The Command to Look: A Master Photographer’s Method for Controlling the Human Gaze
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.46 (826 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 1627310010 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 190 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-05-29 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
A Hard to Find Classic Available Again Lothar Tuppan William Mortensen's "The Command to Look" is an oft-discussed masterpiece that has, unfortunately, been out of print for ages. The new edition not only reprints the original text in a gorgeously bound form, but also adds essays about Mortensen and his work.Whether you are a photographer or any artist who wishes to explore the concepts around how to make your art as impactful as possible, "The Command to Look" is an essential ad. L. Columbus said Concise in physical form and content, entertaining perspective on the art form from one of its masters.. Certainly a uniquely personal view of what constitutes engaging photographic composition. Entertaining to read, I appreciate Mr. Mortensen's no nonsense writing style and approach. It has certainly given me food for thought and practice. One note about the book itself; the size is only slightly larger than a typical paperback book and all the photographs are B&W. The size is listed in the description details, but I didn't read . One of the Truly Important Photo Books Do not read up on Mortensen and expect a book of tirades against Adams, et al. He does, as expected, have little good to say about technically perfect realism, but he would have had the same feeling for landscape painting. Understanding Mortensen's way leads to viewing photography (and other art) in a new way. It's a simple, clean way of thinking about pictorial art. It's also a very practical book for a photographer trying to
But be warned: if you do, you may well find yourself haunting used bookshops and the internet to round out your collection with everything he ever wrote. Buy both of these new books. But you don't have to be the Black Pope to appreciate or make use of Mortensen's trademark techniques for commanding the gaze. There's a reason why Anton Szandor LaVey, founder of the Church of Satan, called upon Mortensen's artistic aesthetic and psycho-optical theories when creating LaVeyan Satanism and iconography of the Church. Feral House simultaneously published the exquisite compendium American Grotesque…. - The AlibiCommand to Look … influential, especially in renegade realms. — Shawn Macomber, FangoriaMortensen was a giant, and it is time to acknowledge his stature. — Amateur Photographer
To illustrate the text Mortensen includes an amazing gallery of his best-known and most challenging images with explanations, by him, of what makes those photographs so compelling.The reprint of The Command to Look also contains two new major essays that assess the significance and impact of the original book. Until now, copies on the antiquarian book circuit sold for many hundreds of dollars. The Command to Look is considered one of Mortensen’s most momentous and rare books. The second essay, by historian Michael Moynihan (author of Lords of Chaos), details a strange and unexpected reception of the book: how this small volume on photographic methods played a role in the creation of the modern Church of Satan and Anton LaVey’s theories about Satanic Magic.. An introduction by Mortensen biographer Larry Lytle explores Mortensen’s use of Jungian psychology and also discusses new advances in neural psychology that confirm Mortensen’s methods of controlling the viewer’s eye. It is a crucial book for understanding both Mortensen’s philosophy and his use of psychology in the making of his pictures