The article titled, “Francis Wey and the Discourse of Photography as Art in France in the Early 1850’s: ‘Rein n' est beau que le vrai: mais il faut le choisir’, was written by Dr. Margaret Denton who is an Associate Professor of Nineteenth-Century Art, History of Photography. Dr. Denton is a part of the Department of Art & Art History at the University of Richmond school of Arts & Sciences. The title of the article expresses that although there is nothing that is as beautiful as the original concept of art through the form of paintings and sculptures, we must chose to include the unique art of photography. I believe that Dr. Margaret Denton wrote this article in an attempt to explain the passion that drove Francis Wey from discrediting photography
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Photography did not involve emotion or a personal expression of self as art. Traditionally during the 1850’s in France art was defined by sculptures and paintings that portrayed landscapes, people and romanticized these expressions based on the artists’ emotions and how they chose to portray their art to the world.
It is my opinion that Frances Wey was able to see the potential of art as photography. Wey was able to recognize that photography brings a sense of pleasure and provokes higher level thinking as well as offer similar aesthetic attributes that paintings bring to its admirer.
The idea of photography as art disrupted the status quo of the 1800’s. Gustave Le Gray was the first artists to submit his paper photographs to the Paris Salon and receive a bronze metal. Le Gray’s submission began a course that would change the way the world looked at art forever. Initially the judges who viewed Le Gray’s photograph deemed it as art, however, a second set of judges insisted it was a project of science because of the process that had to occur in order to create the photo. I agree with Frances Wey’s theory and had it not been for what he started we may not be able to enjoy the many versions of art that are current to
Photography did not involve emotion or a personal expression of self as art. Traditionally during the 1850’s in France art was defined by sculptures and paintings that portrayed landscapes, people and romanticized these expressions based on the artists’ emotions and how they chose to portray their art to the world.
It is my opinion that Frances Wey was able to see the potential of art as photography. Wey was able to recognize that photography brings a sense of pleasure and provokes higher level thinking as well as offer similar aesthetic attributes that paintings bring to its admirer.
The idea of photography as art disrupted the status quo of the 1800’s. Gustave Le Gray was the first artists to submit his paper photographs to the Paris Salon and receive a bronze metal. Le Gray’s submission began a course that would change the way the world looked at art forever. Initially the judges who viewed Le Gray’s photograph deemed it as art, however, a second set of judges insisted it was a project of science because of the process that had to occur in order to create the photo. I agree with Frances Wey’s theory and had it not been for what he started we may not be able to enjoy the many versions of art that are current to