Series of Photographs printed on Matt Fine Art Paper
February 2019
13×7 cm (each photo);
As I was sitting at the window (against the light), photographing mirrors and glass engraved for my Project “The Threshold” , I accidentally captured the unexpected.
Roland Barthes (in his book “Camera Lucida”) would say that since photography is pure contingency, the Photographer is unconsciously catching the”Punctum” (the point, the wound, the unwanted detail that strikes).
In fact, even Louis Daguerre, one of the first pioneers of photography, in 1839 taking his well known photograph (”Boulevard Du Temple”) has managed to catch a fascinating detail
which was not intended, but paradoxically it has made his photo so memorable. His photograph ( shot from a
window) depicts a seemingly deserted Parisian
Avenue, because at that time only long exposures were possible, the moving masses certainly could not
be captured. But, if you look closely, at the bottom right, a man who accidentally had stopped on the sidewalk in order to have his shoes polished, has been immortalized… He is the Punctum !
The unexpected detail that is discovered and “added” to the photo , even though it already existed but wasn’t expectd by the Photographer…
In my case, my original intention was to merely Photograph my engraved glass “Threshold Nº1“…
Then, when I accidentally changed focus, I realized that I was able to capture strangers while they were crossing the street where I lived (in Genova) through a “slot” a silhouette, a “Threshold“.
A special street photography series of photos, as it is not only significant (she speaks for herself), but also
metalinguistically the photo speaks about photography, quoting the story of photography through photography.
All rights reserved to Araiké Severino Da Silva