No Speed Bumps

Diane Arbus (1923-1971) - Demeaning Voyeur or Empathetic Observer?

I remember first coming across photographer Diane Arbus' work in Liberty's Bookshop in Adelaide, South Australia. I was quite uncomfortable looking at many of her images. Which were at times criticized for what was perceived as 'demeaning voyeurism'. I think I agreed with this view at the time but I'm not so sure today.

There are those photographs of ordinary people who seem transfigured into some kind of often temporary strangeness. Probably in part by the society in which they inhabit. They have received a certain ideology which is simply being expressed. Though they may well have brought something odd to bear to the particular context themselves.






The point should be made that the first image - 'Boy with Grenade' - was somewhat contrived. What has alway interpreted as a war-mad gesture seemed to have been achieved by Arbus endlessly moving the lad around, claiming to be looking for the right angle. Finally impatient, he yelled "Take the picture already!" and gestured. Which she snapped. I guess Arbus was content enough for the picture to be viewed as anti-war propaganda.

Then there are photographs of the economically and/or educationally disadvantaged who, it might be argued, had not the 'capacity' (in whatever terms) to construct themselves otherwise than they appear here.




And those who might be considered perhaps intrinsically unusual in some way - BUT this from the white middle-class American (WASP) perspective of the time.





Finally, there those images of the mentally challenged ...





... who, to me at least, seem empathetically presented. They seem happy in terms of being emotionally content, engaged and purposeful.

This positive interpretation seems borne out by Arbus' own words.

"Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born
with their trauma. They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats."

And reinforced in the further quotation.

"What I'm trying to describe is that it's impossible to get out of your skin into
somebody else's... That somebody else's tragedy is not the same as your own."

While these groups of subjects have 'issues', we do ourselves, just others.

I wonder whether it was Arbus' own 'tragedy' lead to suicide in 1971.