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Glossary entry

French term or phrase:

photographie plasticienne

English translation:

fine-art photography

Added to glossary by Emma Paulay
Feb 6, 2014 16:07
10 yrs ago
4 viewers *
French term

photographie plasticienne

French to English Art/Literary Photography/Imaging (& Graphic Arts)
Magazine article. Readership: architects.

The best I can come up with is "art photography" but if anyone has a better suggestion I'm all ears.

L’évolution est spectaculaire dans le domaine de la photographie. Si cette dernière dut lutter jusqu’au début des années 1980 pour imposer son statut d’art, certains spécialistes s’entêtaient à maintenir une distinction impérative entre la ***photographie plasticienne*** et le photoreportage.
Proposed translations (English)
4 +1 fine-art photography / artistic photography
3 touched up pictures/photos
3 photography (used) by artists
3 visual art photography
References
From Wiki

Discussion

B D Finch Feb 7, 2014:
Manipulation of the image I think that is a bit of a red herring because all photographic images are "manipulated" to some extent by the choice of image, framing, camera and computer settings, darkroom techniques, Photoshop etc. and that also applies to photojournalism. Obviously the extent of that manipulation varies and less is acceptable in photojournalism than in fine art photography.
Michael DeWeese-Frank Feb 6, 2014:
Another alternative Instead of "art/artistic photography," you could go with "fine art photography." To me, that puts a little more distance between the idea of photojournalism/documentary photography, which can also be quite artistic, and photography done as fine art. This still doesn't necessarily highlight the act of manipulating images; if you want to stress that point, you could opt for "image (or photographic) manipulation" v. "documentary photography." Hope this helps! - mg
Kate Deimling Feb 6, 2014:
@Helen You make a good point about the rarefied term -- I guess the author could have said something simple like "photographie d'art" or "photographie artistique." I don't know how architects are trained in the U.K., but in the U.S. it's pretty technical stuff, and while they study architectural theory, they're not learning about art or art theory. So I think I'd go for readability instead of inserting a footnote, unless that's part of the house style. Emma, maybe you could ask the editor or project manager about this question?
Helen Shiner Feb 6, 2014:
@Kate I wouldn't call architects a non-specialist audience myself. They will typically be aware of currents in art theory, since it will have formed part of their training. If the author wanted merely to express the sense of art photography, I feel pretty sure he/she wouldn't have chosen this rarified term.
Kate Deimling Feb 6, 2014:
in favor of "art photography" For a non-specialist audience (since you say this is intended for a magazine for architects), I wouldn't split hairs in this case and would stick with "art photography." In my opinion, to get across the contrast of artistic photography versus photojournalism, this does just fine. (From this little snippet, it doesn't sound as if the author is very concerned with precise theorists and timelines). Wikipedia quotes the Photography Encyclopedia for "art photography": "Art photography": "Photography that is done as a fine art -- that is, done to express the artist's perceptions and emotions and to share them with others"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fine_art_photography
Helen Shiner Feb 6, 2014:
Plasticienne I think the meaning here is something along the lines of 'synthetic' (like Synthetic Cubism). They are not found images, such as in photojournalism. They are inflected by the aesthetic of the photographer, so tend towards art photography in that sense, but I get the impression that the boundary between art and reportage in photography is deliberately being blurred.
Helen Shiner Feb 6, 2014:
@Emma Art photography goes back to the beginnings of the medium and would be meaningless here. Here is some guff about Dominique Baqué who coined the term: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=r9v_03GM7iQC&pg=PA86&lpg=...

Maybe something like 'photo-text' as opposed to 'photojournalism' would get closer to what he meant.
chris collister Feb 6, 2014:
The boundary between art and photography is even more blurred than it was in the days of "argentique", with Photoshop experts creating fantasy works which draw only very loosely on original photographs. On the other hand, the Wiki list of "photographes plasticiens" includes the likes of Robert Mapplethorpe and Duane Michals who are fine printers, but not "fiddlers". I wonder if "auteur" and "plasticien" are interchangeable in FR? "Photography as art" might be an alternative to "art photography".
Emma Paulay (asker) Feb 6, 2014:
@Helen Thanks for your input Helen. Yes, I have seen the Wikipedia entry. If nobody comes up with anything else, I shall do as you suggest.
Helen Shiner Feb 6, 2014:
@Emma I guess you've already seen this Wikipedia page: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photographie_plasticienne I've not come across this term before and I can see that 'art photography' doesn't really cover it, since that term has a history pre-dating the 1990s. I haven't got time to do much more just now, but I think I would footnote it and leave it in FR, unless the type of text precludes that.

Proposed translations

+1
5 hrs
Selected

fine-art photography / artistic photography

Fine-art photography

Fine art photography is photography created in accordance with the vision of the artist as photographer. Fine art photography stands in contrast to representational photography, such as photojournalism, which provides a documentary visual account of specific subjects and events, literally re-presenting objective reality rather than the subjective intent of the photographer; and commercial photography, the primary focus of which is to advertise products or services.

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fine-art_photography]

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Note added at 1 day7 hrs (2014-02-07 23:46:29 GMT)
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plasticienne = faisant partie des arts plastiques

"Arts plastiques
...
Dans un sens commun, les arts plastiques regroupent toutes les pratiques ou activités donnant une représentation artistique, esthétique ou poétique, au travers de formes et de volumes.
...
Éléments de la définition

L'expression "arts plastiques" (bien qu'imprécise et en concurrence avec "arts visuels") est souvent opposée dans le monde francophone aux arts appliqués ou aux arts décoratifs ainsi qu'à certaines pratiques considérées comme populaires, amateurs, artisanales ou commerciales, s'est imposée en art contemporain par l'usage d'artistes se qualifiant eux-mêmes de plasticiens et par la commodité de sa distinction avec d'autres familles artistiques comme la musique, les spectacles vivants (théâtre, danse, cirque, etc.), la littérature et parfois de l'architecture. ..."

[http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arts_plastiques]
Peer comment(s):
agree B D Finch : But not "artistic photography", which is often used as a euphemism for (soft) porn.// Indeed not! However, "artistic" (as opposed to "art") tends to be a word avoided by people serious about art, except for irony.
12 hrs
should you let euphemisms take over the real meaning? Thanks!
agree Michael DeWeese-Frank : fine art photography (usually written without the hyphen)
15 hrs
Thanks!
disagree rachelha : Fine art photography often refers to nude/natural photography these days.
23 hrs
1-on what sample of "Fine art photography" are you basing that? 2- are you saying that a nude photography/painting/sculpture could never be art? Take a look at the history of art ...
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "I used both the French term in italics and this term by way of an explanation. That way I didn't have to resort to footnote. Thanks everyone."
9 mins

touched up pictures/photos

like in PhotoShop ...
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1 hr

photography (used) by artists

La réaffirmation de son statut artistique dans les années 1980, en France, sous le vocable de «photographie plasticienne» consacre le distinguo entre la «photographie des artistes» et la «photographie des photographes».
jslb.fr

The reaffirmation of its artistic status in the 1980s in France with the term photographie plasticienne [which roughly translates as "art photography"] instituted the slim distinction between "photography by artists" and "photography by photographers.
jslb.fr


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Note added at 1 heure (2014-02-06 18:03:06 GMT)
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Includes partial use as in collages.
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7 hrs

visual art photography

...

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Note added at 8 heures (2014-02-07 00:48:24 GMT)
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www.yasni.fr/andrei berg/recherche personne
CATALOGUE BooK - André BERG. www.andreiberg.com. Visual Artist photographe plasticien ... ANDREÏ BERG Visual Art- Photography-Fine art ...

www.flickr.com/photos/jean-paul-margnac/.../detail/‎
... Collections > Visual art, Recent works - Travaux d'un Photographe-plasticien. .... One of the numerous effects of the Visual Art Photography approach …

www.aline-jansen-peintre.com/.../Photos_Plasticiennes/.../P...‎
Expositions Exhibitions ... La Digigraphie® est un label technique qui permet de produire une oeuvre d'art (photo plasticienne) en série limitée. ... Digigraphie ® label is a technique to produce a work of art (photo visual artist) in a limited series.

www.rubismecenat.fr/archives/‎
... la Ithuba Arts Gallery à Johannesburg en Afrique du Sud du 28 mars au 13 avril 2013. ... In 2012, 'Of Soul & Joy' brought a photography project to the Buhlebuzile ... Rubis Mécénat présente Silhouettes, une exposition in situ de l'artiste plasticienne ... Rubis Mécénat presents Silhouettes, an in situ exhibition of visual artist ...

www.anasazisteakhouse.com/about-us/‎
... Collection has been a mainstay of visual art photography in the American west ... In addition, his images have received numerous awards at juried exhibitions.

www.e-flux.com/client/cultural_centre_of_belgrad/‎
Contemporary works of Serbian and foreign artists of different generations, ... in documentary and historical formats, to contemporary visual art photography.

Visual Art Photography | Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/.../Visual-Art-Photograph...‎
Visual Art Photography. 109 likes · 18 talking about this. Keep Shooting, Till you make it.
Visual Art Photography | About
visualartphotography.zenfolio.com/about.html‎
Traduire cette page
... been behind the camera for over twenty years. He now pursues his passion of "visual art photography" full time. Ray lives in Montreal with his partner Diane.


Veronica's Visual Art Photography - Index Page
www.veronica-art.co.za/‎
Traduire cette page
Veronica's Visual Art Photography - Photographic Art by Veronica Coetzer : The Games we Play and the Masks we Hide Behind; A New Tide; Daydreams ...
Veronica's Visual Art Photography - Index Page
www.veronica-art.co.za/‎



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Reference comments

1 hr
Reference:

From Wiki

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photographie_plasticienne

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Note added at 1 heure (2014-02-06 17:58:08 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

And:
La réaffirmation de son statut artistique dans les années 1980, en France, sous le vocable de «photographie plasticienne» consacre le distinguo entre la «photographie des artistes» et la «photographie des photographes».
jslb.fr

The reaffirmation of its artistic status in the 1980s in France with the term photographie plasticienne [which roughly translates as "art photography"] instituted the slim distinction between "photography by artists" and "photography by photographers.
jslb.fr
Peer comments on this reference comment:
neutral Helen Shiner : I provided this link in the discussion entries 5 mins into the posting. But I can't agree with the translation suggested, for the reasons I also give.
43 mins
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