A Study Of The Relationship Between Artistry And Commerciality In Contemporary Photography

Previous scholars have done a lot of research on the relationship between the artistry and commerciality of photography.Most scholars' discussions on this issue are relatively single,not dialectical,relatively abstract,and not specific enough.This article attempts to use a dialectical method to think about the relationship between the two,and specifically analyze the relationship between the two from the four perspectives of artists,works of art,art consumers,and art systems,so as to objectively observe the full picture of things.In order to study the artistry and commerciality of contemporary photography more specifically,this article attempts to start from the two categories of "art photography" and "commercial photography".After sorting out their historical evolution,it is found that commercial photography that serves the client and commercial art photography that hopes to get rid of photography have shown the conflict between artistry and commerciality at the beginning of their birth.In modern times,the conflict between the two still exists.First of all,for art photography,artists' long-standing “romantic ideals” and their rejection of interference from outsiders have led to its rejection of commerciality.In this regard,photographers have developed two demarcation strategies in an attempt to disassociate themselves from commerciality,because in their eyes,artistic photography should be elegant,and it will become vulgar when it is infiltrated by commerciality.Secondly,for commercial photography,it has to abandon the artistry due to the influence of some consumers with single aesthetics,commercial companies seeking to maximize profits,and gatekeepers from a commercial standpoint.In this regard,the artistry and commerciality of contemporary photography conflicts with each other and cannot tolerate each other.However,on the other hand,there is consistency between the artistry and commerciality of contemporary photography.First of all,for commercial photography,there is an interpenetration between elegance and vulgarity.There is also artistry in commercial photography,and its artistry is recognized by the art system.In this regard,the aesthetic pursuits of consumers,commercial companies and photographers have all played an important role.Secondly,for art photography,in contemporary art,value is not only displayed in the artistry of the work,but the role of price is also very important.Prices are affected by audiences,galleries,museums,and collectors.Art works cannot only be regarded as the artist's own.It is a product of a collective activity in which many roles are involved,especially those of art merchants or markets.Therefore,the artistry and commerciality of contemporary photography are compatible with each other.In summary,it can be seen that the relationship between artistry and commerciality is not a simple antagonistic relationship,there is consistency between the two.This dialectical relationship does not only exist in contemporary photography,it also exists in other art forms such as movies,which has important theoretical significance for our understanding of other art.