Photography_Essay_-Laurence_Aberhart_and_Ingeborg_Tyssen

Photography Essay Laurence Aberhart and Ingeborg Tyssen are contemporary photographers that focus on suburban themes. These two photographers have many similarities compared to differences. Laurence, a self taught photographer, became passionate while studying to become a teacher, were influenced by Henri Carter-Bresson, Edward Welton, Bill Brandt and Burton Brothers, produces similar photographs as Burton Brothers documenting man made structures at times in black and white capturing subject matters that would seem to be mundane and photographs the state of his country’s psychological health. He photographs houses and buildings, cemeteries, the landscape and collection of objects, presenting them bluntly so it could not be ignored. Aberhart, been called New Zealand’s ‘last explorer’ captures many objects and structures that commemorate death since being interested in the graveyards. Laurence seeks his subjects on journeys, driving till he comes across something that sparks his interest. He uses light and nuances and depth of shadow to suggest different moods, nostalgia and melancholy and uses high tones to suggest timeless quality (especially when capturing subjects that commemorate death). Laurence is one of the photographers that uses an old view camera on a tripod with 8x10 inch Kodak ‘A20’ film. The work his done are exhibited in New Zealand and internationally though he sees his audience as ordinary people of Australia and New Zealand. Ingeborg Tyssen, a documentary photographer like Aberhart, though documents on the same theme, has different meanings in her photographs. Exactly like Laurence, she is predominantly a black and white photographer printing with the traditional method. Her compositions are thoughtfully arranged, balancing tone, form and the subject in a traditional way, almost classical manner. Unlike Laurence, Tyssen also includes a touch of surreal and the humorous in her work. The images Tyssen captures revolve around nature being contained by beings while Aberharts photographs are more about death. Her studies of photography trained her to capture photographs like ‘Gladesville, Sydney’, an image of a tree shaped up. What the responders can get out of this photograph is the tree (nature) is being contained by humanity. It has been shaped by human beings, no longer able to grow into a shape of its own nature. Ingeborg Tyssen, born in Holland then moved to Australia, has similarities like Laurence like capturing photographs in Australia of man made structures and places them in exhibitions internationally and locally. Even though Laurence Aberhart and Ingeborg Tyssen were born in two different countries, they still have similarities as well as differences.