Referencing the picture above entitled “Wrong!” Can a ‘bad’ picture ever be ‘great’? – How important is the context in photography? (context= why a picture was taken, when or where it was taken, and what message you were trying to make)
John Baldessari’s “Wrong” series is about how context, both from the photographer’s and the viewer’s interpretation can give the meaning of an image.
When I first saw the photo, I saw it as a poorly composed photograph that could have looked better, a photo that breaks the traditional rules of photography. But when we know the context- that Baldessari intentionally broke these rules, the image no longer is a “bad” photograph. The context revealed Baldessari’s (the photographer’s) intent. In this case, Baldessari wasn’t just taking a random picture, but making a point (that the photo, was in fact, wrong). Stepping back, context can transform any photograph and art alike. A blurry, out-of-focus picture might be seen as a failure in one context, but after we learned that it was taken. In modern conceptual art, I think context becomes very important in what makes a picture great and, more broadly, what makes something a piece of art. The journey behind a photo also includes why they chose to make it, with that subtle themes and messages in the piece.
Can a ‘bad’ picture ever be ‘great’?
Yes, it definitely can. A lot of good art is defines by its context, rather than appearance. Does an Reinhardt painting show more skill than The School of Athens? Definitely not, it’s the message behind the photograph. Reinhardt’s paintings black-on -black was meant to challenging the viewer and how we perceive art, much like John Baldessari’s Wrong. The context, was literally that he new his photograph was “Wrong.” With the context offered, we know that Baldessari knew his photograph was “Wrong.” Baldessari knew the rules, he is breaking the rules and is breaking the rules with careful consideration of the composition, camera settings, etc, (We had a taste in how hard that was when going around the school taking “Wrong photos.”) but he chose to reject them.
Reinhardt’s black-on-black
CONTACT SHEET
10 of my best “bad” shots
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