In João Koranyi’s view, the term “abstract photograph” contains a contradiction: the optical process that the camera itself entails is based on the objective reproduction of the object. Abstraction can be obtained without recourse to the camera, by means of enlargement and photograms which, in Koranyi’s view, are not entirely photographic. Nor, in his view, are photographs of abstract paintings and sculptures abstract. On the contrary, they are concrete, real, and figurative insofar as the camera frustrates any attempt at abstraction.

This fourth and final article in a series published in the journal Íris discusses the idea of abstract photography. It is based on the notion that abstraction is “pure art,” that is, art geared to its own means of expression which—according to the text’s author, João Koranyi—is not possible in photography. In other words, the specificity of photography lies in its referent.

Hungarian-born Brazilian lawyer Hans [João] Koranyi was the founder and first editor-in-chief of Íris, and a key figure in the communication of photography in Brazil. Under the Brazilian name “João,” he published a great many articles and books on photography.  The journal Íris, which was created in 1947, went through a number of transformations before its last issue was published in 1999.

[For other texts on photography published in Íris, see in the ICAA digital archive by Harumi Yamagishi “Foto conceitual” (doc. no. 1110872); by T. J. Farkas “Fotografia - caminhos diversos” (doc. no. 1110873); by João Koranyi “A missão cultural da fotografía” (doc. no. 1110871); by Vilém Flusser “O futuro e a cultura da imagen” (doc. no. 1110898) and “O instrumento do fotógrafo ou o fotógrafo-instrumento?” (doc. no. 1110899); by Eduardo Llorente “Juventude e cinema” (doc. no. 1110875); by Stefania Bril “As relações futuras do homem com a máquina” (doc. no. 1110897); and by Luis Humberto “Uma fotografia criativa e seus impedimentos” (doc. no. 1110876)].