Sally Mann Documentary

After watching the documentary, I understood Sally Mann's artistic objective a lot better. She is controversial but I can't argue that she takes beautiful photos. The photos of her children were very creative and I see how she has this appreciation for the natural world. I understand that she faced criticism for these photos but I think she was misunderstood. Though the children were naked in some of the photos, I think she was aiming at capturing the naturalism of the body and the family. To me, this shines through in the photos. Her intention was not sexual and I think that is apparent in the way the photos were captured. On the other hand, I have some conflicting feelings about her series on death. I wish the documentary would have explained where the bodies came from when she was visiting the decomposition site. I understand her objective with these photos and I do think they are incredible and interesting. However, the problem is that it feels a little unethical because these people can not consent to having these photos taken of them after death. I'm not sure if the families of these people were involved either. Overall, I think she is controversial because she doesn't fear what some people would consider crossing a line. Her appreciation for the natural human experience is definitely what makes her work captivating.