Connecting Essay - Karl Hugo Schmolz

Here is one of my architectural photographs from my third shoot. I framed this image using the rule of thirds, positioning the office building on the left vertical line of the rule of thirds grid. This means that the building is the first thing you notice. I converted this image to black and white in photoshop after shooting it, as well as adding noise, creating a film grain effect. This image mainly consists of light tones, which suggest the positives of urban life. This is contrasted clearly by the architecture of the building, which resembles the brutalist urban construction of the 1980s, as well as the noise added to the image, which creates a sense of dread and fear. I shot using a wide aperture, focusing on the building in the foreground. The use of a wide aperture creates a sense of depth, making the background appear to be further away, as well as directing the viewer of the image to the section you wanted them to focus on. There are leading lines featured in this image; the barriers on the left lead your eyes to the base of the building, as well as the scaffolding to the left of the building that leads your eyes to the top of the building. Together, the set of lines make you notice the great size of the building more, creating the feeling of it towering over you and you being small and vulnerable.



Here is an architectural photograph by German photographer Karl Hugo Schmolz. It was taken in Cologne, Germany, likely shortly after the war had ended. The image captures a lot of straight lines; the architecture of the area is very much inspired by the Bauhaus movement, which was a prominent architecture and art movement from the 1920s and 30s in Germany and featured lots of squares and lines. The presence of this architecture suggests that this part of the city was developed in the 1920s/30s and as a result of the war, hasn't been updated. Schmolz has focused on the mid ground of the image, in which there is an open space where a few men in suits standing in a circle and having a discussion. Due to their dress style, they are likely businessmen by profession, and as they are standing in this area, it could be suggested that they are discussing plans for the development of the area. The shadow of the building in the foreground creates a leading line, leading the viewer to the mid ground where the mens are discussing.

My photo has been inspired by Karl Hugo Schmolz' work. You can see that these two photographs link; particularly through the use of lines. Schmolz' photo uses leading lines in the form of shadow of the building, which leads your eyes to the mid ground where the men are having a discussion. My image also uses leading lines, presented in the form of barriers that lead your eyes to the base of the large office building I focused on. The architecture the image feature also bear similarities; Schmolz' image features very square and angular architecture, as does mine, as the place I took the image had architecture inspired by the brutalist movement of the 1980s. I also attempted to link my work to his further with the editing style; I converted my image to black and white and added noise in an attempt to make my image look as if the image was taken on the black and white film that would have been used during the 1930s.