Nexus of Views: An inquiry on the capacity of spatial perception in photography

Date
2021-09
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract

Linear perspective and photography have been bonded together for ages, and many believe that photographic images should be conformed to linear perspective. However, I suggest that photography can escape its traditional form of representation. In Nexus of Views, my goal is to evolve a method of photography that goes beyond the historic aesthetic norms that have governed photographic representation. I propose a new paradigm of representation based on Proustian aesthetics, using the pictorial traditions used in Persian miniature painting combined with those used in deadpan photography. I call this approach a Nexus of Views. In my thesis work, Nexus of Views, I used photography (a defined objective tool) as a subjective point of view. For this purpose, I depicted home, private spaces, and outdoor activities from different points of view, yet in a single final piece. I decoded Persian miniatures and used their codes to encode my spaces via photography. This challenge let me explore other capacities of photography not available through the traditional linear perspectival organization of the picture plane and open a new horizon in my artistic practice. I tried to theorize my artworks in this paper to confirm that my artworks are still photography and are part of photographic experiences.

Description
Keywords
Persian miniatures, photography, literature, perception, Proustian aesthetic, Deadpan photography
Citation
Rezaei, H. (2021). Nexus of views: an inquiry on the capacity of spatial perception in photography (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.