© Kenneth Anthony Ragsdale
This week’s Questions with an Educator features Kenneth A. Ragsdale.
Ken is a New York based photographer and professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Ken has a very unique process based solely on personal memory that combines many art forms to create captivating three-dimensional constructions from which he derives his images. He hopes that his own innovative work inspires his students to continue innovating the photography industry. Here, Ken details how his work came to revolve solely around personal memory, the specifics of his working process, and his thoughts on where the photography industry is headed.
We asked: How did your work come to revolve solely around personal memory as a process? How does this personal memory focus lead to the development of a narrative?
Ken said: In the mid 1990’s, I was working with students at the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon, where I had received my BFA in painting. We were discussing how to make work that was undeniably distinct, and how that related to the subjective/objective conflict in presenting what we felt to be reality in a plein-air painting. We concluded (most likely after a few beers) that the making of any work that is truly personal and individual has to work its way around the fact that the subject of the work might be accessible to anyone. Since all observation is filtered through individual experience, then any work representing reality as an individual perceives it should not be made from direct observation but from the memory of the observation. Further, that it would be better still if the content of what was observed was completely inaccessible to anyone but the maker of the image. In that case, one could say that the image made was as true as could possibly be to the “reality” of what had been observed.
The narratives that I find to be the most interesting to address are centered around a particular and familiar place. I try to find within that place a moment where my experience of it, it’s context in the greater political history of that region, and a point of departure relative to my understanding of Art History all come together to ask a worthy question. l always think that it’s more interesting to have an image ask a question rather than make statement.
We asked: Please describe your working process. How did you develop this unique working process?
Ken said: I begin by making rough sketches of places and things from my past that seem relevant to themes I am thinking about at a particular time. From these sketches, I make working drawings to solidify the dimensions of each item, and to get the correct feel of each piece. From these drawings, I make schematic drawings that will be documented and then cut out for assembly. This is all done by hand and from memory. I try not to look at any photographic or other reference materials while I am working.
After the schematics are cut out, they are folded and tabbed into their final 3-dimensional formats. Whenever possible, these are cut out in one piece from a single sheet of paper. This often takes several tries to get everything right.
After all the items and structures are built necessary for each image, I work through the view of the camera lens to assemble the scene. During this process, I begin arranging the lights to manipulate the desired atmosphere. All of the color in the images comes from the lights. Everything is built with white vellum surfaced bristol paper.
The process arrived organically, and came about over the course of a few years’ trial and error. The sources for its technical aspects are numerous and varied, but all were adapted to the goal of producing an image that was clearly my own, and reflected particular skills that I did or did not have. I think of the works as images constructed, and the camera is one of many tools that help me make that happen.
Because I come from a painting background, and have both of my degrees in that field, I feel that in a sense that is what I am still doing. Because of this, I think that my job as a maker of art is in some aspects far easier than that of a photographer who works in a traditional way. Whereas I have the time and freedom to manufacture anything that I like to suit my needs, most photographers have the terrifically difficult job of having to hunt around and find that singular moment out in the world, and get it before it disappears.
We asked: What courses do you teach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute? How does your personal work affect your teaching?
Ken said: At RPI I teach Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced Drawing.
In addition, I work with 3 or 4 Independent Study students every term, for whom I have developed several adaptable syllabi that can be suited to their particular needs and cover topics not available in the general catalogue. These include Basic Photographic Concepts, Architectural Sketching, Storyboarding, Basic Engineering Drawing, Lighting for Animation Illustration, Watercolor Painting, and others.
The vast majority of my students are not art majors, and come from all corners of the institute. I think that the broad range of interests and disciplines I bring to my own work is helpful in communicating general concepts of drawing and art making to all of them, and helps me to offer specific insights related to their own interests and curricular needs.
The best part of teaching at RPI is that I learn so much from all of my students that is not on the surface art related, but gives me new insight into the workings of the world and helps to expand the scope of my work.
We asked: Do you think the innovative nature of your work leads to more innovation from your students?
Ken said: If it truly is innovative, then I would certainly hope that it does! The one piece of advice that I would like them to take away and follow, and that I believe will help them in their career no matter what that might be, is that any combination of approach and technique is good as long as it works. All in the service of offering something new and significant to the general conversation.
We asked: What is your vision for the future of the photography industry given the students you interact with in the classroom?
Ken said: Given the credibility stretching and forward looking research being done every day by the students here at RPI, and other schools like it doing advanced engineering and scientific work, I would not be surprised by anything.
It would be no shock to me if in a few years everyone could look out at the world, blink their eyes, and have that image recorded in the brain. Then they could touch any flat surface, and by recalling it, transfer it to the surface for anyone to see.
Images such as these could be manipulated simply by considering how one would want them to look or what if anything might be added or omitted.
Whether or not this would be a good thing, I couldn’t say. It would certainly keep the camera makers busy!
Find more of Ken’s work on his website.
If this article was of interest to you, take a look at some of the other articles in the Questions with an Educator and Questions with a Pro series.