Blog Entry #5
INSPIRATIONAL ARTISTS: DOROTHEA LANGE
Dorothea Lange was born in New Jersey, attended Columbia University to study photography, and worked in a portrait studio in New York until she began to travel in 1918. I am an aspiring photographer, and Lange is very inspirational in this field of study. She has contributed to the world of photography by focusing the camera on groups under some sort of oppression: minority groups,
the poor, those in suffering, etc. Lange once said that she believed the camera could “teach people to see without a camera.”
The greatest achievement of Dorothea Lange, what she is most known for, is her photography portraying the difficult lifestyle of Americans in the time of the Great Depression. She was able to capture feelings of hunger and sadness, as well
as images of labor strikes and insufficient living conditions. These photographs truly made Lange stand out because she was the first to depict the harsh reality of the situation many Americans faced during this time. One of her most famous photographs, known as “Migrant Mother,” is one of many photos taken to record the Dust Bowl Exodus, in which thousands of farm families were forced to relocate to 
the west to find work. I am most impressed simply by the reality of Lange’s photographs. She has captured, through film, an entire era of difficult times in America, and the human suffering and emotion that goes along with it. Her photographs seem to instill a feeling of deep empathy in the viewer.
The dominant structure in Lange’s photographs is most definitely the people portrayed in them. She often focuses mainly on one particular person, but sometimes portrays two or more people in equal measure. The emphasis is on the emotion of these peop
le, as derived from their bleak surroundings and the worn expressions on their faces, seems to pour through in her photographs. She addresses the human form exactly as it was during these times of hardship: weak and thin with hunger, yet still with an essence of strength about it. Lange does not use color; her photographs are solely in black-and-white, and are very effective this way. The lack of color contributes to 
capturing the gloomy, empty mood of The Great Depression, and also keeps the viewer focusing on the human emotion portrayed in the pictures. 
Dorothea Lange’s work is quite inspiring indeed. She is not taking pictures just to take them... she is making somewhat of a social commentary on America in this time. She is not trying to add in her own quirky twists and innovation… she is simply portraying the reality of a misfortunate situation. I admire her ability to show a flood of human emotion and to depict the ugliness of the hardships many people faced instead of trying to show something beautiful.
Dorothea Lange was born in New Jersey, attended Columbia University to study photography, and worked in a portrait studio in New York until she began to travel in 1918. I am an aspiring photographer, and Lange is very inspirational in this field of study. She has contributed to the world of photography by focusing the camera on groups under some sort of oppression: minority groups,
the poor, those in suffering, etc. Lange once said that she believed the camera could “teach people to see without a camera.”The greatest achievement of Dorothea Lange, what she is most known for, is her photography portraying the difficult lifestyle of Americans in the time of the Great Depression. She was able to capture feelings of hunger and sadness, as well
as images of labor strikes and insufficient living conditions. These photographs truly made Lange stand out because she was the first to depict the harsh reality of the situation many Americans faced during this time. One of her most famous photographs, known as “Migrant Mother,” is one of many photos taken to record the Dust Bowl Exodus, in which thousands of farm families were forced to relocate to the west to find work. I am most impressed simply by the reality of Lange’s photographs. She has captured, through film, an entire era of difficult times in America, and the human suffering and emotion that goes along with it. Her photographs seem to instill a feeling of deep empathy in the viewer.The dominant structure in Lange’s photographs is most definitely the people portrayed in them. She often focuses mainly on one particular person, but sometimes portrays two or more people in equal measure. The emphasis is on the emotion of these peop
le, as derived from their bleak surroundings and the worn expressions on their faces, seems to pour through in her photographs. She addresses the human form exactly as it was during these times of hardship: weak and thin with hunger, yet still with an essence of strength about it. Lange does not use color; her photographs are solely in black-and-white, and are very effective this way. The lack of color contributes to capturing the gloomy, empty mood of The Great Depression, and also keeps the viewer focusing on the human emotion portrayed in the pictures. Dorothea Lange’s work is quite inspiring indeed. She is not taking pictures just to take them... she is making somewhat of a social commentary on America in this time. She is not trying to add in her own quirky twists and innovation… she is simply portraying the reality of a misfortunate situation. I admire her ability to show a flood of human emotion and to depict the ugliness of the hardships many people faced instead of trying to show something beautiful.
posted by Mia at 10:30 AM
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