backwards
JAY MAISEL – MASTER OF STREET SHOOTING, COLOR AND LIGHT
A New Yorker and passionate fan of the Big Apple, Jay Maisel (© Jay Maisel) is one of the world’s leading street-style photographers. Among professionals, he enjoys the fame of a leading specialist in the use of color and lighting. The photographer’s unique ability to work with the finest transitions of shades, to reveal the potential of gestures and poses brought him success. This is one of the most “prolific” American authors, who has been shooting for covers of famous magazines and music albums, commercial campaigns, as well as for self-realization for about 50 years.
Maisel is the winner of awards from the American Society of Photographers for the Media, the International Center for Photography and other influential organizations. His portfolio includes photos of Marilyn Monroe and a photo for Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue album (this is the best-selling jazz album on the planet). Continue reading
MATSEY DAKOVICH – TALENTED STREET-PHOTOGRAPHER AND TRAVELER-DOCUMENTIST
I am not a street photographer. I’m just a photographer who sometimes manages to take a good photo on the street
M. Dakovich
Maciej Dakowicz (© Maciej Dakowicz) is a documentary photographer and a master of the truly “street” genre. The Pole, who moved to live in the UK, but did not stay long anywhere, became famous for the provocative and even scandalous series of works by Cardiff after Dark, which he shot in 2009. Photographs published in 2012 as a separate book are an impassive reportage from the streets of English Cardiff, where after sunset young residents of the city have fun in bars and pubs, sometimes completely “losing face”. Alcoholic chronicles of the British fun almost shook the foundations of the Crown and sparked a heated public discussion. In many respects, this is the merit of the author of the pictures – witty, ruthlessly noticing details with his sharp eye, able to build the composition so that the viewer grasps the point at one point. Continue reading
VIVIEN MAYER (© VIVIAN MAIER) – GENIUS OBSERVING REALITY
The story of the American photographer Vivien Maier (© Vivian Maier) is an interesting case of fame that came to the photographer only after death. Nobody saw her carefully assembled archive of almost one hundred thousand negatives, it was discovered by chance, and made a real international sensation.
A detailed and distinctive illustration of the life of American society of the 60s and 70s, funny street plots and surprisingly characteristic portraits do not leave anyone indifferent. In terms of professionalism, ability to approach the model and reveal her personality, Meyer is compared with Robert Frank and Lee Friedlander.
Art lasts forever and works outlive their creators who serve only as “guides” between creativity and the viewer. Unfortunately, the name Mayer became known only after her death, and she did not receive the recognition she deserves. Continue reading