John Gossage, A Dozen Failures (@tisbooks, 2015)
@p.oculism toys with notions of failure and success in this thin photobook which intentionally conflates both notions. What makes any photo or book “good”? Which ones don’t make the cut? How should photographers (or anyone) assess quality? If you’re familiar with past Gossage monographs like The Pond or Hey Fuckface, you’re wrestled with these questions before. A Dozen Failures brings them into sharp (or dull?) focus, then tears failure a new asshole. “You could say that every photograph is perfect,” he writes. “As long as you complete the technical steps needed, those pictures that you take are what your camera’s lens saw.” Yes indeed. But on the other hand, “every photograph is a failure. They’re just pictures, not the thing itself.”
The opening essay continues in this vein for a full page, tossing ideas around like campfire banter. But let’s not get bogged down in rhetoric. This is a photobook after all, and the pictures are interesting. Or are they? There are 18 b/w photos in the book, plus a pull out folding poster. They cover a wide geographic range across the U.S., with a few from Mexico. These bushes, sidewalks, and odd layerings could fit into any Gossage project. What brings them together here? What makes these book-worthy vs. thousands of “failures” in the archive?
I honesty haven’t a clue. Does that make the book a failure? The title suggests so (it promises twelve pictures. Epic fail?) The tonality is kinda muddy, and there’s a typo in the essay. Normally such features would be considered flaws. But part of me wonders if they are conscious imperfections. Gossage is a step ahead of me. Are they “failures?” he asks. “Or am I just not prepared for what the world has to offer.” The more I wrestle with A Dozen Failures the less certain I am about anything. Who knows what is wrong or right? Good or bad? But if I just turn the pages and relax, the book functions exactly as it was meant to. Success!
Acquired from @all.gods.creatures.have.knives during his current fire sale. If you are looking for photobooks, cameras, or whatever, hit him up on IG, eBay or Craigslist.