Typology
The systematic classification of types or study of types.
The doctrine or study of types or prefigurative symbols, especially
Oxford English Dictionary
in scriptural literature.
Typology is an act of attribution as opposed to classification, which is simply a process of definition.
Bernd and Hilla Becher’s Water Towers is an example of the use of typologies in photography. The Becher’s took images of water towers and other architectural buildings across Europe and America and grouped them together according to their function, construction, shape etc. this paragraph from the Tate article, helps explain the concept:
To achieve the ‘perfect chain’ described by the Bechers, each photograph was produced following exactly the same setup, using a large-format camera positioned to capture the form from one of three distinct perspectives (as a detail, in the context of its surroundings, or in its entirety) so as to take up the whole frame of the picture. The flat, neutral quality of the prints was achieved by working in shadowless lighting conditions. Working within these parameters allowed the artists to make consistent groups of ‘types’ irrespective of when the images were taken. An initial classification was made according to the function of the architectural structure being photographed. This was then subdivided according to the materials used in the structure. Finally, the structures were grouped according to shared characteristics. Bernd Becher described in an interview in 1959 how ‘you can lay the photos alongside one another and realise what they have in common, what is specific to the basic form of a blast furnace or a cooling tower and what is individual variation’ (quoted in Lange 2007, p.188).
In modern times, tagging does a similar job. This is something I use when downloading my images to make it easier to search for things later on. I definitely use terms that mean something to me and that I will remember, so I feel that typologies says alot about the photographer that is creating the groupings as well as the photograph.
