Introduction To Undergraduate Study - Essay Example

In finding an understanding of this work, the way in which society now views the female form and how it is commercialized for the purposes of selling fashion can be realized. According to Bate (2003: 22), surrealism is “semiotically speaking, a signifying effect, the confusion or a contradiction in a conventional signifier - signified relations in representations and where a meaning is partially hidden, where the message appears enigmatic regardless of how it was produced”. The art of surrealistic photography is found where the imagery reveals something more than what is visually available, where the form provides a clue to the intent, rather than a specific and defined point of reference.

The singular importance, simplified in order to provide a point of further discussion, within the photographic art that Man Ray created is in manipulation. Through creating the concept of manipulation in order to create surrealistic work, Man Ray began discoveries that would revolutionize many aspects of the medium of photography. One of the significant ways in which Man Ray created innovation was in the process of development so that different effects could be achieved. According to Miller (1996: 75), every error was an opportunity for greater innovation.

The process of solarization was developed through a laboratory accident. The great numbers of innovations that he created were then very generously shared within the photography world, thus furthering the advancement of the medium. Man Ray had no respect for his equipment and did not hold to the idea that expensive equipment changed his process for the better. He believed in using what he had to make the commentary that he desires, thus promoting creativity in his process. However, it is the manipulation of the form that had the greatest impact on fashion photography.

Man Ray developed a way of elongating the female form, creating a more idealized look. Through techniques that manipulated the image, he created