Picturing New York

Picturing New York. Photographs from the Museum of Modern Art.

I have just checked out this book which I found at the local library. It provides an interesting history of photos in a place which has been heavily photographed for most of photographys history! The emphasis is on the MOMA, which has supported photography for many years, and includes work by 'famous' photographers, and also a few news photos and unknown photographer shots. I found it to be really enjoyable to look at. There are a couple of beautiful Alfred Stieglitz photos (Flatiron Building, 1903 in particular) - I quite like the soft focus and dreamy character. The early shots of 'skyscrapers' are great, and I also really liked some of the clever cropping and unusual lenses used in the 1920s (eg Bernice Abbott and Ralph Steiner). A real minimalist photo that I liked (particularly in it's B&W nature and strong geometric design) is Charles Sheeler 'United Nations Secretariat, 1951. The range of subjects is incredibly diverse, the 1940s section in particular - from shopfronts, to subway portraits (Walker Evans), abstract unusual views (Lisette Model, Times Square, 1940), blurred lights & distorted focus & double exposures, studio portraits (Irving Penn), and a couple of real comedy shots - such as Helen Levitt (New York. c. 1945 - a shot of a woman bending over with her hed in her childs pram, the child is grinning hysterically!). Also Weegee's 'the critic', 1943 is a classic comedy shot of three women, two dressed quite smartly with a third caught looking on with a look of criticism - fabulous capture! The range of photographs seem to capture every aspect of life in the city, and the photographers whos names we (mostly) now know very well appear to have grasped something of the soul of the city. A few more favourites: Lee Friedlander, 'New York City, 1966' - a street photo of a womans head from behind (in fur) with the shadow of a man on the top - it looks like the man is wearing her head as a hat!! This is a fun book and I'm really glad I picked it up for a look.

Published by the Museum of Modern Art
ISBN: 978-0-87070-763-6