William Eggleston

Untitled, 1970

Delilah

Delilah
Ms. Burakowski
Sophomore Photography
5 June 2015
William Eggleston
William Eggleston began his career with the inspiration to bring attention to the
spontaneity of his life, most especially Southern life. Not only was Eggleston a legendary
black and white photographer, but also he was an innovative color photographer. He was
a very open artist and attempted to best photograph the collective beauty of randomness
in life, particularly in the South, where he was born and his photography originated.
Eggleston is extremely influential because he was willing to take risks with his pictures to
depict the liveliness radiating from the environment of the South. William Eggleston
worked to become a photographer worthy of the innovative and interesting world of art
by experimenting with new ideas, which led him to become, as many would consider, an
genius of color photography.
On July 27, 1939, William Eggleston was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He was a
native Southerner raised on a cotton plantation in the Mississippi Delta, which is where
he now lives. After discovering photography in the early 1960s, he abandoned a
traditional education and learned from photographically illustrated books. Illustrated
books with photos by Walker Evans, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Robert Frank changed
his perspective of photos and moved him to want to become a successful photographer.
Eggleston helped inspire a new generation of filmmakers and photographers with his
various topics of interest and unique techniques with color photography (William
Eggleston). William Eggleston's pictures were mostly taken with an assortment of
Canon, Lecia, and Contax Cameras. He also use a Pentax Reflex camera, a Mamiya 6x9,
a Fuji GW690 6x9, a Hassleblade, etc. He used these cameras frequently for portraying
the South and the radiating beauty of nature with color photography. He is still admired

and recognized for the way he photographed the assortment of elements among southern
nature (Artist Bio).
One particular image by Eggleston that resulted in admiration was his 1974
untitled image from his Memphis collection. This image depicts 5 colorful plastic
monochromatic animals on a table. These 5 plastic figures show colorful randomness. It
can be gathered that colored film is what primarily influenced this image. He started to
use color transparency and set themes with his Memphis collection. Egglestons goal was
to depict randomnesswith the use of some color (the plastic animals) against a black
background, which might indicate that color is emerging in the world of photography.
Overall, this photograph conveys its message very effectively with the use of color and
randomness (William Eggleston). The idea of incorporating small amounts of color into
a photo can lead me to want to include hints of color into my photos.

William Eggleston
Untitled (From Memphis Collection)
1974
Dry Transfer Print
("William Eggleston")

The second image (from 1970) is also untitled and from the Memphis collection.
In particular, this is one of Eggleston's famous images that was taken in the town of
Memphis, Tennessee, in front of a house on a Southern road surrounded by fields and
residences. The image shows a young child's bike, a tricycle that is composed of blue and
red colors in front of a solid coloredhouse (Cotter). This picture was especially influenced

by the environment of the South and the color in the town that the image was taken in.
Eggleston is basically attempting to portray the Southern environment and the simplicity
of the color that makes up a young child's bike. The message is conveyed very well
because the image consist of simplicity that results from the randomness that is pictured
(Sampson). The picture influences me because it is an outdoor image that has made me
consider the ways I might and can incorporate both nature and non nature into a photo
and still convey an intended message along with elements that interest me.

William Eggleston
Untitled
1970
Dry Transfer Print
(Hale)

Girl in Grass (1975) is the third image taken by William Eggleston that I thought
really showed his techniques. This picture shows a girl in grass on a sunny day.
Generally, this picture captures a lot of natural light, more than the first two images.
Color photography helps to capture the brightness of the colors in the setting that the
image was taken in. Eggleston is also probably trying to capture some kind of color
combination in this photograph. His goal was to show that the Old South meets new
living color. There is a common color of green in this photo, which makes it visually
interesting (Cotter). This technique or style of effectively capturing color and light, as
shown in this picture, is something that I can learn from when I take photographs. This
image teaches me that lighting has a great effect on the appearance of a photo and the
models that appear in the photo.

William Eggleston
Girl in Grass
1975
Dry Transfer Print
("William Eggleston, the Father")

This last image by Eggleston is also Untitled (1970), and from an untitled
collection. This picture is a dry-transfer print that shows a young African American girl in
a lime dress walking on the side of a farm road near Minter City and Glendora,
Mississippi. This image is greatly influenced by the southern environment and the
simplicity of a colorful nature. The photo intends to givethose viewing it a new
perspective of the South in color.This message of a colorful South is effectively conveyed
with the great hints of color (Hale). The bright color of the girl's dress among the natural
elements caught my eye and helped me understand the effectiveness of using pops of
color in simple photos to capture attention.

William Eggleston
Untitled (From Memphis Collection)
1970
Dry Transfer Print
(Lopez)

William Eggleston was a genius of Southern color photography, and he left a great
legacy on the world of art and creativity. Eggleston's homeland in the South greatly
influenced the setting and messages of his photos. He made the simplicity of the South
come to life through his photos and the many ways that he captured color and created
colorful contrasts in his pictures. Along with his emphasis on color, he incorporated
randomness into his photos while still managing to convey the intended message. Today,
his work can be viewed in many galleries and famous exhibitions across the country, and
he is still honored for the way he captured the truth of life, that it is an interesting, lively
adventure.

Works Cited:
"Artist Bio." William Eggleston. Eggleston Artist Trust, n.d. Web.
Cotter, Holland. "Old South Meets New, in Living Color." The New York Times. The New
York Times, 06 Nov. 2008. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.
Hale, Grace Elizabeth. "Eggleston's South: "Always in Color" | Southern Spaces."
Eggleston's South: "Always in Color" | Southern Spaces. Emory University
Libraries, 27 June 2013. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.
Lopez, Jeremy. "William Eggleston "Memphis" (1969-70)." Photograph. Jeremylopez1.
Word Press, 29 Feb. 2012. Web. 01 May 2015.
Sampson, Tim. "The Art of Being William Eggleston." - Memphis Magazine. Memphis
Magazine, June 2012. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.
"William Eggleston (Getty Museum)." The J. Paul Getty in Los Angeles. J. Paul Getty
Trust, n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.
"William Eggleston; the Father of Colour." Photograph. Photo Forager. Word Press, 26
Aug. 2011. Web. 01 May 2015.