Pleasant Lightness of Photography, Part 1 – the Pleasures of Body Cover Image

Przyjemna lekkość fotografii. Część 1 - Przyjemności ciała
Pleasant Lightness of Photography, Part 1 – the Pleasures of Body

Author(s): Marianna Michałowska
Subject(s): Photography
Published by: Akademia Sztuk Pięknych im. Eugeniusza Gepperta we Wrocławiu
Keywords: Photography; Fine arts

Summary/Abstract: Photography today is for its users mainly a source of different kinds of delights. Some of them are entailed by a nice view, pleasant memories or community feeling. However, contemporary theory of photography seldom is interested on simple pleasures of images. Researchers are focused on political, historical or sociological aspects of image, but an audience mostly seeks for visual attraction within pictures. The text is an analysis of various pleasures experienced through photographs. There might be the pleasure found in writing and reading of photoblogs, the visual delight found in nature photography or a sophisticated satisfaction caused by literary and cinematic connotations. In the late 90. Italo Calvino introduced a concept of “lightness of literature” that is contrasted to the “heavy” texts. The first, expressed with italian word la gravitá, the gravity mixed with irony, the second makes the language material and solid. Regarding to Calvino’s “lightness” I present photography as joyful, eye-catching and delightful. The text emphasis an importance of sensual experience in everyday photographic practices: the pleasure felt while walking the city, watching the nature photography or experiencing the photochemical process in the darkroom.

  • Issue Year: 2013
  • Issue No: 1 (15)
  • Page Range: 104-118
  • Page Count: 15
  • Language: Polish