Jan 23, 2013 19:07
11 yrs ago
4 viewers *
French term

"exigence contemporaine"

French to English Art/Literary Photography/Imaging (& Graphic Arts) Description for an art photo exhibit
This is part of a description for a photo exhibit. The full phrase is:

Cette exigence contemporaine oriente et amplifie des créations fixes et fluides

The literal translation of contemporary requirement/demand doesn't seem to make sense.

It is referring back to this previous paragraph:

Mais la présence humaine s’atténue par la suite. L’artiste ne raconte pas quelques anecdotes de sa vie sur d’autres continents ; elle expérimente une traversée où les reflets du réel s’affranchissent de leur dimension trop anecdotique. La force de ses compositions restitue – sans jamais la réduire – l’intensité d’un mystère ; un trop plein du monde se vide, se dévide, pour mieux se remplir des tensions entre les formes durables et les évanescences de l’éphémère.

As you can see, we are dealing with richly metaphorical/philosophical language - which is why I think that I am missing something with "exigence contemporaine"

Discussion

Stephanie Ezrol (asker) Jan 24, 2013:
This text certainly is big on the use of ambiguity as ambiguity is leading feature of this type of art photography. If you ever have the curiosity and patience try reading the classic English language work, William Empson's "Seven types of Ambiguity." I don't know if anyone ever tried to translate it into French.
chris collister Jan 24, 2013:
And "exigence" is not necessarily a "requirement", being also a demand or expectation, even standards, as in "exigence morale". One good reason for preferring technical translations is that engineers tend to write in a much more straightfoward style! Cynically speaking, I wonder how much sense this would make to a native French speaker (which I'm not) who is interested in photography (which I am)...
Stephanie Ezrol (asker) Jan 24, 2013:
Thank you. I think it may be contemporaneous (perhaps simply meaing, happening at the same time as) with "la présence humaine s’atténue par la suite" which is the lead idea of the previous paragraph. The new idea is about images that are broken up or bent or diffracted by the light.
Exigence, would then refer to the demanding character of the innovative use of light by the photographer.
I am still thinking about this, so any feedback is more than welcome
chris collister Jan 24, 2013:
Unfortunately French makes no distinction between "contemporaneous" and "contemporary", and it's anybody's guess which the author means. Depending on what was before, the requirement just might be "contemporaneous", but with what?

Proposed translations

+1
4 hrs
Selected

demanding, modern-day paradigm

.

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Note added at 6 heures (2013-01-24 01:38:15 GMT)
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"Exigence" is often used to qualify someone's nature (ex. My girlfriend is "exigeante," fundamentally difficult in essence - as opposed to just on Mondays). The way I see it, the same applies to art in this case.

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Note added at 6 heures (2013-01-24 01:50:14 GMT)
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Larousse dict: exigence - Ce qui est commandé par les circonstances, la nature, la satisfaction des besoins, les lois, la morale, etc. : Les exigences de la profession.

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Note added at 6 heures (2013-01-24 01:54:36 GMT)
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It's the nature of the paradigm that "oriente et amplifie des créations fixes et fluides."

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Note added at 7 heures (2013-01-24 02:10:45 GMT)
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"En philosophie, une exigence morale est un critère de comportement qui répond à une norme sociale ou à un idéal éthique."
Note from asker:
paradigm makes some sense in the context, but are you familir with exigence being use to mean paradigm ?
Peer comment(s):

agree GILLES MEUNIER
8 hrs
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks for your thought provoking input"
+1
2 hrs

modern-day requirement

*
Peer comment(s):

agree philgoddard
18 mins
Thank you, P
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7 hrs

The demands of this contemporary [tension]...

Maybe there's a better word than "tension," depending on your translation of the previous paragraph.
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7 hrs

Contemporary requirement

Imho
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7 hrs
French term (edited): \"exigence contemporaine\"

modern-day necessitation

How about that instead?

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Note added at 7 heures (2013-01-24 03:06:08 GMT)
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(or) modern-day necessitating
Peer comment(s):

neutral Jane F : does the word necessitation exist? it doesn't appear in the 2 dictionaries I consulted
13 hrs
Yes. (def from wiktionary) Necessitation (chiefly philosophy) Necessity, understood as a logical or other philosophical principle, or as a law or force of nature.
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