JOURNAL 2 : MORE IDEAS ?

What is the role of ‘authorship’ in regard to your final project. Do you consider your work completely ‘original’, in an established genre, or appropriated? In what ways may the viewer ‘take possession’ of your work and derive their own meaning from it?

“We know now that a text is not a line of words releasing a single ‘theological’ meaning (the message of the Author-God) but a multi-dimensional space in which a variety of writings, none of them original, blend and clash.” (p. 146).

When I first read Barthes quote, I tried to find an area of street art or architecture photography where the idea of authorship would be challenged. After doing some research, I came across graffiti street photographers and the one who truly caught my eye was Martha Cooper. 

Martha Cooper - A Picture Story' Review - The New York Times

Martha Cooper is a street art photographer who has been documenting the graffiti and street art scene for over forty years. Her work is characterized by its raw energy, vivid colors, and urban landscapes. In terms of authorship, Cooper's photographs are undeniably her own, as she has spent countless hours on the streets, often putting herself in danger, to capture the images that she has become known for.

While many people consider Cooper's work undoubtedly original, it can be debated that as her work is heavily influenced by the street art and graffiti movements, her work is not truly hers but rather the documentation of someone else's. In fact, she has worked closely with many of the artists whose work she photographs, and has developed a deep understanding of the culture and aesthetics of the scene. For example, she developed a deep friendship with the famous graffiti artist Dondi and was able to not only accompany him, but also exclusively photograph his work.

Martha Cooper - Underdogs

However, one can say that it is the viewer who takes possession of Cooper's work and derives their own meaning from it. Whether looking at one of her iconic shots of a train covered in tags, or a more recent portrait of a street artist at work, the viewer brings their own perspective and experiences to the image. Through this process of interpretation and engagement, Cooper's photographs take on a life of their own, and become part of the ongoing dialogue and creative exchange that is at the heart of the street art and graffiti scene.

This is why, I myself would consider my work as my own and as original even though I am photographing other people work (architectural and murals).

"Once the Author is removed, the claim to decipher a text becomes quite futile. To give a text an Author is to impose a limit on that text, to furnish it with a final signified, to close the writing. Such a conception suits criticism very well, the latter then allotting itself the important task of discovering the Author (or its hypostases: society, history, psych6, liberty) beneath the work: when the Author has been found, the text is 'explained' - victory to the critic. Hence there is no surprise in the fact that, historically, the reign of the Author has also been that of the Critic, nor again in the fact that criticism (be it new) is today under- mined along with the Author." Roland Barthes, p. 147