Abstract
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Photograph and the Collection |
| Place of Publication | Edinburgh, Scotland, UK and Boston, Massachusettes, USA |
| Pages | 284-293 |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Aug 2013 |
Fingerprint
Keywords
- Cake
- Party
- Family Photography
- Album
- Forensic Photography
Cite this
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Evidence of Love - Photographs of Our Birthday Cakes. / Deveney, KayLynn.
The Photograph and the Collection. Edinburgh, Scotland, UK and Boston, Massachusettes, USA, 2013. p. 284-293.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
TY - CHAP
T1 - Evidence of Love - Photographs of Our Birthday Cakes
AU - Deveney, KayLynn
N1 - This book is a volume in the series "Writings on Photography" published by MuseumsEtc.
PY - 2013/8/1
Y1 - 2013/8/1
N2 - My chapter for The Photograph and The Collection is a critical essay reflecting on the role of the birthday cake within the family photo album.The photograph of the cake served at a family party has an important role in securing some of the myths of the Western family album. But what sets the photo of the cake apart from any other photo in the family album? The answer is this: Cake photographs look like classic crime scene photographs, like evidence. Consider - cake photographs tend to employ a hallmark use of harsh flash due to the proximity to the subject. Cakes are generally photographed unemotionally, matter-of-factly. And, like a photograph of a bullet, wound or bruise, the cake photograph does not speak to the scene at large but rather to a detail, an isolated but meaningful titbit. In the photograph of the birthday cake we find the smoking gun of family love. If we are interested in promoting an image of our happy family it makes perfect sense that we photograph our cakes and present them as evidence within our family albums. This frosting-covered icon, for better or worse, denotes the fact that we love and are loved. (My submission will be both visual and textual. The final piece will make use photographs from my own family’s albums.)
AB - My chapter for The Photograph and The Collection is a critical essay reflecting on the role of the birthday cake within the family photo album.The photograph of the cake served at a family party has an important role in securing some of the myths of the Western family album. But what sets the photo of the cake apart from any other photo in the family album? The answer is this: Cake photographs look like classic crime scene photographs, like evidence. Consider - cake photographs tend to employ a hallmark use of harsh flash due to the proximity to the subject. Cakes are generally photographed unemotionally, matter-of-factly. And, like a photograph of a bullet, wound or bruise, the cake photograph does not speak to the scene at large but rather to a detail, an isolated but meaningful titbit. In the photograph of the birthday cake we find the smoking gun of family love. If we are interested in promoting an image of our happy family it makes perfect sense that we photograph our cakes and present them as evidence within our family albums. This frosting-covered icon, for better or worse, denotes the fact that we love and are loved. (My submission will be both visual and textual. The final piece will make use photographs from my own family’s albums.)
KW - Cake
KW - Party
KW - Family Photography
KW - Album
KW - Forensic Photography
M3 - Chapter
SN - 978-1-907697-50-0
SP - 284
EP - 293
BT - The Photograph and the Collection
CY - Edinburgh, Scotland, UK and Boston, Massachusettes, USA
ER -
