Street Photographers.
Vivian Maier. Born New York City, February 1, 1926 – April 21, 2009.
Vivian Maier was a prolific picture taker working mainly in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Although she took somewhere in the region of 150,00 images she printed few and published none. It was not till 2007 that this body of work was discovered and her talent recognised.
The first two things that struck me about her images where that they were taken from a low angle and the second was that they were all candid and taken from as close a position to the subject as possible. The low angle was explained by a self portrait of her using a Rolleiflex TLR. The subjects in for photographs did not all appear to be willing participants but their obvious resentment makes for some powerful images. The pictures she captured of children, again candid shots, would now be difficult to take.
In these published images is a record of place, work, people, life, and leisure. This is what street photography is all about.
References:
[Accessed: 22nd August 2015].
[Accessed: 22nd August 2015].
Willian Kline. Born New York, April 19, 1928.
Until 2012 I had heard the name William Kline but had seen only small examples of his work. All that changed when I went to the Kline/Moriyama exhibition at Tate Modern and saw his images at full size. On this scale the works took on a physicality that they lacked when seen on the page. By looking at his contacts sheets and editing marks, again at gallery size, I was able to see how different his working methods are compared to Vivian Maier’s. He clearly manipulates his subjects and works with them to get his images and allows his documentary work and his fashion work to cross fertilise each other.
References:
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
[Accessed: 22nd August 2015].
Daido Moriyama. Born 1938 Ikeda, Osaka Prefecture, Japan.
Most of Moyiyama’s subjects clearly know they are having their picture taken even if they are unwilling participants. We have a mixture of candid and planned images, many with an air of menace and foreboding and a dream like quality leading to a surreal feel. Even where young people are included their seems to be little pleasure or joy. I have included two images that use a similar body pose: one of his famous dog and the second of a man.
References:
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
Martin Parr. Born 1952, Epsom.
I have owned Martin’s book, Think of England”, for a couple years now having bought it for another course. It is in itself both an accurate and a surreal look at England. He records us through our pastimes, our dogs, our sun worship, our food, and that we do not not know which way up our flag should be displayed. He has a knack of finding the ridiculous and making it look almost normal. I love the image of the three beauty queens and the photographer. Beautifully grubby.
References:
Parr, M. (2000) Think of England. 6th. Ed. Phaidon Press Ltd.
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
Diane Arbus. Born New York, 14th. March 1923.
Diane Arbus was a photographer who specialised in the avant-garde in general and the ugly and strange in particular. Her pictures challenge the viewer with their starkness; often taken against a plain background and with the subject looking straight out at the viewer.
One of her most famous images is of the twin girls, so similar at first glance but so different when looked at closely. One so bright eyed and confident and the other unselling and fearful.
Her perseverance to obtain the best image is reflected in her Child With Toy Grenade in Central Park. This was the last in a series featuring the child.
Eric Kim quotes her as saying, “It’s important to take bad pictures. It’s the bad ones that have to do with what you’ve never done before. They can make you recognise something you had seen in a way that will make you recognise it when you see it again”.
Good advise indeed!
References:
[Accessed: 24th. August 2015].
[Accessed: 24th. August 2015].
Elliott Erwitt. Born July 26, 1928 Paris.
Erwin is the most humorous of the five photographers I have selected. One cannot but be amused by his dog pictures. Often taken from the level of the dogs eye they give a new slant on the world about us. His other work can in turns be poignant, challenging, and funny. I have shown a mixture below.
References:
References:
[Accessed: 22nd. August 2015].
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