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| Abelardo Morell is
best known for his images made with a camera
obscura where he transforms a whole room into
a camera. The camera obscura, translated literally as “dark
chamber,” pre-dates the invention of the camera by centuries.
Hints of its use date back to antiquity. In an ordinary room, Morell
places black plastic over all of the windows to darken it completely,
but leaves a tiny opening for light to pass through. He then sets
up his view camera in the room, points it at the opposite wall, opens
the lens and lets the image appear on the film over the next eight
hours. The result is a world that fuses outdoor elements with indoor
scenes, allowing the viewer to see the existing reality outside the
window. Along with the camera obscura, Morell also photographs household
objects as if seen through the eyes of his son, Brady, to convey the
wide-eyed wonder children experience within the adult world. With
his chosen subjects and style, Morell’s images always challenge
our perception of reality and how we see. In this image, the Hotel del Coronado is seen reflected onto the wall. The image is upside down because light rays travel in a straight line. When light from the bottom of an object travels through a small opening, it will appear at the top of the wall. When light from the top of an object travels through a small opening, it will appear at the bottom of the wall. The final image is therefore upside down.  (For Grades 4-6) What parts of this image are actual objects inside the room being photographed? What do you see of the outside? Turn the image upside down. Can you find more? What would it look like if you made a camera obscura out of your classroom? How would you do it? What would you see projected onto the wall? What year do you think this photograph was taken? What do you see that makes you say that? Where do you think it was taken? |
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Abelardo Morell United States, born Cuba, 1948 Camera Obscura Image of the Hotel del Coronado, 1998 Gelatin silver print, 1998 Collection Museum of Photographic Arts Gift of the artist 1998.029.001 © Abelardo Morell © Museum of Photographic Arts |
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