Remembering & Forgetting Conceptual Art Group Reading Response

“Ultimately, the photograph withholds meaning even as it discloses itself entirely. Similar to Huebler’s investigations of subjective or perceptual experiences that must necessarily lie outside of the photograph, in Williams’s work meaning is always located elsewhere (pg. 127)"

This segment of the reading, Remembering and Forgetting Conceptual Art, discusses the genre of conceptual art and its major influences on contemporary photography. There was a transition in photography where the image stood in for an idea, rather than the main subject or piece of art. A photograph acted as a prop for what the piece of work meant to convey. Ed Ruscha's, "Twentysix Gasoline Stations," was a series of work that was literally photographs of gasoline stations. However, it was the meaning behind the images that made the series significant. Ruscha's travels through California and the experiences he endured were thought to be the driving purpose of his work. Rushca's work influenced the highly recognized 1975 exhibition, "New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape," with the collections being based on what they were about, rather than what they were of.
Douglas Huebler was another influential figure who sparked societies interest in his conceptual work, "Location Piece #2, New York City - Seattle, Washington, July 1969." Huebler engaged his audience through a physiological experience; he explored the inner meaning rather than the mode of production. Both Huebler and Williams believed the experience lies outside of the photograph, leaving it completely subjective and perceptual to the viewer.
Zoe Leonard also caught my attention in the reading for her ongoing project, "Analogue". Her series of work is not only perceived as conceptual, but also for its aesthetic and documentation elements. Leonard documents the transformation of subjects (For example: the same building front for 9 years) based on how they change because of the economy and technology. Leonard's work "Brings attention the slow disappearance of analog photography in the digital world."

Analogue, Zoe Leonard