Thanks for the link, Bob. As for my question, I was transfixed by the video, which I viewed through to completion before reading the accompanying article. I kept asking myself, “What is this? What’s going on?” I expected at some point the answer would be revealed, but it never was. Not in the way I expected anyway. In that sense the video is not representational.
But in another sense it is. Whatever is going on, we see that it involves a huge coordinated effort. Those focused on are intensely engaged. They strain, they grimace, they sweat. Some seem almost to be in pain. Others are caught up differently, as witnesses, some apparently in awe. The only indication that the occasion is a religious one is that a few times people are seen crossing themselves.The subject is not the activity, nor the meaning it has for the participants, neither of which is revealed, but simply the fact that it has meaning, intense meaning, that people are transported. Rodero’s project, which on the surface might seem more conventionally representational, seems to have a similar dual aspect. The context is obviously Christian, and the photos are captioned, but the scenes and the dress of the people portrayed are strange, puzzling, unexplained. Yet whatever the occasions, they are obviously engaging and meaningful to those portrayed. Explanations are not needed to see that. My own religiosity, if it can be called that, is eclectic. I have around among agnosticism, Quakerism, Episcopalianism (Anglicanism), Buddhism, Hinduism. Lately drawn to a vague, noninstitutional Christianity for which I get support from Richard Rhor’s Center for Action and Contemplation. ---------------------------------------- Eric Weir Decatur, GA USA eew...@comcast.net "It has all been combustion.” - W.G. Sebald > On Mar 27, 2021, at 5:16 AM, Bob Pdml <pdm...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Not sure what your question is, but if you enjoy that kind of intense > religious/cultural event, which I (even as an atheist) do, have a look at the > work of Cristina Garcia Rodero. I have three of her books. Espana Oculta is > the one that made her name and is stunning. > > She recently published Lalibela, about the town/village in Ethiopia, but I > found it rather disappointing. I’ve been there and photographed the same > things and although her photos are much better than mine I don’t think they > really bring much fresh insight to a very highly photographed culture. This > may be because she is not part of that culture, whereas with the Spanish work > it is clearly something from the heart. > > You can see her work on Magnum. > https://www.magnumphotos.com/arts-culture/society-arts-culture/cristina-garcia-rodero-espana-oculta/ > > Abbas also did a lot of work covering religion and I have one of his books > called Children of Abraham which is very good. > >> On 26 Mar 2021, at 19:02, Eric Weir <eew...@bellsouth.net> wrote: >> >> Representation? Or not? >> https://psyche.co/films/close-ups-on-the-faces-of-spanish-holy-week-convey-the-rapture-of-group-ritual >> ——————————— >> Eric Weir >> Atlanta, GA USA >> “It has all been combustion.” >> - W.G. Sebald >> -- >> %(real_name)s Pentax-Discuss Mail List >> To unsubscribe send an email to pdml-le...@pdml.net >> to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and >> follow the directions. > -- > %(real_name)s Pentax-Discuss Mail List > To unsubscribe send an email to pdml-le...@pdml.net > to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow > the directions. -- %(real_name)s Pentax-Discuss Mail List To unsubscribe send an email to pdml-le...@pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
