As a photographer in support of the Communist agenda, Sid Grossman was the leader of The Photo League. “The Photo League promoted the sanctity of the straight image and the belief that photography needed to serve a social-political purpose” (245). All of Grossman’s photos exemplify “straight” photography, especially the series of photos he shot during the summer of 1947 on Coney Island. The two following pictures are from that series, neither of which have specific names other than “Coney Island 1947.” On page 245 of Hirsh’s text, there is another photo from this series.
Each one of these pictures emanates a youthful and playful air. This first photo, of one girl on top of the other’s shoulders, is clearly not staged. Grossman succeeded in capturing a fleeting moment of teenage play. The laughter-filled smiles of the subjects show their inner essence and free-spiritedness. Out-stretched arms of an off-camera subject reach toward the girls for precautionary protection. The intensity and energy of the scene are captured in the blurry hand movements of one girl and the tightly gripped fingers of the other.
In the second Coney Island photo, Grossman captures a quiet moment between lovers. As they cuddle closely on a blanket at the beach, they reject everyone else in their presence to exist alone in their world. Visually, the girl’s heart shaped necklace is the center of the photo. Young love is often a focus of Grossman’s work, making a strong statement about teenagers in the 40s. Looking at his photos through a historical lens, the viewer can interpret 40s teens as sex-driven, passionate, and free.
The final photo I’ve chosen to show is “Two Young Women before a Pastry Shop at Night” (1948). Again, Grossman’s style is haphazard, unorganized and essence-capturing. Depicting two young girls flirting with a young man, the images of three people are cut off from the frame. This photo also raises many questions; Where are they? Are the girls twins? Sisters? Who is the man to the left of the frame looking directly at the camera?
One question remains… how are these photos doing social work? They are not exposing any injustice nor are they trying to explicitly elicit social reform. My answer is that Grossman is trying to promote the Communist agenda by linking his beliefs with his photography. As a known supporter and believer of Communism, photographing the healthy, and vivacious youth of tomorrow associates Communism with prosperity and happiness.
No comments:
Post a Comment