Comments on: rafal pruszynski – little pieces https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/ burn is an online feature for emerging photographers worldwide. burn is curated by magnum photographer david alan harvey. Wed, 07 Sep 2016 08:29:37 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.2.4 By: Interview with Rafal Pruszynski | Urbansand https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-46962 Wed, 29 Jul 2009 16:43:17 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-46962 […] me.  When I look at the photos in Pieces I remember the moments in those photos.  As I said in the statement on Burn that accompanied the work, the idea is to capture fleeting moments one quickly forgets.  And on […]

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By: Photo of The Day By Rafal Pruszynski (aka !Jinju) | Urbansand https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-39027 Fri, 15 May 2009 13:00:06 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-39027 […] work at Flickr, to include a few more “fake plastic trees”.    I’d also highly recommended seeing the his Photographic Essay which was published by David Alan Harvey’s Burn in March.  […]

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By: Angela Bacon-Kidwell https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-35653 Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:13:51 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-35653 Wonderful essay!
Raw and the photos transcend your own personal story. Bravo.

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By: Jeff Otto O'Brien https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-34072 Sat, 28 Mar 2009 03:35:23 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-34072 This is an absolutely fantastic series.

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By: Mark Andersen https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-33671 Tue, 24 Mar 2009 05:38:01 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-33671 Sorry for intruding but I find this thread rather interesting.
Primary wife? A tool that we use to channel our art?
Pal, you either have not found the one yet (and possibly never will with that mentality) or you have been hurt way too much by a lady that put HER life before you.
Usual comment of men who can’t find a balance in life as partners/artists/professionals.
Sorry. Also, don’t forget that practice may make us technically skilled but ART is either within you or it is not and does not ask for you to inflict pain onto others. When we have to ditch everything else life has to offer to produce something, we are nothing but flaws of human nature.

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By: jared iorio https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-33241 Fri, 20 Mar 2009 06:25:04 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-33241 Thanks for checking it out Michael, it was a blast, internet in the real world.

I’m sure it’s just the beginning.

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By: Johan Jaansen https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-33008 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 09:52:01 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-33008 In general I quite liked the essay. It had a nice tempo. However, I felt that it still had room to mature so to speak and this could perhaps only come with time.

I have to agree with the other commentators that the photographer has to move away from ‘the masters’ in the genre and develop his own style. The continual referencing by Mr Pruszynski to people such as Sobol over the last month or so, will inevitably cause people to compare. Unfortunately, that it was what happened here.

Anyway, here are a few observations that I made while watching the piece.

To begin, I felt that the photos were to formally/rigourously posed. It seemed that the photographer positioned his subjects (wife and baby) in the large majority of the photographs according to some preconceieved idea (perhaps under a strong influence from his mentors?). There just didn’t seem to be any fleeting moments that were intuitively caught on the run that signalled the author’s own unique style. In this genre, that to me is where true talent lies – the ability to observe then capture an emotion or moment in a split second. That is what separates photographers from agencies like Magnum with the rest of us. The only photo that did demonstrate this was the photo in the taxi of his wife sleeping. I felt that this was the best of the piece as it wasn’t planned and shot over and over.

This overly formal posing is also evident on the flickr set. I had a look at the flickr set as suggested by Rafal and it seems that for example in the great majority he positioned his baby in the middle of an open space in a shopping arcade then photographed conitinually from several angles. There are no great moments caught on the run. Hence, I have to agree with David Alan Harvey that the photographers persistant suggestion to look at his flickr set was wrong. This was the final cut/edit and ‘one’ has to learn to live with it.

Also, I wasn’t overly impressed by the ‘noise’. I felt that the flash didn’t help the highlights and in a few cases they seemed blown. But, that could be just nitpicking on my behalf.

I disagree with some other commentators that he was pimping out his wife. They are both in a mature relationship and it takes two to tango. That comment just felt plain wrong. I can see some trace/evidence of love in their relationship, but I didn’t feel that the photographer captured it in a daily setting away from the bedroom. Sex can sometimes obscure peoples true emotions as they get caught up in the act. I want to see real love through emotions that are validated by facial expressions in arenas out of the bedroom. Of course, harder said than done…

Anyway, I look forward to watching the photographer mature and hopefully catch those forever fleeting moments such as Sally Mann or Larry Towell.

Cheers,
Johan

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By: Michael M https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32840 Tue, 17 Mar 2009 07:12:31 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32840 Hey on a off note I really liked your “Can’t pay the rent” opening Jared. Really great concept. I wasn’t there, I just saw the video.

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By: Jim Powers https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32723 Mon, 16 Mar 2009 15:14:02 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32723 jared, why would my opinions, regardless of how rigidly expressed, annoy you? Do you think that Sobol gives a flip what I say about him? Curious.

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By: jared iorio https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32639 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 19:57:50 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32639 Who said it was new, Jim?

I’m just saying, a guy who doesn’t know you judges your character publicly (quite harshly), to a pretty large audience, an invite to respond should maybe be offered.

I doubt he’d want to “play” either.

The certitude with which you say things really annoys the shit out of me, Jim. Like talking to a teenager sometimes.

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By: bobblack https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32631 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 19:06:25 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32631 Ok, with regard to Sabine…….ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…..as I’ve written before on this thread, at Lightstalkers (after I saw Jacob’s exhibition, long before either he or Sabine were part of Magnum or wpp radar) and as i’ve written countless times before, Jacob did not set out to…….

o, fuck it, never mind…..

i’ve reach the point (epiphany) where it’s better for me to just show work and work on my writing, as a way to deal with these issues….

so,

näkemiin ja katso u myöhemmin

b

p.s. Herve, im so happy you’ve returned from T-land…enjoy reading thoughts, both supportive and provocative….

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By: Jim Powers https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32627 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:47:12 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32627 jared, the debate over Sabine is not a new one. I would be surprised if Sobol wanted to play.

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By: jared iorio https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32625 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:22:59 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32625 DAH

After all the ethical posturing, only seems fair to at least invite Jacob here to weigh in on the exploitation issue…

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By: Protagoras https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32623 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 16:47:42 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32623 totally Jim..
Otherwise we wouldn’t even bring that
Great Artist up..
Why would we?

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By: Jim Powers https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32622 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 16:36:50 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32622 A discussion of Sabine was certainly relevant as Rafal listed it as one of his influences.

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By: panos skoulidas https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32621 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 16:07:55 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32621 c’mon Jim… dont get “greedy”…
but i agree… this horse is “dead”…
morning y’all…
driving to the hospital..
( Herve i hear u… Sobol stole the act… Now after all this discussion about Sabine in Burn…
He must feel really “famous”…)
(…unsuccessful attempt to laugh…)

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By: Herve https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32618 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:58:33 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32618 Yeahhhh….. “little pieces” by Rafal: a lengthy critical assessment and discussion of SOBOL’s intentions with “SABINE”…..

:-))))

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By: Jim Powers https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32616 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:42:50 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32616 Herve, we’ve probably beat this horse to death. I lot of great ideas here.

I think these essays probably stay up too long, though. David needs to toss us another bit of beef to chew on. :)

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By: Herve https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32614 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:37:51 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32614 I meant eXotic, not eotic. Sorry. Too much coffe already….

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By: Herve https://www.burnmagazine.org/essays/2009/03/rafal-pruszynski-little-pieces-of-us/#comment-32613 Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:37:01 +0000 http://www.burnmagazine.org/?p=1201#comment-32613 “Sabine”, Sobol famous? Come on, Jim, even as a photographer, there are better ways to get fame shooting an “eotic” relationship close, and still leaves us guessing if that was exploitive, pornographic, while the fame and $$ roll in.

Again, I have no opnion so far Sabine” was exploitive. Sure could be, and also not by intention. But you seem to know Sobol better than us. I catch myself being exploitive easily, with a camera, while I travel. I don’t mean it, I love the world, I love people, but I love stealing their spirits, so to speak. MAKE IT MINE forever. Open discussion with no end, really. the egg and the hen, etc…

One thing, a lot of great art would not exist if we go by the morales of exploitiveness. Shit,it’s not a perfect world, I have a feeling that is the reason for art actually (and a few other things, like Panos single-handedly, ahah, the search for an untied, unsubmissve, undrenched, japanese porn actress….Yeee haaaw?)

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