Portfolio Research: Walead Beshty.

Travel Picture Sunset [Tschaikowskistrasse 17 in multiple exposures (LAXFRATHF/TXLCPHSEALAX) March 27-April 3, 2006], 2006–08. Chromogenic print, 90 x 51 inches (228.6 x 129.5 cm), edition 2/5.

Beshty happened across a new way of viewing photography when some photographs he took on a trip were unintentionally exposed during their trip through airport security. Strange colours and lines developed on the film when later processed and developed. This started the sculptors photographic career and since he has developed a somewhat unusual ways of developing film.

What I like about this photograph is that it looks as if an overlay or gel has been used when the photograph was taken or in post production. I never would have guessed just by looking at the image that the colour was made through the developing process. What I really like is how the red of the image brings some detail into the shadows. Without the colour this image would not be what it is, it wouldn't be as interesting, but because of this weird colour formation it is interesting, especially the process through which it was created. The tone of the image contradicts what is actually going on. You wouldn't expect to see a red light in what appears to be some kind of office space and I think this makes the image that much more likeable. The subject matter isn't overly interesting, but I do like the angle the photograph was taken on, it's different to what I would've expected with a scene such as this. My first instinct if I'd been the one to take the photograph would be to stand front on, so the frame of the window lined up with the edges of the viewfinder. I guess that's what makes this photograph different as well, the way he portrayed it is not the norm, giving it a different feel.

Contextualise:

Who took the photograph and why?
-Walead Beshty, he was experimenting with a new way to develop film in which he exposes part of it and creates random streak of colour on the photograph. The photograph could've been taken for purely experimental purposes, or because it was something that interested him. Even if the subject matter is slightly mundane, his style of processing the photograph changes the look and feel of it. Exposing it the way he has has definitely changed the way the photograph is viewed, it certainly made me research how he did and and how he managed to figure out a way to do it.

What is their ethnicity and does this influence their work?
-He was born in London and is now based in LA in the U.S. I don't know if his ethnicity has had any real affect on his work in this case, but I do think his travel and migration from one place to another has. For instance, he was travelling when he accidentally exposed the film in an airport so when he developed it, the photographs came out similar to the ones above.

When and Where did they take this photo?
-The photograph was taken in 2006 and there isn't much on where it was taken. From what you can see in the image, it appears to be an office space or maybe a room in a house being used as an office.

What are their political beliefs and are these relevant to the work?
-I could not find anything on his political beliefs, but I think it was more the relationship of light in photography that was more of an inspiration.

“insisting instead on their material inscription of the structural conditions and possibilities of the medium."

 The photos are a representation of the 'current' (what was current at the time) political and social state of the world after the events of 9/11. He linked this idea to the way security had been altered and the fact that his travels had permanently changed the photographs because of these security measures. So it wasn't the subject matter that was important in the series but more what had happened to the photographs before they had been processed.

What is their social status and background and how does this relate to the subject matter?
-He was very much looked towards with his artwork as he has described them to be in relation to the political and social status of the world. So I do believe he held some status, especially in the art community just because of the way he connected his art and methods to what was going on around him.

In what decade or century was the work taken? Does this influence your reading of the work?
-It was taken in 2006, so it is a pretty recent project. Had the photograph been taken before 9/11 and before the security measures had changed, the photographs may have just been cast aside. But because Beshty linked them to something that had happened that was significantly important to the society he lived in, I think this is where his success lay.

Were there event happening at the time that may have influenced this work?
-As they were accidental I don't believe he set out with the intention of producing work directly linking to 9/11 or any other disasters. I believe it was after, during the processing, that this idea came to mind and made him pursue this method. 9/11 was a major influence on the project as it was the security measures put in place that had created a new medium for Beshty to explore.

How is the work presented?
-As I'm looking at it, in a book, but I do know it has been hung in a gallery before alongsied a few other images processed in the same way. I believe they were prints behind glass.

Where are you viewing this work and how does this affect your reading of it?
-In a book, it was captivating, I kept coming back to it and it wasn't until I was looking for some inspiration that I decided to research the method he'd used in the developing process and why he had continued with it. I was interested in this new way of developing and how he had stumbled across it purely by accident and turned it into something great.