Fried carefully analyzes the works of influential photographers such as Jeff Wall, Hiroshi Sugimoto, and Cindy Sherman across ten chapters. He explores concepts like the exploration of the everyday, the role of the viewer, and theatricality. Fried provides exhaustive detail on the artworks themselves and supports his positions with references to art history and conversations with artists. While it remains to be seen if Fried has proved his thesis, the book offers valuable perspectives on the history and development of contemporary photography.

1. Famous Bohemians
by: Rachel Wolfe
Picasso may have passed. Kerouac lives on the shelves in the public libraries.
Gauguin’s perspective on life hangs amongst works from Frida Kahlo to Dali. The beats,
gypsies, dandies, nuveau’s, whatever you want to call them were all bohemians. Artists
are certainly not the only type of person to be familiar with an off the beaten path life
track. Sigmund Freud blew the intellectual socks off scholars with his then and even
sometimes modernly shocking theories. Albert Camus certainly had an interesting spin
on the meaning of life. More recently, as even those from the teen and twenty something
age group might recognizes, Tim Leary’s drug culture and choices on mind expansion
certainly aren’t of the norm.
Not all the bohemians have died. Quite the contrary. The many living famously or subtly
among the rest of us, maybe even you, are passed over or by on the sidewalks and train
cars. These people, the bohemians, often go un-noticed because most still revel in those
deceased’s’ works of art, literature, and philosophical teachings. Once can be sure that
crazy was the name give to Ginsberg, Vonnegut, Bukowski, or Pollock. They, just as
many bohemians, were ahead of their time. Lives dictated by the social norm weren’t
capable of understanding the extraordinary ideas of the bohemians of their times.
Shall I say everyone in a mental care facility be just gifted beyond any sort of regular
intellectual capacity? No, I’ve never been fond of generalizations. Maybe it’s just the
price those choosing to shun societal normalcy pay. What a shame it is to pass
judgment on creativity and divergent thinking only to celebrate its greatness after the
creator has passed.
Modern day bohemians such as Bjork and Thom Yorke are often criticized for their
abnormalities but play much more acceptable roles in society. Have bohemians evolved
to a level that others are more willing to accept? Put to an optimistic light, it’s possible
that the public has grown more accepting and appreciative of those daring enough to live
in their own way. Playing devil’s advocate now, those that once made bohemian life hell
have developed into the greedy consumer much too caught up in their own world to care
enough to notice the revolutionary ideas and creations surrounding them. Whichever the
case may be, it’s certain famous bohemians today are creating just as important pieces
and cultivating theories and methodologies just as profound as famous bohemians of the
past.
True it is written in the human condition to see things in retrospect with un-fogged sight
and appreciate what’s past with an appetite so insatiable we will always want more.
Famous or the discreet bohemian living amongst us, sooner or later they will be known.
Let’s raise our glasses to those courageous enough to proclaim a bohemian reality for
themselves. Anyone willing to challenge the norm, start something worth finishing, and
abide by their own laws deserves applause. The bohemian class in itself has the
celebrity appeal because they’re unapologetically successful of capturing something that
many others will fail to recognize within the span of their time here. Life can be cruel as
growing up asserts its stories onto our tales we speak of over ales and cheap wines. The
bohemian is making the best of the conditions given, loving wholly, expressing freely,
and appreciating the world’s beauty and still having enough grace to give back the
wonder.

2. Why Photography Matters As Art As Never Before - by: Michael Fried
Review by: Rachel Wolfe
Whether the book is held in the hands of someone with ten years, ten days or even ten
minutes interest in photography, Michael Fried’s Why Photography Matters As Art As
Never Before is an excellent foundation for the understanding, contemplation and
critique of contemporary photography.
Fried carefully guides readers through his intensive thought processes while delving
right into the influential roles and works of artists such as Jeff Wall, Hiroshi Sugimoto,
Thomas Struth, Andreas Gursky, Thomas Demand, Cindy Sherman, Luc Delahaye,
Rindeke Dijkstra, Patrick Faigenbaum, Beat Streuli, Philip-Lora diCorcia, Douglas
Gordon and Philippe Parreno, James Wellings, Roland Fischer, and Bernd and Hilla
Becher. The works of these artists, and more, play informative and integral roles in each
of the ten chapters. Analyzing the accurate photographic reproductions, Fried highlights
and explores, in exhaustive detail, the works themselves and provides an abundance of
support by widely accepted art history references, quotations and conversations with the
artists, excerpts from Camera Lucida: Reflections on Photography, and comparisons on
Susan Sontag and several of Fried’s earlier writings.
The book is a thoroughly detailed volume of information, offering a variety of audiences
a new perspective on the history and development of contemporary photography. Fried’s
signature approach supports the development of a thorough knowledge base to those
new to contemporary photography while feeding the minds of the more experienced with
challenging new conclusions. The unarguable presentation of his positions provides the
basis needed for a refreshing take on the direction of contemporary photography. Fried
discusses the exploration of the everyday, the role of the viewer, analyzes theatricality,
Jeff Wall’s distinctive “near documentary” style, and the unending analysis of “bad” and
“good” photography.
Whether Fried has proved Why Photography Matters As Art As Never Before still has yet
to be determined, but the book and Fried’s conclusions will certainly be a necessary
addition to the bookshelves and minds of contemporary criticism and comprehension for
years to come.