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Author Topic: Photos of the Retail Landscape  (Read 2157 times)

Robert Roaldi

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Photos of the Retail Landscape
« on: February 11, 2017, 10:43:14 am »

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Robert

Rob C

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #1 on: February 11, 2017, 02:49:04 pm »

Thank you for the link, Robert.

Another for my favourites list! I can feel the appeal of this kind of photography, and sometimes find similar - but older - stuff on a few music videos on YouTube. I love seeing the old 50s and 60s cars pulled up in front of little bars and diners and so on, such a touch of Americana that fits perfectly with the music of the times. I saw similar stretches of stores, eateries etc. in parts of France, ribbon development with a character that was instantly identifiable as American, and thus looking quite alien in rural France!

But I can see the sense of it: driving though villages, desperate for a coffee, we could never see anything that looked open as we drove past. At least purpose-built might offer a sense of arrival and welcome, however mercenary it may be; but why scratch the surface, just have the coffee, use the toilets and leave.

I have always felt the draw of the Route 66 (tv series concept, not the road) emotion, the road ahead, and something I heard recently, about the journey being the important thing, brought that sense right back, strongly as ever.

Thanks.

Rob

Eric Myrvaagnes

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #2 on: February 11, 2017, 03:13:43 pm »

In that same vein, our own BobDavid has been posting some excellent shots of Retail Landscape in Florida.
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-Eric Myrvaagnes (visit my website: http://myrvaagnes.com)

Telecaster

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #3 on: February 12, 2017, 04:48:26 pm »

The retail landscape in this one (attached pic) was intended, I suspect, to be incidental.  :)  Chicago, July 1958, on my folks' honeymoon.

-Dave-
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Ray

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #4 on: February 12, 2017, 07:50:01 pm »

Aren't they awful!  ;)

I'm sure glad I live in the beautiful countryside.  ;D
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ahbnyc

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #5 on: February 12, 2017, 10:06:10 pm »

What I find unsettling about the photos is that, while the scenes depicted are undoubtedly ugly, the photos are so well composed that a lot of them are actually quite beautiful, which would seem to cut against the point the photographer is trying to make.  It's an aestheticization of ugliness.
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drmike

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #6 on: February 13, 2017, 03:34:04 am »

Individually the photographs are mainly arresting but as a set they are inspiring. Shows what a good eye can do with limited and to some unappealing material.

Mike
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Rob C

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #7 on: February 13, 2017, 04:03:31 am »

Different takes.

I don't see them (the pictures) as being particularly aggressive or an attack on the status quo; rather do I see a fairly dispassionate reportage of what a particular style of building construction comes to represent.

I suppose it's a utilitarian approach to architecture, an avoidance of expensive and quite unnecessary frills; a minimalist approach to function, if you will. I can't ever see mysef enjoying a shopping spree, and stoppping for fuel is always a pain unless also to relieve another personal pain; places one visits out of necessity are not places where one chooses to linger long. Of course, that ignores the mall rat syndrome, but I'm far too advanced in years to think of hangin' out. In their favour, mall rats seem to have, as species, advanced from the corner-boy era because when it rains they probably remain dry. Evolution, I guess.

Really, I think the photographer has done what I think to be a pretty objective job; given the same cause, I'd have looked for the more sombre, the threats, and then accentuated them in post, turning it all far from the "make up your own mind about this" piece that he has. I think his held-back approach works better in the light of what his concept is. A man capable of resisting temptation.

Rob

Robert Roaldi

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #8 on: February 13, 2017, 07:28:34 am »

A man capable of resisting temptation.

Rob

A good catholic, maybe? A rare thing, in my experience.  :)

J.H. Kuntsler has an expression for these environments, "Places no one cares about." Odd that our culture surrounds itself with places like these. Odd that we endure it, because we know better. When we go on vacation, we go to the Rockies, or to Paris, or to a cottage on a lake, but for many of us, the places where we spend our working days and too many weekends are places just like these. I can't help but wonder what it does to us to know that we don't try to make our day to day environments more humane. I've asked this before on these pages, but are we creating entire cultures that no one really cares about?
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Peter McLennan

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #9 on: February 13, 2017, 12:22:29 pm »

Excellent. Congratulations on seeing and recording. Worthy of Bill Owens' "Suburbia"
My fave is the last one: "Waffle House".  I love the employee looking out the window at the photographer wondering, "What is he taking a picture of?"
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N80

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Re: Photos of the Retail Landscape
« Reply #10 on: February 15, 2017, 06:23:55 pm »

What I find unsettling about the photos is that, while the scenes depicted are undoubtedly ugly, the photos are so well composed that a lot of them are actually quite beautiful, which would seem to cut against the point the photographer is trying to make.  It's an aestheticization of ugliness.

Agreed. And to be honest, I did not read any of the text and tried to ignore the title of the series. I prefer when images stand on their own. And from that standpoint, I did not know what point the photographer was trying to make. And I don't particularly care since for me the photographer/environmental activist schtick has gotten a bit old and cliche'd in my opinion. Its kind of like street photography....every one thinks they can do it. Few can.

Having said that, the theme or genre of aesthetizing manmade ugliness is very appealing to me. Maybe its a tired old cliche' too, but I like it when it is done well and in this series there are some stunning examples. I really like them and wish I had the eye to see things like that since I am surrounded by them.

I felt like the exposure/post processing of a few of them was a bit flat or muddy but that might just be this old laptop.
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George

"What is truth?" Pontius  Pilate
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