Full Description
Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things.
Part memoir, part cultural criticism, Stock Photo mines the significance of the stock photo in our everyday lives, from the ads and websites we browse, to the menus and memes that we consume. Through interviews with stock photography experts, photographers, models, consumers, and other stakeholders, Simona Supekar explores the evolution of the industry by tracing the creation of a stock photo from concept to usage while highlighting significant historical moments.
Supekar weaves in her own experiences as a keyworder for a stock photography company while reckoning with her Asian American/South Asian identity in a post-9/11 world. Stock Photo also addresses how these images have the power to shape our perceptions about race, class/caste, gender, ability, and more, thus underscoring the importance of representation even in something as innocuous as a stock photo.
Contents
List of Illustrations
Preface
1. Armchairs and Avocados and Armpits
2. Beginnings
3. Portrait and Close-up and White Background
4. Portrait and Wide Angle
5. Business
6. Twentysomething
7. Landscapes
8. Cheese
9. Still Life
10. Divers*
11. Related Keywords
12. Email
13. Terrorist
14. Funny
15. Recycling
16. Transition
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
