Thesis & Background<\/h2>\n\n
For my project I will be focusing on Lee Friedlander’s work called “America by Car”. Friedlander was born in the 1930s in Washington. He is considered one of the greats of his time, with good reason. This prolific career was sparked at age 14, when Friedlander picked up a camera for the first time. What started as a hobby to turn a quick dollar quickly became a passion. Friedlander went on to study at Art Center School\u00a0 in Los Angeles for two years before pursuing a solo career as a free lance photographer. The first stop in his career was a job at Atlantic Records, taking photographs of famous artists such as Duke Ellington. As time went on, he became a critical piece of the “snapshot aesthetic” movement in street photography. His first solo exhibition occurred in 1963 at the George Eastman House. This surely added to his credibility, given that only 4 years later he was included at the MOMA as part of the “New Documents” exhibition. In his career, he’s been recognized with acknowledgements such as the Hasselblad Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and MacArthur Fellowship.<\/p>\nHis work America by Car<\/em> was constructed to give a certain perspective of how he saw America through the lens of a “foreign” Jew. Critics say the beauty lies in the use of the quintessential icons of America. The photobook boasts spectacular shots of landscapes taken from aesthetic rental cars, often using the mirrors as an addition to the camera’s view, as well as using the physical components of the dashboard and windows. He made sure that the physical parts of the car were included in each photograph to amplify the feeling of being a traveler. Friedlander never felt like he had to force photographs for his works, and this is especially noticeable in\u00a0America By Car.<\/em> His quote “The world makes up my pictures, not me” \u00a0encapsulates his style verbatim. Thus, for this specific work, he decided to hit the open road to capture the icons that were already out there waiting for him. His idea for the photobook was to take pictures of what he considered American Iconography from the perspective of a Jewish man in America.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/liberatinglens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/11\/3-300x151.jpg\")
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sources:\u00a0<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.haberarts.com\/friedlan.htm<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.icp.org\/browse\/archive\/constituents\/lee-friedlander?all\/all\/all\/all\/0<\/p>\n
15 Quotes By Photographer Lee Friedlander<\/a><\/blockquote>
For my project I will be focusing on Lee Friedlander’s work called “America by Car”. Friedlander was born in the 1930s in Washington. He is considered one of the greats of his time, with good reason. This prolific career was sparked at age 14, when Friedlander picked up a camera for the first time. What started as a hobby to turn a quick dollar quickly became a passion. Friedlander went on to study at Art Center School\u00a0 in Los Angeles for two years before pursuing a solo career as a free lance photographer. The first stop in his career was a job at Atlantic Records, taking photographs of famous artists such as Duke Ellington. As time went on, he became a critical piece of the “snapshot aesthetic” movement in street photography. His first solo exhibition occurred in 1963 at the George Eastman House. This surely added to his credibility, given that only 4 years later he was included at the MOMA as part of the “New Documents” exhibition. In his career, he’s been recognized with acknowledgements such as the Hasselblad Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and MacArthur Fellowship.<\/p>\n
His work America by Car<\/em> was constructed to give a certain perspective of how he saw America through the lens of a “foreign” Jew. Critics say the beauty lies in the use of the quintessential icons of America. The photobook boasts spectacular shots of landscapes taken from aesthetic rental cars, often using the mirrors as an addition to the camera’s view, as well as using the physical components of the dashboard and windows. He made sure that the physical parts of the car were included in each photograph to amplify the feeling of being a traveler. Friedlander never felt like he had to force photographs for his works, and this is especially noticeable in\u00a0America By Car.<\/em> His quote “The world makes up my pictures, not me” \u00a0encapsulates his style verbatim. Thus, for this specific work, he decided to hit the open road to capture the icons that were already out there waiting for him. His idea for the photobook was to take pictures of what he considered American Iconography from the perspective of a Jewish man in America.<\/p>\n sources:\u00a0<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.haberarts.com\/friedlan.htm<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.icp.org\/browse\/archive\/constituents\/lee-friedlander?all\/all\/all\/all\/0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n15 Quotes By Photographer Lee Friedlander<\/a><\/blockquote>