Ray Metzker Getty Exhibit Reflections

The thing that struck me about Metzkers prints was his use of extremely high contrast and how that effected the subjects of his photos. In some photos the contrast would abstract recognizable daily objects to bizarre harsh black shapes shapes. This interested me because it almost seemed to be a commentary of the beauty found in places we wouldn't think to look. Hard lines casting shadows that project patterns of black and white in the architecture of a building or construction of a street. When you simplify and object down to only its shape, it makes it much easier to appreciate the grace or rigidity of its form. Another thing that element of his photographs that was interestingly effected by his abundant use of contrast was the people in his frames. Without a clear view of the person's face displayed in the picture it is hard to discern who they are. As human beings so much of our communication relies of the use of the face and, deprived of this contact we are left wondering many things about a person. Who are they? What are they feeling? In many cases, How old are they? What are they thinking?  As a result, Metzker's human subject become these mysterious shadows of themselves. When I see these I get a sense that Metzker is making a comment on the way these people live their day to day life. Without a clear view of their eyes he prevents us from a clear view of into their soul and by so doing projects an idea that his subjects are only shells of themselves. This coupled with the harsh lighting imposed on everyday scenes gives the impression that these people go about their lives in a sense of a transe. They travel through their commutes without fully being present and are therefore contribute barley more to the world around them then the shadows they cast upon the ground around them. I personally find this commentary very adequate to present day life. We get so used to moving through the motions of our day that we rarely are actually aware of what is going on around us. How often do we sit at a red light and think "wow, I'm lucky to be alive" or go to the grocery store and revel in the fact that we can see so many colors and smell so many things around us? It's nothing more than one task on to the next trying to get to the end of our day and the promise of a soft bed and sleep as fast as we can. When I really think about it, it's a terrible waste of the time we are given, yet at the same time it's not realistic to think that this mindset we fall into will really change.

Final proposal

For my final I want to focus on capturing nature juxtaposed with technology. I've always found the site of trees stuck in the middle of crowded intersection or graffitied and beat down by their polluted surroundings. I've also been really impressed with natures ability to persevere and survive despite the harshest climates and conditions. I find a blade of grass or a flowering weed sprouting from a crack in cement or a birds nest built in the crevasse of a building to be a truly beautiful and inspiring thing. I want to draw attention to these small feats of survival and expose the beauty of the organic life of nature entwined with hard and cold man made things.
In my project I want to make people aware of the sparse nature that surrounds them and respect what little space it has. I've photographed images of litter in flower beds and graffiti on trees to call attention to the carelessness and cruelty we display towards nature. It is important to value the intrinsic and fragile beauty of the world and to appreciate how amazing it's many forms are. I personally find nature to be the most inspiring thing the world has to offer simply due to the sheer vastness and abundance of it's varying climates and species. For this reason I find it really depressing to see more cement than grass in my daily life and even worse to see what little space devoted to nature defaced and disgraced.