The aesthetic of Formalist photography is grounded in the formal qualities of visual elements such as scale, composition, color, and contrast. It privileges form over content, implying that the essential nature of the photograph is more important than any social function.... [more]

The aesthetic of Formalist photography is grounded in the formal qualities of visual elements such as scale, composition, color, and contrast. It privileges form over content, implying that the essential nature of the photograph is more important than any social function. Formalist photographers do not imply a narrative with their works nor do they seek to enter them into any cultural dialogue outside of the medium's development; instead, the medium is a record of its own formal evolution. One school of Formalist photography, called Straight photography, concentrates on the basic properties of the camera and printing process. Photographs look like photographs -- they do not tell any other story than the way light falls on an object, be it a still-life or a portrait. Often shot in black and white, some critics consider the form to be the equivalent of documentary photography. Formalist concepts, including rich detail and sensuosity of surface, can be seen in the works of Edward Weston, Lisette Model, and Paul Strand. Weston created precise, detailed, extremely sharp photographs that often captured the formal properties of the nude. Model, a mentor to Diane Arbus, had a more intimate relationship with her subjects and sought to capture how their experiences and characters revealed themselves physically. Her large-format photographs often have grainy surfaces and angled perspectives. Describing her work, Edward Steichen noted that "her prints record a relentless probing and searching into realities among people, their foibles... and on occasion their greatness... She strikes swift, hard, and sharp, then comes to a dead stop, for her work is devoid of all extraneous devices or exaggerations". [show less]