Teju Cole – ‘Blind Spot’

Teju Cole was born in Michigan, but returned with his family shortly after he was born to Lagos, Nigeria. He went back to America to pursue his college education, and went on to medical school. He dropped out of medical school and began learning about African art history at School of Oriental and African Studies in London. Soon later he went to Columbia University to further enrich his education in art history. Cole released his synthesis of words and images, ‘Blind Spot’, last year, and it was well received. I, personally, really like how he incorporates a small text blurb to complement the photograph. Usually the text gives background on what was going on in the photo, how the place relates to him, or what he thought at that time the photo was taken. I really like his work from ‘Blind Spot’, such as Berlin, Tivoli, and Basel.

Berlin features two people, in which these two people do not notice each other. The one behind may notice the person in front unconsciously, but neither make no move to actively see each other. It is merely a moment in time that is captured by Teju Cole. “Almost all go unseen, and almost none are recorded, unless photography intervenes.”

Tivoli shows a regular bus stop, one that you could see really anywhere. He notes that “meaning comes from the collective tension and balance of these individual elements.” The big picture comes together based on your eyes, not your hands. “An object is used. A thing is seen.”

Basel has a ferris wheel behind a tree’s branches. Cole demonstrates how you do not need to be at the place the picture is taken to hear the sounds at that setting. When looking at Basel, you can already hear the screams from the ferris wheel. Behind these trees is most likely an amusement park, so it is probably very noisy. “With my eyes I begin to hear what I see.”