DAY 40

SOCIAL & POLITICAL COMMENTARY

Religion

PLACING FAITH IN CONTEXT

Religion has a powerful hold on social agendas. Consider its sway on women’s health rights, same-sex marriage, and human rights in many countries. Exploration may involve challenging perspectives for a photographer and identifying a process for delving into a culture that may be largely misunderstood, unfamiliar, or reclusive. An introduction from someone directly connected with a particular religion or religious practice may be necessary.

Identify religious imagery within varying contexts—school, work, government, community. Follow a religion through its many iterations by following a series of people claiming the same belief. Examine its many layers with a keen eye and a respectful curiosity for human relationships with the divine. Look at the varying manifestations of religion—object, symbols, dress, relationships, ritual, places of worship, forms of proselytizing. Visually compare beliefs about death, birth, and life.

Establishing visual perspective or a stacking of figures and shapes within a photograph indicates hierarchy and power. The repetitive use of color can be used to make powerful statements about religious belief within a culture. Use light to convey religious concepts or ideas. —MLR

Man carrying cross on street, Berlin, West Germany. Toni Frissell Collection, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.