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Posted 9/26/2007 @ 10:02:00 pm by photographyblogger.com
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Pictorialism is not a photography term that is rampant in today?s artistic world, but photography has its roots in pictorialism, and the art form is still emulated today as a type of fine art photography. Pictorialism began during the 1800s when all the world wanted a painting, or an etching, that was really a photograph. Since the dry-plate process had just begun to spread, techniques such as etching were extremely popular, and this process sparked the interest of photographers everywhere.
Special techniques including soft focus, various filters and lens coatings, darkroom mastery, and printing processes from far away lands were used in order to create a photograph that was disguised as a painting or etching. A few photographers even went so far as to literally scratch the surface of their photographs with sharp utensils in order to create an etched effect. Other photographers simply wanted to emulate the great impressionists such as Monet, C?zanne, and Degas. Although this style of photography was interesting, the impressionist movement did not last for long, and neither did the photographs that were meant to copy the great masters. Eventually, people wanted to see photography for photography, not for painting or etching. Thus, only a few pictorialists have survived the test of time.
One of the great pictorialist manipulators to emerge from the 1800s is the notable photographer Alfred Stieglitz. Unbeknownst to many art lovers, Stieglitz actually introduced Picasso, Matisse, Rodan, and many other famous painters to America. Stieglitz was also the inspiration for many other photographers that came after him (see ?Willy Ronis? article), and he is known as ?the grandfather of pictorialism? today. One current photographer, Sally Mann, has chosen to reproduce the reproductive pictorialism style in her book What Remains. For any photography lover, this Mann?s book is a must read. If you are to trace the roots of photography, you would become knee deep in pictorialism, the craze that started it all.
