Michael Kenna

Michael Kenna seems to prefer photographing landscapes or objects he finds in the environment. All of his professional photographs appear to be done in black and white. Whether it's a nature scene or a cityscape, the majority of them lack any human presence. His photographs are largely divided in series of where they were taken or a prevailing subject matter such as India or Birds. The travel theme really resonates with me.

His photographs are framed at unusual angles or distances. Very few are directly facing the scene being captured. Many of his photographs have a shadowy haze encroaching from the corners. This haze is present in the images that were taken straight on as well. This combination of factors give his work an ethereal feeling, like theres something more to them than we see. 


I personally find Kenna's work to be really interesting. He takes pieces of the world and makes them feel like something separate. They're undeniably real places and yet they feel almost dreamlike. They feel like a place for the viewer alone to explore, inviting yet empty. Even the pictures of famous sights like the Tajmahal feel off in interesting ways. 

Man Ray

The works the movements that inspired Ray the most were the ones that challenged peoples understanding. So it comes to no surprise that he would latch onto the surrealism movement. I'll be honest I've never been too into surrealism, most of it feels just feels too pretentious for me. However, the artists that go into these movements tend to have a high amount of skill and even if I don't care for the content I can recognize the craftsmanship. Man Ray is no exception to this statement.

Man Ray's photographs contain excellent use of space and interesting compositions. Even when there is only one thing in focus it's positioned in a way that leads your eye around. He manipulates the photographs in visually interesting ways even if their meaning can be hard to parse. There's a definite feeling that he cares about the end result of his photography. So that clear feeling of care makes the usual feelings of surrealist art a lot more palatable for me.

However, I still wouldn't say I particularly enjoy Man Ray's art as a whole. Overall I feel neutral towards his work. He has his fair share of photographs that feel are interesting but they're equally matched by the ones I dislike. This neutrality is likely coming from the fact that pictures like this aren't exactly new to me, at the time of the movement they were pushing new ground and there were certain charms and qualities that came with that. People can enjoy these photographs without placing themselves in the time they were created, but I feel like those who are able to think back to then have a much greater appreciation. 

Lee Friedlander

I believe Lee Friedlander's art is meant to reflect the spontaneity of everyday life. His art is of scenes he mostly stumbles upon during his usual day-to-day. These are moments of life that he deemed important enough to share or he chose to share them specifically because of how unimportant they are. The self-portrait makes it clear he doesn't really care about presenting things in a way they aren't. He decided to take a picture while he was still in his underwear so that's how he's taking it.

While I wouldn't say he doesn't care about the presentation of his photographs, there's a certain part of that statement that rings true. The quality of the photograph is clearly taken into account but he doesn't agonize over getting the "perfect shot". Friedlander will have his shadow or side mirror show up in a photo and he still keeps the photo. He cares about getting a good shot but he still takes a really casual and laid back approach to the process. Personally, I find that type of approach really enjoyable.

They don't really give off the same vibe of a someone who considers themselves a professional artist but someone who just wants to show off some photographs they've taken. It's a very approachable type of work that I think anyone can enjoy. He shows life as it is and doesn't try to make it deep. However, that's not to say there isn't any it's just not the main point of the piece. From what I've seen I think his photographs line up a lot with how I see photography, it'ds a window into someone else's world. He's showing everyone his world, but he's not limiting it to the highlights.