WFMU Interviews with Photographers - Philip Lorca Dicorcia and others

I've noticed that you always want to have the last word. Can I take it you'll do

so this time?

<i><blockquote> I'm not sure why Jeff thinks I need to get out more

</blockquote> </i><p>

he he he....

It's obvious that you want me to lose my temper with you but instead I'll simply quote from a mail sent to me off-line....

"I told you. AZ has to have the last word..."

If you must, then you must.

Harvey is a very good photographer. He also has intelligent things

to say about photography. I respect is opinions even when I disagree

with them.

Anyone can aquire a list of photographers' names. Owning a list

isn't knowledge. And that person above has not demonstrated here any

sort of real knowledge. All he has demostated is that he has the

ability to poison perfectly good threads, which takes no particular

talent.

Let that person at least have the guts to post his images along with

ours.

<i><blockquote> Anyone can aquire a list of photographers' names.

</blockquote> </i><p>

But many people, like myself have actual knowledge of these photographers, hgaving seen

their photos in shows, while others wear their ignorance proudly as a Stetson while

diesregarding what they're ignorant of. If they want to so that, fine.

Jolly good. So tell us about what you saw. Capsule critiques.

Maybe just random thoughts. Seeing is not enough. If you indeed saw

anything at all. No proof of that yet.

Come, what did you learn at your local museum or art gallery?

After your response I'll tell you and everyone bothering to read this

thread a little secret concerning people who claim to knowing it all

and those who admit to not knowing everything.

What can you share with us about Steve McCurry, Gregory Crewdson,

Philip Lorca Dicorcia, Susan Meiselas, and anyone else you think is

important? Then let's see how your photographs measure up.

Also, it's not a matter of <u>my</u> seeing. It's an issue of someone dismissing other

artists out of hand simply due to his boastful ignorance. As long as you defend that I have

little reason to help you out, Alex. Maybe someone else will.

As I thought: Nothing to say.

I'll save my little secret for a while.

Tell you what, let me refresh this thread for anyone still lurking

out there.

To begin with, all of the photographers mentioned above can be

accessed on the web. So anyone who does not have a gallery handy

nearby can see some of their work on a computer screen and, if

interested, buy their books from Amazon.com.

Since it is bloody late over here (1:23 a.m.) I'm going to say a few

short things about the two photographers that I happen to like best

out of the four mentioned by Matt.

Susan Meiselas is a documentary photographer. Her work on El

Salvador from the 1980s is something that is worth going back to for

political as well as aesthetic reasons. The political reasons are

plain. The US was supporting a brutal totalitarian regime there.

The aesthetic reasons (if they can be correctly called that) are that

as documentary shots these are poignant. I rather not say they are

beautiful because what they show is horrid. Of particular note ought

to be her shots of various massacres. Readers might remember the

murder of the Maryknoll nuns by Salvadorian government troops.

Meiselas was there when the nuns were dug up. There is nothing lurid

about the photographs--the horror is in fact mutted by them being

black and white. Her book El Salvador brings back a lot of political

memories. I have more to say on that but I'll go on.

Meiselas did a study of an S/M club in New York which I found to be

so-so. Why, I don't know. Perhaps because it was so very tame in

the end. Everything artificial, pre-planned. Once the shock wears

off there is little there really, unless you have a particular taste

for S/M.

Her work Carnival Strippers is another story. Excellent documentation

and a story with a lot of complexity. The men who come to see the

strippers are as interesting as the strippers themselves. You are

left with an impression. The strippers come to some small town.

Mostly ordinary workingmen come to see them. Then the stripper troop

departs and heads for some other small town. The overall message I

get from Meiselas's study is that strippers have a kind of magic, a

kind of power that has nothing to do with beauty (many of the

strippers are not beautiful) or nakedness per se. It may not even

the indulgence in a forbidden pleasure. It may have something to do

with disclosure--I may of another existence outside the world of

small towns and dull work.

I move on to Steve McCurry. He has photographed for National

Geographic. He is probably best known for the picture of the Afghan

girl that appeared on NA years ago. It has become something of ikon.

McCurry takes amazingly beautiful color photographs of places where

there is a great deal of misery. What is good about him is that the

beauty comes out of the people and places he photographs. It is not

imposed upon them. He often does capitalize on the exotic in his

work. But all right. I do not find it exploitive or degrading. Much

the opposite. His people have a dignity in front of his camera. He

portraits are outstanding--as are his landscapes. The collection I

liked most were his Afghanistan shots; least the Kuwait work. Kuwait

was shot right after the Gulf War. The burning oil wells were

poignant all right, but I sense the photographer was holding back.

There was nothing to compare to the shots of El Salvador by Meiselas.

This is a very fast write up, probably full of typos. I don't want

to touch on the other photographers yet. I did not know their work

as well as the two I talked about here and, frankly, they did not

interest me. Which is why I wish to reserve judgement. I'll take a

second and third look.

The work of these two photographers was both humbling and inspiring.

Harvey might well be right. Their fame may be fleeting--for whatever

reasons. Then it might not.

And with that I will bit everyone a belated good night at 2:11 a.m..

If this has inspired anyone keeping silence to jump into this

discussion I'll be happy.

Thanks for that WFMU link..........that DiCorcia interview was fantastic. I love his street work with flash.......the part of the interview on that floored me.........was not expecting that scenario he laid out of being the "relunctant photographer"........jeez, who'de a thought!?

Well, I think my place of work just lost my services for the rest of the day ;o)......back to WFMU