Thursday, October 2, 2014

Ethos of Leonard Fink's Demonstration Photo

Another example of Fink's work
Lenoard Fink was an amateur photographer who documented over 25 years of Gay Life in New York City. He lived a reclusive life, focusing on his art, which he never published. His collection was donated to a museum by his estate after he died from AIDS in 1993.
The photo of interest was taken at the 1970 Christopher Street Liberation parade, one year after the landmark Stonewall Riots, which arguably marked the start of the LGBT rights movement. Fink's only "agenda" in taking it, as well as in any of his other photos, was to capture the beauty he perceived in the lives of the gay community in NYC. While he supported the ideals of the demonstration he was capturing, his goal in taking the photo was not to promote those ideals, but to give insight into the lives of the demonstrators. This is in contrast to the Come Out ad, which has a clear and explicit agenda.

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3 comments:

  1. UnknownOctober 4, 2014 at 9:19 AM

    This was a great analysis of how Fink established ethos. I loved that you included intrinsic and extrinsic types of ethos. Extrinsic ethos was established through his position as a popular amateur photographer. Intrinsic ethos was established through the importance of the Stonewall Riots, Fink's experience photographing the Gay Life in NYC, and his "agenda". The only slight problem I have with this post is the last sentence. It feels very forced, so it might be better to include more of a transition.

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  2. UnknownOctober 5, 2014 at 6:12 PM

    I like your analysis of the photograph and how you explained how extrinsic and intrinsic ethos were established. I think that because Fink was not in support of the ideals, that his ethos became stronger. Knowing that he is not in support of the LGBT demonstration, I think, allows the viewers to see Fink's goal or intention of the photo and looking at the beauty of the photo.

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  3. War ProtestsOctober 6, 2014 at 1:23 PM

    Good job showing how Fink established extrinsic ethos. Your telling the audience of his experiences living a reclusive life documenting gay life in New York help us understand why the picture was taken in the first place. We can clearly see that he was trying to show his audience the people behind the LGBTQ movement. It could have been helpful, however, to explain why he wanted to "give insight into the lives of the demonstrators." Overall, great job explaining extrinsic ethos.

    -Mary

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