picturetom ®

Millions of people own a camera, and the number of photographs goes into the billions. Photography is a rite which is enormously prevalent in society. Yet it is only used for emancipatory purposes, in terms of problematisation of reality, in the rarest cases. This is proven by the uniform everyday production of pictures. The production of photographs takes place within cliché’s and stereotypes, which have remained the same throughout since photography became popular (vacation photos, family photos).

Neither the broad range of formal technical possibilities, nor the aesthetic content possibilities are used for photography. The pictures taken by amateurs suffocate in the compulsive attempt to capture reality as accurately as possible.

Looking at the quantity of pictures produced by amateurs, one could assume that their products determine the social awareness of photography. In reality, the amateur productions disappear under an invisible mountain of inconsequential snapshots. Amateur photography provides a clear picture of how an activity performed by the masses, which also supports an entire industry, can be kept in a dependant and inconsequential state.