SYLLABUS

PHT 2000 01
ALL ABOUT THE CAMERA- SANDRA STARK
Wednesdays 9-12 and 2-5
Mission Hill Building C203

ALL ABOUT THE CAMERA- Stark

Attendance Policy
Only two absences are allowed, one excused and one not. The excused absence must be accompanied by a note from your doctor on the doctor's stationary. Participation in critiques and completing assignments on time is required. Saying that you overslept or taking someone to the airport are not excuses. You have a 5 minute window to arrive to class on time and three late arrivals are considered one absence. Missing two classes, 12 hours, you will be dropped from the course. All cell phones must be turned off during the class except for breaks.

Each morning we start the class looking at the single images each student has brought to class, from the media, to discuss. Students may have technical questions, ethical questions, etc. Mornings are spent on technical information and demonstrations and the afternoons we will have critiques and field trips. There is no darkroom component in this class and students will need to work independently.

9/7 Introduction to class, students present portfolios, explanation of course content,
introduction to photo area, attendance policy, course requirements.
Discussion of properties of light; CAMERA OBSCURA and work by Abe Morrel.
9/14 Look at weekly assignment of each student bringing one found picture from the media and discussion. Jesseca Ferguson, visiting artist, does demo and workshop building PINHOLE CAMERAS. Students shoot with pinhole cameras, process exposure in darkroom. Visit MFA to see the "Violet Land" show by Rebecca and Alex Web.
Discussion of work; is this a successful show (?); their photos relation to modernism and post-modernism; curator's role; successful sequencing; sense of place depicted or not? etc. Choose theme for next weeks single found picture: documentary photography.
9/21 Discussion of documentary found photos. Discussion of ethics in photography.
Look at Philip-Lorca di Corcia's "Faces" book; Erich Solomon's WW ll photos; Ruth Snyder's execution photo; photos of murdered bodies hanging from bridges in Mexico,
etc. When is it too much? What do those pictures really mean, etc.
9/28 Discussion of found photos.
Using the SCANNER as a camera. Will Larson, Davidhazy photos.
View “THE CLOCK” by Christian Marclay at the MFA.
10/5 CRITIQUE
10/12 Truth, Illusion and Representation in Photography
Look at work by Arthur S. Mole and John D. Thomas; Jan Dibbets from “Perspective Correction”, John Pfahl, “Altered Landscapes”, Zeke Berman, and Colum Colvin in relation to perspective and camera angles. Look at South African artist, Robin Rhodes and Holbein’s anamorphic painting, “The Ambassadors”. Also, looking at 19th century Spirit Photography and Spiritualism and Arthur Conan Doyle’s defense of and it’s relation to truth and photography.
Assignment: Try to photograph a memory. Be aware that the vignetted, soft focus image is a Hollywood contruction. Remember daily we are photographing things that haven’t happened yet. Taking a photograph of a memory is photographing something that has already happened. It is ok to just have one image to bring to class.
10/19 SURVEILLANCE
History of; look at detective cameras, Erich Solomans, photo of execution of Ruth Snyder, satellite spy photos, Trevor Paglen, TV show “Cheaters”, Merry Alpern, “Dirty Windows”, Shizuka Yokomizo, “Strangers”, Philip-Lorca di Corcia, “Faces”, movie “Peeping Tom”, Sophie Calle and detective, Google images by Rickard. Look at spy cameras online.
Assignment: take some surveillance photos.
10/26 ANNE ROWLAND demonstrates the GIGA PAN camera
11/2 Use GIGA PAN in class.
11/9 HAROLD EDGERTON and the invention of the STROBE Look at his work and other artists using the strobe. Also, looking at the early history of lighting, illumination of catacombs, etc.
Demo in class of various flashes.
MIT MUSEUM.
11/16 UNDERWATER CAMERA shooting in pool.
11/23 view Photo archives at MFA.
12/1 20x24 camera at Mass Art
Final critique.
The order may slightly change.