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EFFECTS OF INTERNET ON THE CONCEPT OF STREET PHOTOGRAPHER AS
FLÂNEUR:
INTERACTION BETWEEN VIRTUAL SPACES AND PHYSICAL CITYSCAPE
Chan Wai Tung
CURE 1003: Culture Studies of Space
November 14, 2014
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Originally, flâneur is a representation of bourgeoisie male
figure strolling around urban spaces; some of them often used
photography as a tool of observation and recording. The emergence
of social networking platforms and technological advancement in
digital photography have challenged the modernist’s definition of
street photographer as flâneur, it is becoming less an exclusive
category of class and sex, but a hybridization of both
professionals and common people due to the availability of photo-
taking devices. Interactive functions of the web enables sharing
of previously sole experience, in a way increased the popularity of
self-reflexive movements as snapshotting practices by wandering in
the labyrinth of the capitalist urban city of Hong Kong. The first
part of this paper will focus on modernist explanation to flâneur
and its connection to photography; the second half covers the
diversified connotations and elasticity of the concept, followed by
representable examples, including a local street photography blog
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to illustrate the interactions between virtual space and urban
landscape.
Conceptualization of flâneur as a metaphor of modernity and
consumerism began with Benjamin, it is used to explain the blurring
boundary between the separate sphere of public and private, in
reflection to the power relation of male over female. There is a
masculine stereotype of flâneur as a “mythical figure in France-
the independent, largely anonymous individual who took his task the
recording of modern life” (Goldstein 2008). Walking in
commercialized public spaces of modern cities, flâneur “articulated
across the twin ideological formations […] with its freedom for men
in the public space, and the pre-eminence of a detached observing
gaze” (Pollock 1988). Only upper-middle class men who have abundant
leisure time can legally appear as an uninvolved individual in
public sphere; cafés, pubs, streets, and shopping arcades become
their dwelling when their wives are doing household chores at home.
Flâneur consume the urban space and culture through observing the
surrounding quietly with spontaneous gazes, the city is a maze full
of unexpected treasury, ranging from dynamic movements of strangers
to less noticeable obscure objects at street corners. Their action
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of lonely, aimless wandering apparently suggested laziness and
absentmindedness; in fact they are taking the time for reflection
and retrospection by perceiving strangers and urban environments
with their special visions.
Moreover, the concept of female flâneur (or flâneuse) did not
exist in nineteenth century Europe, because “proper” women are not
allowed to appear alone publicly, those who did so are supposed to
be marginalized in society, including prostitute, widow, old lady,
lesbian, or even murder victim (Wolff 1985), thus the idea of
keeping women at home is both for women’s own safety and to
safeguard the social distinction between upper and lower classes.
Under such ideology, flâneur underlines a double privileged
authority that holds the right to objectify those at inferior
positions, who are women and economically deprived. Quite
differently, flâneur is sometimes being overused as a trendy
catchphrase for recreational travelling nowadays (李李李 2005), it
contradict the essential character that flâneur should maintain
certain individuality and psychological distance with the bustling
crowd, such misunderstanding is partly promoted by taking photos
becoming an essential experience in travelling.
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Photographers, especially who interested in cityscapes can be
considered as flâneur, in which they are “armed version of the
solitary walker[s]… who discovers the city as a landscape of
voluptuous extremes” (Sontag 1977). Although Sontag emphasized
their inclination in focusing on the sensual and luxurious aspects
of modern life, some may also focus on the living and working
conditions of the unvoiced toiling masses, which will be further
discussed in later part. The historical development of camera as an
urban entertaining toy for adult began with Kodakisation in 1888,
“Kodak made cameras and picture making ‘mundane’ and photographing
a part of an emerging ‘tourist habitus” (Urry & Larsen 2011).
Following the technological development in product design and cost
reduction, cameras are available at affordable prices with user-
friendly functions; they are no longer luxury owned by
professionals and riches. The penetration rates of portable photo-
taking devices are even rising throughout the century, where
digital cameras replaced film camera since the second half of
1990s, and smartphone are taking the place in 21th century.
Consequently, most people in modernized cities, regardless white-
collar or blue-collar could conveniently take snapshot in everyday
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life. Digital photography is “a tool to register personal
experiences in physical space as well as a currency for
communicating in digital space” (Lee 2010), while taking photos as
a record of their observation, many people also like to share their
photos online for socializing, it suggested flâneur in postmodern
city is less likely an asocial figure.
Apart from the popularity of camera, the phenomenon of flâneur
as a social practice is facilitated by the freedom and hybridity on
the Internet. It comes to the rise of “Internet flâneur” (aka cyber
flâneur), they alternately “strolling between virtual and reality”
(李李李 2006) to maintain a peculiar state of “connected aloneness”
with the outside world. Flâneur may take the dual role as a
solitary urban photographer and an active publisher on the
internet, which may also virtually interact with the crowd. The
popularity of social media platforms played an important role in
promoting the practice of street photography. First of all, the
anonymous function encourage more casual sharing and commenting, it
is up to individuals to decide rather to disclose their real
identity or rearticulate an imagined one. Likewise, the
distinctions of sex and class are fuzzy, as users could withhold or
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provide misleading personal information. Therefore, the content of
sharing becomes more important than the authentic identities of the
sharers. Under the trend of participatory culture, Internet users
are willing to share their travelling experience and looking
forward to fellow users’ replies (李李李 2014). The characteristic
changes of flâneur are realized in frequent photo sharing and
interaction with audience, ranging from amateur individuals to
professional photographer bloggers with variety of intentions.
The mass amateurization of photography is linked with the
photo blog websites and mobile applications under the influence of
globlaization, collaborative and accumulative social activities are
integrated into flâneur’s activities. For example, Flickr is a
social site providing photo hosting service, there is a group named
“flâneur” (Flickr) where member from all over the world may
contribute their street photos in diversified styles, owing to the
unofficial and inclusive nature of the site, the membership are
free to all Flickr users sharing similar interest of strolling and
photography. On another mobile sharing site, Instagram, users may
apply digital filters to images to achieve special effects in a
square frame like Polaroid; this nostalgic stylistic function is a
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possible handy tool for amateurs. The editing functions also
highlighted the “unreliability of photographic image […] as
distinct from an authentic reproduction” (Seale 2005); these photos
are construction with dazzling spectacle. Another famous feature
of Instagram is its hashtags (#) function: by typing # on the
caption, other users can find the photos by searching related
keywords. In all these sites, photo posts are automatically
arranged in chronological orders, similar to Benjamin’s idea of
flâneur’s fragmented memory of the city. Dynamics of the Internet
is transforming the street photography is overthrowing some aspect
of the traditional image flâneur as an entity partial involved in
the crowd, their involvement in the society is largely limited to
the virtual world but not physical places, as they need an “armor
of distant” to discover and capture the aesthetic essence of random
objects in urban environments.
Still, several qualities of Walter Benjamin’s descriptions to
flâneur are preserved in modern days, though the situation is
complicated by the contradictory relationship between camera and
reality. They are in favor of nostalgic elements in the city, in
reaction to the competitive and ever-changing nature urban space,
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they are “forever looking to the past” (Seale 2005). It doesn’t
mean that they pay little attention to objects of modernity,
whereas their pictures usually presented contrastive impressions
amid the fading old replacing by the invading new, such as the
demolition of historical buildings in urban redevelopment, or
street art in abandoned industrial areas. As written in “The Image
World”, “cameras implement an aesthetic view of reality […] about
importance, interest, beauty” , at the same time serve the
“instrumental view of reality by gathering information that enables
us to make a more accurate and much quicker response” (Sontag
1977). As in social photography, photographers situate between the
two apparently incompatible attitudes, they open the five senses in
capturing atmospheres of memorable scenes and conjuring visual
stimulations of city landmarks, while themes of their photos
inevitable reflect social issues of cities, like the current
Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong (Figure 1). Either intentionally
or unconsciously, their act of recording and sharing invite
viewers’ attention to the happening, perhaps as unofficial and
informal versions of news photography.
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Figure 1, Colours at Causeway Bay, November 3, 2014.
Photograph courtesy of Eddie Tay
In postcolonial Hong Kong, street photographers are preservers
of the disappearing scenery under cultural assimilation brought by
returning sovereignty and globalization. In particular, a local
born and raised freelance flâneuse photographer, Tse Hiu Yu has
profound interest in acting against the overwhelming force of urban
renewal through photography. For instance, in her personal blog
titled “Invisible City”, there is a monotone of clock in the
Sunbeam Theater (figure 2)- a symbol of the local history of
entertainment business since 1950s, and now a central site for
Cantonese Opera performance, this familiar site of collective
memory is presented philosophically by blending of the
photographer’s contemplation, it mirrors the postcolonial notion
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that: “To photograph disappearance is not defamiliarize, only that
a sense of the unfamiliar grows out of forms that remain stubbornly
familiar” (Abbas 1997). Of her background of growing up in public
housing estate, as stated in her personal profile, she probably
shared similar antipathy towards gentrification with fellow
grassroot residents and shopkeepers. Among her several visual
projects, the “Yue Man Square Living Journal” is largely inspired
by Benjamin’s philosophy of “street as domestic interior” (Tze
2008), the crowd become a veil showing the familiar room of
cityscape in phantasmagoria ways.
Figure 2, Sunbeam 2, December 16, 2008. Photography courtesy
of Tse Hiu Yu
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In cosmopolitan societies, the movements of flâneur are no
longer bonded to their home cities or urbanized areas, photos
across geographical boundaries are traces of their living and
travelling experience. Taking an active street photography blogger
Eddie Tay as example, he lives with multiple identities,
predominately as a Singaporean English literature professor and
poet in Hong Kong. In his autobiographical journal article “Street
Meditation”, he describes himself as “a father, a consumer of
camera products, a hobbyist with artistic pretensions, a husband
entrusted with an errand.” (Tay 2012). In his site named “Hong Kong
Lucida: A Thinking Street Photography Blog”, he frequently posts
entries of places he has travelled, mainly in Hong Kong, Singapore
and Mainland China, occasionally in Western cities. The concept
of “nomad flâneur” (Kramer & Short 2011) comes into place with the
convenience of communication and transportation, besides, the
nature is increasingly invaded by man-made culture. Figure 3 shows
a colorful contrast of a dumped supermarket cart in the woods along
suburban hiking trail; it provokes the environmental friendly idea
of human mistreating the nature as a rubbish dump.
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Figure 3, Anecdote of the Jar, June 3, 2014. Photograph
courtesy of Eddie Tay
Meanwhile, the combination of other media suggested more
possibilities in narration. Given that images take a dominant role
the Internet with their advantages of presenting information in a
precise and eye-catching manner, as visual can cater readers’ short
attention span better than text. However, the remaining parts
surrounding the photos are textually mediated. In Tay’s blog, the
accompanying sentence type short writings are poetic reflections,
stories behind the images, or his situations while taking a
particular picture. The selection of photos reveals his routes of
wandering, and the descriptions sometimes lay bare his family life,
such as he took his wife’s suggestion to go shopping in Shenzhen
during weekend, and visited the zoo with his son. These examples
indicate the discrepancies between traditional and current meaning
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of flâneurs: some photographers do not strictly perform as secret
spectators to enjoy lonely strolling; instead they are willing to
include others, like family members in their travel, and illustrate
their enjoyments in performing online sharing with public. In
addition, the default setting of blog allows virtual comments and
replies between photographers and audiences world widely.
It is common for social photographers to manipulate the notion
of flâneurs as cultural capital with present day’s redefinition,
specifically in art sale and exhibition enabled by cyberspace. Back
to Tay’s example, his street photo prints are available on Saatchi
Art- a global online art gallery, in such, the character of
flâneurs is converted into an urban symbol for consumption. Apart
from the business sector, non-profit making cultural events also
utilize this term. On the topic of photographers as flâneurs, there
is a temporary exhibition organized by in the Hong Kong Heritage
Museum during the period of 2010 to 2011: “City Flâneur: Social
Documentary Photography”. The curatorial statement stated that:
“Like flâneurs (city wanderers) in other genres, they focus their
cameras on social vistas … through the images they capture, reflect
upon the causes of change in the community and its environs” (HKHM
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2010). Flâneurs is being employed as a collective recognition of
these photographers distinguishable by their effort in recording
and representing the city’s transformation over time, they are in a
way passing on the heritage of Benjamin as urban strollers with
surreal mixture of social reality and imaginations.
In conclusion, the modernism idea of flâneurs as photographers
is reapplied under the influence of Internet, they transformed from
an asocial urban spectators into friendly bloggers who still remain
passive in the physical environment while actively sharing their
observation online. In a postcolonial age, majority of street
photographers in Hong Kong attempt to capture the disappearing
objects in the fast-changing cityscape, and occasionally reflect
certain political realities of the territory. With the assistance
of social media and blogs, flâneurs are encouraged to share their
visions publicly in these virtual spaces. The penetrating force of
globalization is blurring the boundary between cities, and the non-
stopping invasion of urbanization also reinforced the idea of man-
made nature. The very identity of these photographers is determined
by the content and style of their photos, as the Internet is
breaking through the wall of sex and class.
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