Context and Meaning: Frances Benjamin Johnston

Context and Meaning: Frances Benjamin Johnston
Name
Course or Subject
Name of Tutor
Date
Abstract
Photography is slowly taking over the modern world. On every screen, on every wall, on every building, it is possible to locate a picture/photograph which has been taken as well as processed. Photography keeps on developing, particularly since the 1800s; this continues to offer endless opportunities and possibilities. Photography was typically considered the gateway to the videography that is currently being significantly embraced and becoming a vast part of people’s cultures. In addition to its history, photography has a visual record of the past. This has enabled the recording of most of the world's most significant milestones, including several individuals/private ones. Photography allows the individual to reflect and understand the past and the various that eventually enable individuals to look back and reflect on different moments.
Introduction
One such work of photography is Frances Benjamin Johnston, a white woman photographer. He took a series of photographs of Black and Indigenous students at the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in 1899. This paper reflects how the meaning of Johnson’s photographs changed when they were exhibited in different venues and contexts.
To do this, this paper analyzes how the numerous photographs that were taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston at the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in Hampton, Virginia, in 1899 circulated. The context considered by the paper includes that of the American Negro Exhibit in the year 1900; the second context is the exhibition in 1966 in the Museum of Modern Art, New York; and lastly, the 2000 exhibit at the Williams College Museum of Art. The paper analyzes the context, including the methods or techniques used to display every kind of exhibition. This helps to show how the function of the photographs shifted from public relations material to art.[Bassnett, Sarah. "From Public Relations to Art: Exhibiting Frances Benjamin Johnston's Hampton Institute Photographs." History of Photography 32, no. 2 (2008): 152-168.]
Reflection
When Johnson’s photographs were initially displayed at the Paris Exposition in 1900, they were incorporated in the American Negro Exhibit. The meaning of these photographs was regarded as evidence of 'Negro progress,' and as a result, they were comprehended as life records at the school. They were then used to demonstrate ...