Close Reading
Sometimes, it's not until a piece of art is examined in fine detail that new meanings arise. When cultural context, the artist's intentions, or even your own prior knowledge, are set aside a new way of "seeing" the art can emerge. This is the purpose of a close reading, sometimes called an explication.
For this assignment, you will conduct a close reading of one of the following photographs. Each depicts a uniquely Californian scene.The goal is to conduct a precise, detailed, analysis of the photo in order to reveal new meanings.
"420 Celebration", Santa Cruz, 2017 (Shmuel Thaler, Santa Cruz Sentinel)
"San Jose's Cruising Ban Lifted", San Jose, 2022 (Shae Hammond, Bay Area News Group)
"Witches Paddle", Morro Bay (photographer and date unknown)
"Rock Jump", Lake Tahoe, 2018 (Ryan Sal, Tahoe Quarterly)
"Michelle Yeoh and Florence Pugh", Los Angeles, 2023 (Evan Agostini, AP)
Required:
- MLA Style
- ≈ 375 words (2 pages)