Charles, Vasa, Minnesota, Alec Soth, 2002
The images in Soth’s series Sleeping By The Mississippi definitely make the viewer aware of the space between the subject and the camera/photographer, however that separation-that space- is a bubble; a bubble full of air. I take away nothing from these images other than perhaps the slight comical appeal of a man raking leaves in his pajamas, or that the man standing on his porch in a jumpsuit holding planes might like to travel. I can’t connect with these people and I have a hard time accepting his attempts to pass through space and “connect the dots of fragmentary photography” to tell a story. Perhaps that’s all he wants the viewer to understand. Or perhaps I’m thinking of his work too shallowly. To me, his images were quality, well-composed shots of homes, fences and people he’d meet along the sidewalk or in a park. I felt his work tried a little too hard to relate to things such as Hockney’s “Paralyzed Cyclops” and Eggleston’s “Democratic Forest.” I can see how these apply to his work, but they seem a little desperate and too much of an afterthought. For instance, his “The Narrative Machete” I found strove to communicate words his images failed to.
However I was interested in his process of photographing his subjects. The amount of time it takes him to set up his shot allows the person to relax and “come into themselves” where they start to think about their own lives instead of how they’re looking on camera. Working by this method does allow the photographer to capture the subject in an instinctual and chaste sort of way, which makes the viewer’s experience of this person much more genuine and honest. However, I think this process of isolation between the photographer and the subject is what is important to him as a photographer and his work instead of the actual image itself; and it is that process that doesn’t seem like it’s communicated properly and is therefore inaccessible by the viewer.
I am also attracted to the juxtaposition of his straight-forward style of photography and his descriptive and poetic use of words (and I’m okay with enjoying that element on a superficial level). Sleeping By The Mississippi is about his travels in wandering from one place to the next for which the river is a metaphor. Although, what is frustrating about his juxtaposition in this case is that he dampers it by including images of beds to reinforce the motif of sleeping (and his supplementary interest in dream theory and logic). This acknowledges too much and flattens his imagery and the overarching concept.
His more recent work Niagara has a little more foundation as I think it was rebirthed out of itself. It started as a project about love and romance until he explored and sought deep enough, whence a darker, more sexual theory took hold. It became about the question of why newlyweds flock to Niagara Falls, which he explains as being “weird and sexual.” I can trust his concept for this work easier than I can trust and accept his concepts for other work and I’m not entirely sure why; maybe because it originally spawned from the love of his girlfriend, which seems much more personal and relatable than his desire to travel.
I enjoyed Soth’s lecture; I thought he spoke carefully and with intention. Clearly he has a passion for what he does, which-as always-is inspiring.
Alec Soth Website
Sleeping By The Mississippi
NIAGARA
I think the concepts of the "paralyzed cyclops" and the "Democratic Forest" were his way of finding his place within photography. He mentioned the argument on whether photography is actually art and that he thinks narrative photography is often staged and artificial. I think that was his way of rationalizing his process. I somewhat agree with your statement about "Sleeping by the Mississippi" but after looking at more of the images, I think they are a nice juxtaposition between the figures and the objects.
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