Jack Horner’s Book [reflection on: Why Photography Matters – Jerry L. Thompson]
Jack Horner’s book (a T-R type he is),
About conclusions reached from years of biz
Engaged in photographing, reading, thought,
In last few pages gives the best he’s got.For author sticks in thumb and pulls plum out,
And shares some insights (path to which, laid out,
Takes up his first two thirds (pedantic fluff)),
When he could say the same in ten – enough –To satisfy our interest; give his point;
Compare-contrast his models; king anoint;
But no – from start through endless plodding words,
He feels he must plow on – was quite absurd.Photography is small-scale, to his mind –
To understand some aspect of mankind;
Whose way of comprehending is unique;
Excels in depth, not candy we all see.What it requires are endless lengths of time;
Commitment base; some basic tools are fine;
Small budget; little fame; poor market niche;
And endless walk – to see what we can see.Once cash, and fame, and market-share go up,
All but the best find assets do corrupt;
A person (Latin: through – sound) – PVC
Piped message – that’s how photos come to be.A photo dances twixt two people’s thought,
Presenting, while evoking as it ought;
Where inside meets with outside in the pix;
Quite edited result creates new mix.A short-cut in inception (drawing fast);
Collecting detail (volume was so vast);
But now it flips – subjective rises up
And joins objective view – far more than fluff –For social research needs both halves of truth –
The outward life has deeper inner roots
In both the viewed, and viewer of a scene –
Together there’s a mix where camera’s been.For me, his tips help out new form of art –
Augmented text – which I’m about to start;
Like Evans work – mix contradictions in;
“ Subvert” the “settled meaning” – thought begin.Suggests we need to open discourse up,
Not shut it down as if our thought’s enough;
A photograph supremely does this task,
Once statement’s made, a question it can ask.navigation