The Photograph (Oxford History of Art) - Hardcover

Clarke, Graham

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 019284248X ISBN 13: 9780192842480

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1997

Synopsis

How do we read a photograph? In this rich and fascinating work, Graham Clarke gives a clear and incisive account of the photograph's historical development, and elucidates the insights of the most engaging thinkers on the subject, such as Roland Barthes and Susan Sontag. From the first misty "heliograph" taken by Joseph Nicephore Niepce in 1826 to the classic compositions of Cartier-Bresson and Alfred Steiglitz and the striking postmodern strategies of Robert Mapplethorpe, Clarke provides a groundbreaking examination of photography's main subject areas--landscape, the city, portraiture, the body, and reportage--as well as a detailed analysis of exemplary images in terms of their cultural and ideological contexts. With over 130 illustrations, The Photograph offers a series of discussions of major themes and genres providing an up-to-date introduction to the history of photography and creating a record of the most dazzling, penetrating, and pervasive images of our time.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

In a series of brilliant discussions of major themes and genres, Graham Clarke gives a clear and incisive account of the photograph's historical development, and elucidates the insights of the most interesting critics on the subject such as Roland Barthes and Susan Sontag. At the heart of the book is his innovative examination of the main subject areas - landscape, the city, portraiture, the body, and documentary reportage - and his detailed analysis of exemplary images in terms of their cultural and ideological contexts.

About the Author:

Graham Clarke, Reader in Literary and Image Studies at the University of Kent, Canterbury, serves on the advisory board of the journal, History of Photography. His recent publications include The Portrait in Photography and The American City: Literary & Cultural Perspectives.

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 019284248X
• ISBN 13: 9780192842480
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 248