Sequential Image Photography
Here I will be discussing sequential images photographed by Duane Michals, one of the great photographic innovators and renowned for presenting his surreal, experimental, mostly black-and-white photographs in frame-by-frame sequences adorned with handwritten text. According to Michals' style, sequence imagery are a series of images that make up a short story, putting in question the sacredness of a single shot. Building stories that have the same relationship with movies as poems do with novels.
5 gelatin silver prints with hand applied texts
Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh
Courtesy of the Artist and DC
What can't be seen, what remains hidden, becomes Duane Michals' target in this sequence, the human nature of a child who loses his grandfather. The universal mysteries are one of Michals' favorite subjects, though in no way is it easy to speak of, he understands the human condition as a continuous transformation where the present has passed, and everything is no more than a memory. Thanks to it's poetry and delicate sadness, this sequence draws us highly towards a universe we feel is ours and stimulates our empathy.
6 gelatin silver prints with hand-applied text
3 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches (each image)
In this sequence, Michals' challenges the meaning of visible reality. Within sight of the pharaoh's tomb, he constructs his own, little, improvised version of his last resting place as a humorous commentary on the great questions about life. Though unfortunately, it cannot compete with the eternal monuments of the past and deceased rulers of Egypt.
What I can learn from these sequence photographs are that any type of imagery can create and tell a story. Just like a story can be told with words in a variety of way, a story can also be told through sequential arts. For example, a comic strip can give different impressions through the style of sequential images we create in each frame. It is definitely a unique type of art that I would love to try myself.
References:
Bunyan, M. (2015) Duane Michals sequences, Art Blart. Available at: https://artblart.com/tag/duane-michals-sequences/ (Accessed 12th January 2023).
Duane Michals (no date) DC Moore Gallery. Available at: https://www.dcmooregallery.com/artists/duane-michals/series/sequences?view=slider#2 (Accessed 12th January 2023).
Conde, R. (2017) Grandpa goes to heaven, Revista la Fundación. Available at: https://www.revistalafundacion.com/en/grandpa-goes-to-heaven/#:~:text=Grandpa%20Goes%20to%20Heaven%20is,sacredness%20of%20the%20single%20shot. (Accessed 12th January, 2023).
Duane Michals – I build a pyramid (2020) Lufo Blog. Available at: https://bonvoyage.ludwigforum.de/en/duane-michals-i-build-a-pyramid-2/index.html (Accessed 13th January 2023).
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