Is Photography a form of Science or Art? This is a question that have raise a lot of debate, even among schola
s, for over a century now. Some people view it as art while others call it science. For example In 1862 a group of French artists formally protested that photography was a soulless, mechanical process, never resulting in works which could ever be compared with those works which are the fruits of intelligence and the study of art. At the same time scholars like Henry Peter Emerson were of a different opinion, Emerson (1856-1936) once said that "photography should be treated as a legitimate art in its own right". So the big question is where can we group photography into, Science or Art?
To get the right answer, we need to first have some basic insight about the three main terms in the question, which are Science Art and Photography
WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Etymologically, the word science comes from the Latin
"scientia," meaning knowledge. According to Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, the definition of science is "knowledge attained
through study or practice," or "knowledge covering general truths of the operation of general laws, especially as obtained and tested
through scientific method [and] concerned with the physical world". What does that really mean?
Science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge. This system uses observation and experimentation to describe and explain natural phenomena. The term science also refers to the organized body of knowledge people have gained using that
system. Less formally, the word science often describes any systematic field of study or the knowledge gained from it. As a result there is hardly any thing in the world that those not have element of science in it. This fact is even more obvious in this our modern age, popularly referred to as the 'jet age', were very everything seems to be changing rapidly.
WHAT IS ART?
The word Art comes from an old French word which denote "skill as a result of learning or
practice". The word skill is very important in art, some people even view art as skill in action, but this skill should be able to speak out in one way or the other depending on the type of art, for example when it is Visual Art (Fine and Applied Art), it speaks visually, when it is music it speaks with sound and so on, this is why generally art is seen as self expression.
By way of definition, Art can be said to be the conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colours, forms , movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the senses and emotions. Basically art can be seen as either a product or a process. As a process, it refers to the ongoing action, or the skill in action while as a product it refers to the result of the process.
WHAT IS PHOTOGRAPHY?
Etymologically photography was coined from two Greek words phōtos, which is a genitive for light and graphé which means of lines or drawing. Put together, it mean drawing with light.
Photography is the science, art and practice of
creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation , either electronically by means of an image sensor , or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film . Photography helps one to freeze a memory for a second. When we click an image, time freezes, letting us to dive in the moment and enjoy every minute
detail of that moment. Be it the flowers in the
background or a memorable board game sitting there on a table camouflaged in the environment, everything just comes alive in our head. Igniting the sparks of imagination combined with the flammable memories of the past, generating thrust of emotions in our brain. A beautiful carnival comes to life inside our minds and our hearts.
ANALYSIS
After talking about the three main terms, at a first glance it looks like we are in a dilemma. Looking at the definition of Photography, we see both elements of Science and Art in it. The definition even started with this sentence, "Photography is the science, art and practice..." Where then can we place Photography, Science or Art?
Looking at the definition of science, we can see that everything in the world has been tinted with science, but this those not mean that everything belongs to the field of science. To buttress the point, lets look at some solid art field. We shall be looking at Sculpture and Theater arts
Sculpture: This is by far the oldest form of art in human record. We can think of Sculptural pieces like the Venus of Willendorf which is about 23000 years old! Even about 2000 years ago sculptural pieces needed very little or no scientific techniques. But what do we see today? Hardly can any good sculptural work been done without the use of scientific product. But this has in no way made sculpture a scientific field. Even though chemicals like resin, POP (plaster of Paris), finishers are used extensive, Sculpture stands as the pinnacle of Art!
Theater: If we are to go back some 2500 years ago the only form of theater art that we will find are life dramas and shows in the theatre at Epidaurus , or the theater at Dionysius in Greece. But every bit of what makes up theater art today has been influenced by scientific and technological discovering, we no longer have to go to a theater stadium before we can view a drama but right in the comfort of our homes we can watch any type of drama we desire thanks to science . But even at that, theater still stands in its favored position as a field in Art!
PHOTOGRAPHY IS ART
From the above analysis it is very clear that what makes a field art or science is not what is used in the production but the underlining idea behind the production. In other words the factor to consider is not the accident but the essence ! Just as Clive Bell in his Classic Essay of Art states, "only
significant form can distinguish art from what is not art."
The fact that photography uses technology that has developed more recently than some other forms of art does not change the underling essence of photography which is expression. Expression in photography comes from an image that is made, and not the tool with which it was taken. According to Professor Clara Lieu, a Professor of Visual Art, "there is no visual medium that exists that is inherently art, all the time. After all, if that were the case, everything that is visual in the world would be deemed a work of art". Photography and painting are the same. Each renders imagination in tangible form. The only difference is that the tools and the presentation are not the same while the painters use pigment and brush, the Photographers use camera and printers!
Conclusively, we can categorically say that Photography is a not Science but Art. In fact Photography is a form of postmodern art. Yes photography is Art!
