The rising sun 2013

Editor: Here we have Alfred Freddy Krupa's "The Rising Sun" from 2013, a photograph, most likely a "plein-air" photograph considering the tags. It feels very dreamlike to me because of the heavy mist and the barely visible landscape, everything seems shrouded. What's your take on this? Curator: Well, looking at this photograph, my immediate focus is on the means of its production. The artist, working en plein air as you mentioned, engages directly with the raw materials of the natural world - light, atmosphere, landscape - and processes it all via the mechanics of photography. How much post-processing do you think the artist implemented? Editor: That's a good question. Given the artist’s interest in capturing light and atmosphere directly, perhaps not too much post-processing, so as to preserve its real aspect and texture. Curator: I agree, or very delicate modifications. That direct relationship - photographer to weather, to environment, to photographic tools - strikes me as fundamental here. We are so divorced from the conditions of labor and from materials themselves, particularly in a digital era, and seeing the raw material as one of the values offers an interesting position. Can you think of an analogy for how production could change perception? Editor: Thinking about a crafted object instead of one mass-produced. Seeing the evidence of labor makes the object more valuable, since its unique character is due to the craft involved in the production of one-of-a-kind works. With that, the photographic equipment itself becomes central in how to represent nature in that specific art form. Curator: Precisely. This photo highlights the intersection of technology and nature in its creation. By obscuring details, it also prompts us to reflect on how photography shapes our perceptions of the environment, even making it surreal. Editor: That’s something I'll certainly consider from now on when I view art and other landscape photographs, the production as a defining process and tool.