Customer Reviews

Photography At The Dock: Essays on Photographic History, Institutions, and Practices (Media and Society)

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Considering the fact that this book has been available for reading since 1991, its a bit surprising that no review has been written about it, at least on Amazon. Others have mentioned it, or parts of it, so its well read, but I suspect that among those who derive a living from writing about photography it just might be too hard a read, or too painful, because A S-G knowingly describes a great deal of the photographic arts community as a self-serving device that can generate a great deal of well written-nonsense, a lot of which appears to be designed to generate photographic sales, or to further reputations or specious, often nonsensical viewpoints about photography in general. Too bad that A S-G herself also lives and exists an an esoteric academic environment and thusly appears to excuse herself from the club. No matter, she hits the nail on the head, describing the photographic art community with a written razorblade that despite coming out some 10 years ago, is still very, very relevant. Her command of the English Language is enviable and complicated. Those at the high school level might have serious problems reading this type of English and some of the contents are for mature people only. (Not by age, perhaps by mental maturity). If you're serious about photography, or might be at a crossroads with your level of creativity, this book makes good reading. If you're into oversaturated sunsets, don't bother.
The paperback which I purchased new is of very high quality and needs to be on your shelf as well.