Evening star., 1953-01-18
Camera Angles

WHICH 1OuIlU d SAOuP VI RoAAAO
ers acting as judges of a purely
Photographic salon. This Bal
timore thing was a put-up job
on the photographers from the
word go, and it richly deserves
a horrid death. However, after
stepping on a cockroach, one
should consider how it got
there in the first place and
then take steps to keep its
like at a respectable distance.
Without going any further
with the discussion of the
Baltimore Bungle," let's dig
down and see what brought it
about in the first place. Some
thing is evidently sadly wrong
with Photographic salons;
otherwise there would have
been no need for an expert
ment of any kind. Admittedly
salon photography is sick, al
though far from dying, as
some would have us believe. I
have my scalpel in hand so
let's have at it without anes-
thetic. If it hurts, it should.
Expense Enters the Picture
Since it seems fashionable to
some to replace photographers
with painters we should have
q good look at the photo
graphic panelists around the
land and determine whether
they are capable of handling
the job. They come from two
sources: photographers who
have made names for them
selves as artists in the medium,
and critics of recognized abil-
ity. think that almost any
one will grant that we have
sufficient number of able and
willing Photographic artists
capable of maintaining salons
on the high level that they
unquestionably should seek.
This is not to say that salon
juries are invariably composed
of men and women of this high
caliber, for such unfortunately
is not the case. Expedi-
ency and financial questions
too often thrust their way into
the picture. Salons, often
sponsored by local camera
clubs or other small groups,
sometimes depend on judges
who have acquired a local rep
utation but who are not the best
qualified to handle a national
or international show. This
happens because the sponsoring
group itself is not capable Of
selecting a competent jury, or
because sufficient funds are
not available to bring in jurors
Of requisite stature.
It should be explained here
for those who are unfamiliar
with salon procedure that it is
customary to pay all expenses
of the jurors including travel,
housing, and entertainment.
This is the only realistic ap-
proach for it would be too
much to expect a person to
make a trip, sometimes run
ming over a thousand miles, at
his own expense.
Sponsoring groups, faced
with the prospect of spend
ing several hundred dollars
for such expenses, fall back
on those of local reputation
rather than give up the prof.
ect. The result is too often
seen in the growing num-
bers of substandard salons
with walls covered with prints
Of inferior quality.
Inertio Is One Cause
Now let's have a look at the
people who run the salons, and
we might as we'll take a good
look, for here will find the
underlying cause behind the
fairlure of salon photography.
I should like to preface my
remarks by saying that with
out a doubt those who plan
and carry out the workings OF
a salon are fine people. hard
workers, willing to assume all
the irksome duties entailed.
Without them there would be
few camera clubs and fewer
salons.
But here is the catch. These
people, who seem to have the
greatest interest in promoting
photography. are, in the main.
=. comparatively unskilled in the
art itself, contenting them
:, selves with taking on the ardu-
J GUS duties of club and salon.
The disease that is attacking
the Photographic salon then
. is simply inertia on the part OF
4 those who should have the
q greatest interest in it's sue
3 cess-the pictorialists them
selves who prefer to remain
content in the reflected glory
of their own works.
Without competent hand to
Z guide the destiny of a salon
I anything can happen-and
/, usually does. The judges may
not be the best and they are
promptly told by the Salon
Committee that so or 100 or
500 or some other arbitrary
number of prints must be Sc
lected for hanging, so that SO
many feet of wall space may
be covered. This is a prepos-
ferrous burden to place on any
group of judges who have any
regard for their regulations.
The answer, of course, is that
future salons be kept under
the strict supervision of quail
fed Photographic artists. II
is of equal Importance that
the salon judges be given carte
blanche in the matter of print
selection, even though it might
mean that the entire show be
limited.
To carry my recommends