Mark Brautigam - On Wisconsin

I recently came across Mark Brautigam’s Series titled “On Wisconsin.” In my opinion I believe this work relates to Alec Soth’s Niagara Series. Mark spends a long period of time in one location using the same techniques that Alec used; 8x10 camera, and the use of found moments.

“Bay View” 2005 was the photograph I picked from the series. It was the photograph that both spoke to me formally and conceptually the most. Formally when you first see it, you see a photograph shot in the “golden hour” a time when taken photos can be more dramatic and appealing due to the position of the sun in the sky. For his image it gives great shadows throughout the image, including the bikers, poles, signs, and buildings. He uses the text available in the frame to represent his caption. He also carefully set up his composition to make sure nothing important is cropped out, other the shadow on the biker in the left. The image is perfectly exposed, knowing that he spend a great deal of time setting up the photo.

Conceptually this can tell a story of a very quaint afternoon in a small town. It’s almost like a cinematic still, showing the characters biking home after a long day at the river. This can be seen by the interaction between both of the subjects. The subject on the left is slightly ahead of the other biker and she is looking over her shoulder to make sure she is still with her. He is also showing a sense of safety with his subjects because he is including the green light and the walk sign, this shows that they are careful bikers and do not cross the street when the light is red. If you look even closer you can see an economic theme, the bikers chose to pick the street on the left instead of the one on the right. If you look on the left you see a suburban landscape with nice houses and good lighting. However if you look at the road to the right you see a shadowy road with what seems to be an industrial building corner.