The Struggle for Meaning

Monolithic Eclipse

I've been wanting to write about this image for a while now, but embarrassingly really didn't know what to say, words just escaped me.  It's an image that attracts me, but strictly in a right-brain, mute sort of way.

I love how the border between the near-black and the sky almost bisects the the image perfectly from the upper left all the way down to the middle third, and then just veers off in a slight jog upwards.  I love how the sun suggests itself from the slant but doesn't overwhelm the image.  In print, but probably not on a computer monitor, you can make out vague suggestions of rectangular tiles in the black, lower portion of the image providing a rigid, grid-like counterpoint to the clouds in the upper half. The image speaks to me on many different levels, just not a verbal one.

The viewer, though, may be left with the question, "What is it?" To my mind, it reminds me of the monoliths from 2001: A Space Odyssey, and thus the image's title.  Others, especially the younger set who may not have seen the film, may not draw the same initial comparison.  Again, messages on different levels.

Perhaps this is why I find it so compelling.  Good photography always engages the viewer, either by attraction or repulsion.  The best always lingers for a while afterward even if you struggle to verbalize a meaning, maybe especially if you struggle to verbalize a meaning.

Crazy Loco

So, is this art?

We went to the Bakehouse Art Complex a few weeks ago for their monthly open house.  For those who haven't been, this is truly a great place.  Housed in the former National Bread Company building, it provides affordable studio space to emerging and mid-career artist.  The exhibit in the Audrey Love Gallery was of works of professors at a local art college.  Among them was  Brian Nogues Reference Work 1.5, pictured.  It so astounded me, I had to photograph it.

Of the many works in the gallery, I liked some and didn't like others, but none provoked the level of discourse that Nogues' work did.  Jackie described it as "Crazy Loco."  The idea that someone would put an ordinary bubble level in a matte, frame it and call it "art" shocked my senses.  That he should demand $950 for it, well, I thought took some nerve.  Still, I snapped the photo and walked on.  [click below to read more]