Statue of Martin Luther

Pictures mean lots of different things to each person based on their perspective. I think that my picture of the Martin Luther statue could be interpreted in many ways, but how is my perspective of my photo relevant? I will be using the Compositional Interpretation method to analyze this photo. This method is good for analyzing each element of a photograph. “Elements of compositional interpretation provide one way to increase the experiential, embodied response to visual images, because the method entails close attention to all aspects of the image itself; it is one way in which ‘sense experience can be learned and cultivated’ ” (Rose 58).
Similarly to Rachel’s photo, the colors in this photo have a low amount of saturation, aside from the sky behind it. Without the sky, the photo has a high value. I tried to take a photograph that had a similar feel. Unable to get to a cemetery, I found a statue on my college campus with some nature near it which I thought felt similar.
I tried to get the photograph in the same deep focus and it’s a little hard to tell, but it looks to me like both the background and the statue are in focus. In this statue of Martin Luther he is holding a book. It looks as if he is getting ready to give a presentation as he was a german professor. He also appears to be wearing a robe of some sort. This could be because he was also a monk.
The provenance of the statue I think is pretty unique. This statue is located right off of the sidewalk in front of my dorm. While I do attend a college related to Martin Luther, Luther College, there are not a lot of statues around campus and those that are on campus tend to be by important buildings. I find it interesting that this statue is not near any important buildings or related to any of the nearby buildings.
I also find it interesting that the color and material of the statue does not match the color and material of the podium he is standing on. It appears as if the statue is made of some sort of metal but the podium is not metal. The statue also looks very old and was probably created many years ago when the college was founded, but the podium shows no signs of aging. I wonder if the podium was built after the statue to make it higher than the students. When I was taking the picture, I had to look up at the statue. I think that it makes the Martin Luther statue seem more important and significant because it is higher. Similarly to when a painting of Jesus is placed higher in a church so that people look up to him, literally and metaphorically.
I think that this photo is similar to Rachel’s photo “Italian Cemetery Statue” because they both include a statue and plants. They also have some of the same features and some different features which help to make them both comparable.
This photograph is made up of a lot of small aspects that can be all put together and Structural-Functional Theory says that the photograph must include these to be complete. All these aspects can be viewed in many different ways though. This paper only includes my perspective on the photograph. “Interpretation is thus a mental process of acceptance and rejection of the meanings and associations that adhere to a given image and that make demands upon us through the force of dominant ideologies” (Sturken 78). This shows that each person views images differently and they do so by either accepting or rejecting meanings that are associated with the image. The viewer has the option to either accept or reject the meanings and that makes each person’s perspective unique to them.

Works Cited
Rose, Gillian. Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to Researching with Visual Materials. 4th
ed., Sage, 2016.
Sturken, Marita, and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking An Introduction to Visual Culture.
3rd ed., Oxford, 2018.

Commentary on Rachel Tanur's Works: Italian Cemetery Statue

While the statue in the photograph is very beautiful, what does it mean to me? In order to answer this question, I’ll need to analyze the photograph to see the picture better as a whole. Using the Compositional Interpretation method, I can see different aspects of the photograph and how it was made to be seen. Each person views art in a different way so my interpretation will be very different than the interpretation of someone else. “It is crucial to look very carefully at the image or images in which you are interested, because the image itself has its own effects. These effects are always embedded in social practices, of course, and may well be negotiated by the image’s audiences” (Rose 56). The colors in the photo have a low amount of saturation. Aside from the plant in the front, the colors of the statue and wall behind the statue have a high value. It’s really cool to see the statue in comparison to the plant. Along with the plant, the moss on the box and the statue cause them to look much older, but also more like they belong where they are. I think that it is very interesting that the photographer chose to use deep focus and include everything in the photograph to be in focus. While everything is in focus, the plant at the bottom of the photograph blocks some of the statue. It makes me wonder if she is holding anything in her right hand. The provenance of the statue also peaks my interest. I hardly ever see statues in cemeteries, so to see one of a woman in a cemetery is even more remarkable. The framing of the image does not allow me to see where in the cemetery this statue is located, but I would assume that the box she is against would contain a casket and at her feet is a tombstone of some sorts. I am assuming that the woman is a representation of someone who has passed on. Because of her upright position, I came to understand that she was not dead, but resting. Now, because the woman is resting on the box behind her, I get the feeling that maybe she is waiting for something. The woman also appears to be dressed in a formal attire which causes me to think that maybe she is dressed nicely for the funeral. She could be a widow or daughter who was left behind. It looks like there is a white ring around the woman’s left wrist. It is as if there was some sort of bracelet or item on her wrist that she wore for awhile that protected it from the moss and dirt. I also noticed that her left shoulder appears to be uncovered. The shoulder of the dress seems to have fallen off. It is possible that the uncovered shoulder represents how she has been waiting for a long time and is starting to get uncomfortable. The kneeling position in which the woman is resting is interesting because it does not look very comfortable for her to remain in forever. It’s also interesting to note that the photograph is labeled “Italian Cemetery Statue” because nothing about the photo would otherwise indicate that it is located in Italy. Using the Structural-Functional Theory, I can conclude that each aspect of this picture is necessary to fully understand the picture as a whole. And while this is one way to look at this photograph, it is not the only way to look at it. “The viewer’s process of deciphering an image takes place at both the conscious and unconscious levels. It brings into play our own memories, knowledge, and cultural frameworks, as well as the image itself and the dominant meanings that cling to it” (Sturken 78). So while my interpretation of this picture is valid, someone else might have an opposing view of it which would also be valid. Works Cited Rose, Gillian. Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to Researching with Visual Materials. 4th ed., Sage, 2016. Sturken, Marita, and Lisa Cartwright. Practices of Looking An Introduction to Visual Culture. 3rd ed., Oxford, 2018.