In his article The Ontology of the Photographic Image, André Bazin describes the development of photography and cinema. He discusses the relationship between film and reality. It is clear that, as a film theorist/critic, he is not interested in the regular topics when we talk about film theory. His interests lie rather in the photographic image itself.
The photographic image
With the title The Ontology of the Photographic Image, Bazin wants to make us aware of the natural nature of the photographic image (ontology: a part of metaphysics that deals with the origins and relationships of being). According to Bazin, photography is something that stands alone, completely different from all other art forms.
First of all, he states that the origins of the visual arts can be found in the ancient Egyptian ritual of mummification. However, in recent centuries people have been looking for a realistic representation of reality. There was an urge to move from spiritual reality (aesthetic) to a perfect imitation of reality (psychological).
Realism in art
An important moment for the visual arts was the invention of perspective in the 15th century. As a result, over time, artists increasingly emphasized the approach to realism. However, there was still the problem of subjectivity and objectivity, arguing that a work created by human action is actually unreliable. It was an image that the artist had of reality, so it was a subjective work. Bazin then states that photography makes a reproduction of an object without direct human influences, which is therefore completely objective. The photographic image of an object is the perfect representation of that image; the photographic image is the image, forever freed from the limitations of time and space.
Transition to cinema
Bazin then moves from photography to cinema, the logical consequence of photography. He uses the same concepts that he previously applied to photography and then applies them to film. Bazin argues that the myth of Total Cinema (the total reproduction of reality) has existed for a long time. It already existed before the first steps in the development of cinema were taken at the end of the 19th century. Bazin notes that the invention of cinema took longer than necessary, as all the elements were already present and therefore only needed to be put together. People used to have ideas about cinema as a perfect illusion of the world in sound, color and relief. The vision of film as we know it today already existed. Over time, the very first developments of cinema at the end of the 19th century actually only became a reality of that original myth. Even the latest developments only contribute to the original idea of cinema as it was in the past. Bazin even states that cinema has not yet been invented.
In brief
André Bazin therefore believes that the development of photography is the most important event in the history of visual arts, which is why his interests lie in this area.