Sandy Dyas reveals a theme of authenticity in all of her photographs which thereby elicit authentic feelings.
She strives to elicit clear feelings in her photographs and seems to rely heavily on the subject matter in order to do so. For example, "Jumping Girl" is meant to make the viewer feel joy while "Wooden Horse" educes feelings of loneliness and emptiness.
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| "Jumping Girl" |
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| "Wooden Horse" |
Sandy enjoys taking photographs of children because she feels that they give very honest expressions which make for very honest, authentic photographs. It makes her feel like she knows the subject a little bit because they are sharing that moment and staring at each other for just that one instance.
In Sandy's book, "Down to the River: Portraits of Iowa Musicians," many of the people photographed are individuals that Sandy knows personally. She makes art something very social by capturing a photograph that has personal meaning to her through her own social interactions with others. These social interactions then influence the viewer, causing them to engage in that specific interaction and feel like they too know the person in the photo.
Sandy makes meaning by placing photos next to each other; they say something that they wouldn't otherwise if they were left standing alone. She relates the photos by color, form, etc. There is a strong social interaction between the photos she puts together in order to elicit a clear emotion from the viewer.
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| "The Blue Chair" |
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| "Sophie's Birthday" |
Sandy Dyas has a true talent for creating authentic photography through the use of making connections as well as the social interactions she has with her subject matter.
Rachel - from reading your comments, I can tell you really listened! Thank you for sharing your thoughts on my work. I appreciate it!
ReplyDeleteYes, I love your work and was able to really engage with many of the photos!
DeleteI concur with the idea of Sandy's love for authenticity. I loved hearing her reasoning why she loved to photograph children as well. Authenticity is important in photography, especially when trying to capture the most genuine expression.
ReplyDeleteRachel, I agree! Sandy does turn art into a social experience. In fact, photography is an art which is all about interacting with your subjects and getting to know them better in order to truly capture their essence. I also loved the fact that she continues to keep in touch with all the people she has met throughout her life as a photographer!
ReplyDeleteI really like how you discuss the social nature of her photography. I think this aspect of her work is what makes her photography totally authentic. Her relationships and interactions with the people she is photographing are personal and thus the photos she takes of them and their reactions are natural. The very real interactions that seem to be happening between the photographer and those on the other side of the camera allow for the viewer to feel engaged.
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