'The artist's 'ens’: Ugo Mulas and the photography of art 1954-1973

Thesis

This dissertation critically addresses the relationship between the visual arts and the medium of photography in the 1960s and early 1970s by examining the oeuvre of photographer Ugo Mulas (1928- 1973). One the one hand, it aims to demonstrate the vital role photography played in the reception, understanding, and self-understanding of post-War art; on the other hand, it seeks to shed light on the impact that these intermedial interactions had on the medium of photography itself. The close examination of a series of Mulas's photographic dialogues with artists (Lucio Fontana, Andy Warhol, Alberto Burri amongst others) provides evidence of such profound mutual influence. His photographs impacted on many artists' creations, reception, and self-awareness as much as his focused observation of their work shaped his own photographic work. Despite their fundamental role in history of art, however, these photographs studied here belong to a genre (the so-called 'photography of art') that has often been downplayed as secondary to the 'higher arts' it depicts, uncritical, mere illustration. If the contentious status of these photographs has led most art historians to turn a blind eye to them, I contend that it is precisely due to their uncomfortable nature that they deserve special attention. These images defy preconceived notions of authorship and medium purity, and question clear-cut dichotomies between creating and beholding, art making and criticism. Studying them offers new and compelling perspectives both on the medium 'reproducing' (photography) and on the objects being 'reproduced' (sculpture, painting, performance, film etc.). Mulas not only he came to stand as the 'photographer of art' par excellence in Italy and operated in a historical moment marked by profound changes in art making and art reception. More importantly, he explicitly confronted key problems regarding the translation of art and the very nature of photography with unparalleled rigour and sensitivity.

Authors: Boeri, G

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-az9qbd0my
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: photography; history of art; photography of art
• Subjects: Photography; Historiography; Performance; Painting; Art--History