Pattern, aka repetition, is when a group of shapes is put together to generate a pattern. Patterns can make the photo feel structured and organized, thus generating an overall peaceful, stable mood. In the image below, the pattern creates a strong construction of systems of layers and evokes a stable, structured feeling in the viewers.

Texture is adding visual elements of color, depth, and shape. It can convince the viewer of the material on the surface of the photograph and make the viewer feel as if they are in the situation. In the photo below, because of the focus and the clarity of the photo, you can imagine what the sand touches, feels like, and is probably shaped like.

Tone is to create light-dark differences in a picture. It either emphasizes strong darkness vs. weak lighting or strong lighting vs. weak darkness, but it could also be just dark vs. light. In the picture below, the tone was used to emphasize the mountain in the middle – the surroundings and corners are all dark, and in the center, where the mountain is at, is the brightest. The hierarchy created by tone creates a strong contrast between its subject and its object.

Focus is to blur everything, or focus on everything, or to focus on mainly one thing and blur the rest. It’s often used to create focus points and hierarchy – or to blend the colors and subject together. In the picture below, focus is used to create a hierarchy on the toy bus and blur the background. Focus is also used here to blend the colors of the light and the colors of the objects – such as the cars and trees… – together, creating a glorious background view to set off its subject, the toy bus.

Citations:

Images that do not have a clear or direct connection with the world – it doesn’t specifically state the subject and use shapes, lines, or colors to modify the visual effect it has on the views. You could not directly tell what had been captured by the photographer.

“Abstract photography can be defined as capturing images in which the subject isn’t the most interesting element. Albert Renger-Patzsch and Aaron Siskind photographed the ordinary to reveal their beauty. Uta Barth reversed the typical use of the camera, shooting out of focus and Andreas Gursky photographs the repetition of elements. During this unit, you will investigate appropriate examples of abstract photography and respond in your own way.”

There are objects in the world where it doesn’t grab your attention – it could be the lack of hierarchy in creation, it could be the special color choice, and it could be the damage of time on it -, in fact, you might ignore it in the daily life because its too common. However, nothing is common; under the right circumstance, the right lighting, the right angle, the right background, and the right focus, the object, the subject of the photo, could vividly present itself in a way that you would have never imagined, in a way were it becomes gorgeous. For example, a normal pencil, the type of the typical pencil, sitting on a typical table with normal light ball lighting on top facing a wall would not be as interesting as the same pencil, but this time facing the window where you see the burred, uncleared red light (the dawn) drags the yellowness circular object (the sun) down into the ocean.

Citation: