The Tree # 36: Martha's Vineyard By Aaron Siskind
After spending several hours walking around the Harn Museum of Art and looking at all the galleries and exhibits, I chose to write about two photographs. The Tree #36, Martha’s Vineyard by Aaron Siskind and Photo 13A in the Ocean Details series by Joni Sternbach.
The Tree #36, Martha’s Vineyard is a 14x11 inch black and white print taken in 1973. It is an abstract expressionism photo. I chose this picture because the tree just drew me in. I can see myself sitting in one of the bends of the branches with a book just spending the entire day reading and taking in the peace that seems to surround the area. The knots in the branches show that not all is easy there on Martha’s Vineyard and the weather can be brutal but that the strong can survive. Siskind used a large format camera to take the photograph and then developed it using gelatin silver. …show more content…
It is only 5x7 inches. It was difficult to choose just one picture in this series. The ocean displays such power. Sometimes it can be deceivingly calm but you know underneath that there are currents constantly moving and pulling. The picture I finally picked from the series does not show the calm but during a storm. Sometimes our lives can look calm and as if we have it all together on the outside but inside our emotions can be as turbulent as the waves in this picture. Emotions can be both powerful, destructive, always moving and always changing. This black and white photograph, like The Tree #36, was taken using a large format camera but it was developed using Platinum Palladium plates instead of gelatin silver. Platinum palladium plates are not as light sensitive but require the photographer to develop the negative at the time of exposure. The photographer, Joni Sternbach, says that “The nature of working with a wet chemical outdoors is spontaneous and unpredictable. This lends an element of risk and surprise to the
The Tree #36, Martha’s Vineyard is a 14x11 inch black and white print taken in 1973. It is an abstract expressionism photo. I chose this picture because the tree just drew me in. I can see myself sitting in one of the bends of the branches with a book just spending the entire day reading and taking in the peace that seems to surround the area. The knots in the branches show that not all is easy there on Martha’s Vineyard and the weather can be brutal but that the strong can survive. Siskind used a large format camera to take the photograph and then developed it using gelatin silver. …show more content…
It is only 5x7 inches. It was difficult to choose just one picture in this series. The ocean displays such power. Sometimes it can be deceivingly calm but you know underneath that there are currents constantly moving and pulling. The picture I finally picked from the series does not show the calm but during a storm. Sometimes our lives can look calm and as if we have it all together on the outside but inside our emotions can be as turbulent as the waves in this picture. Emotions can be both powerful, destructive, always moving and always changing. This black and white photograph, like The Tree #36, was taken using a large format camera but it was developed using Platinum Palladium plates instead of gelatin silver. Platinum palladium plates are not as light sensitive but require the photographer to develop the negative at the time of exposure. The photographer, Joni Sternbach, says that “The nature of working with a wet chemical outdoors is spontaneous and unpredictable. This lends an element of risk and surprise to the