Digital Photography II-Photograph Analysis

Richard Billingham, Ray's a Laugh, Untitled

In this photograph I see an elderly man sitting on the floor next to a toilet. He seems to either be half conscious or asleep. He is dressed in white sneakers, black slacks and a gray sweater and dress coat. His pants are unzipped and his clothing is a bit shabby. The bathroom he is sitting in looks a bit old and dilapidated. The painting on the door is discolored some areas a reddish brown others black, the blue carpet is blackened in certain areas with dirt, the toilet is broken and needs a cleaning and the wallpaper is ragged. There is also a tin canister in the corner that also appears to be grimy.

This photograph makes me think that this man is drunk. There really aren’t many reasons to be sitting next to a toilet except for if you need to vomit and because of the worn out appearance of the man and his surroundings I would guess that he’s not just sick but that his need to regurgitate is due to alcohol. Normally a scene like this would make me think the person is pathetic but the way that the photograph is shot at the same level as the man it makes me feel sympathetic and makes me think that maybe this man is lonely and that is why he has drank himself to this point. By shooting this at his level it makes you feel like you are there with him, like you’re the one taking the photo or taking care of the man. It makes me feel like I know this lonely frayed man.

This photograph makes me feel sad, empathetic, and a little uncomfortable. It makes me feel sad because it makes me think that this man is lonely and sad and that he has no one and so he drinks to fill the void. It makes me feel empathetic because everyone can understand the feeling of being alone and depressed at one time or another, so its just human nature to feel sorry for him and to empathize with his quandary. It makes me feel a little uncomfortable because this is clearly a very personal moment and a somewhat embarrassing one as well. This isn’t exactly the type of photograph of yourself that you would want others to see. It’s a low point in this mans life and its pretty private, not just because he’s drunk and because he gives off an aura of loneliness but also because he’s in a bathroom. The idea of taking a picture of someone while they are in the bathroom is a little strange and awkward. What people do in the bathroom tends to be private and not public domain.

I think that this photograph does compliment the rest of the photographer’s work that I have chosen because Billingham is consistent in the subjects he uses in his photographs (His father, a drunk; his mother, obese and tattooed, his brother, troubled; and the animals his mother likes to take in.) This photograph however is more obvious when it comes to his fathers drinking. Most of the photographs are a bit subtler to this fact by having shot glasses and bottles in the background or taking photos of his father starry eyed. This photograph really implies his father’s drinking problem a lot more than in the other photos. That’s kind of why I chose this one. I felt that this photograph was really raw and personal, more so then the others.