The Present (last copy)
by Paul Graham
Photographs: Paul Graham
Publisher: MACK Books
114 including 13 gatefolds pages
Year: 2012
ISBN: 978-1-907946-18-9
Comments: Hardcover with embossed cover, 24,5 x 30,5 cm
Street photography is perhaps the defining genre of photographic art. Seminal works by Walker Evans, Harry Callahan, Robert Frank and Garry Winogrand display photography’s astonishing dance with life, and its unique role in forming our perceptions of the modern world.
The Present is Paul Graham’s contribution to this legacy. The images in this book come unbidden from the streets of New York, but are not quite what we might expect, for each moment is brought to us with its double – two images taken from the same location, separated only by the briefest fraction of time. We find ourselves in sibling worlds, where a businessman with an eye patch becomes, an instant later, a man with an exaggerated wink; a woman eating a banana walks towards us, and a small focus shift reveals the blind man right behind her.
Although there are flashes of surprise – a woman walks confidently down the street one moment, only to tumble to the ground a second later – for the most part there is little of the drama street photography is addicted to. People arrive and depart this quiet stage, with the smallest shift of time and attention revealing the thread between them. A suited young businessman crosses the road, only to be replaced by his homeless alternate; a woman in a pink t-shirt is engulfed with tears, but seconds later there is a content shopper in her place.
The Present gives us an impression quite different to most street photography where life is frozen rigid. Here we glimpse the continuum: before/after, coming/going, either/or. A ‘present’ that is a fleeting and provisional alignment, with no singularity or definitiveness; a world of shifting awareness and alternate realities, where life twists and spirals in a fraction of a second to another moment, another world, another consciousness.
The Present is the third in Paul Graham’s trilogy of projects on America which began with American Night in 2003 and was followed in 2007 by a shimmer of possibility (winner of the Paris Photo Book Prize 2011 for the most significant photo book of the past 15 years). The Present takes Graham’s reputation as a master of the book form to new heights, employing multiple gatefolds to convey passages of time and the unfolding of urban life.
More books by Paul Graham
-
Films
by Paul Graham
Euro 98 -
Hasselblad Award 2012: 1981 & 2011
by Paul Graham
Euro 165 -
Does Yellow Run Forever?
by Paul Graham
Euro 39 -
Does Yellow Run Forever? (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 49 -
The Whiteness of the Whale
by Paul Graham
Euro 71.50 -
Paris 11-15th November, 2015 (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 35 -
a shimmer of possibility (signed, pre-order)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
End of an Age
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Mother (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
A1 - The Great North Road (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Beyond Caring (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
But Still, It Turns
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Troubled Land (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 65 -
Verdigris / Ambergris (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 104.50
more books tagged »New York« | >> see all
-
First Pictures (signed)
by Joel Sternfeld
Euro 250 -
CARS - New York City. 1974 - 1976
by Langdon Clay
sold out -
New York Waterways
by Susannah Ray
Euro 23 -
Blackout New York (SIGNED - last copy)
by René Burri
sold out -
March (signed)
by Ren Hang
sold out -
Topography of Quiet
by Bastienne Schmidt
sold out
more books tagged »time« | >> see all
-
Time Collapsing (signed + numbered)
by Christine Miess
Euro 88 -
Wolfsburg Diary
by Peter Bialobrzeski
sold out -
Art This Way
by Robert Zahornicky
Euro 40 -
Send me a lullaby
by Emma Phillips
Euro 45 -
Dark Rooms (signed)
by Nigel Shafran
Euro 50 -
The Complete Essays 1973–1991
by Luigi Ghirri
Euro 21
more books tagged »street photography« | >> see all
-
People of London
by Peter Zelewski
sold out -
All About Saul Leiter
by Saul Leiter
sold out -
ON (signed)
by Eamonn Doyle
Euro 350 -
London Youth
by Julian Mährlein
Euro 24 -
Planet Lithuania
by Antanas Sutkus
sold out -
Street Level
by Paul Trevor
Euro 9.50
more books tagged »city « | >> see all
-
Sobre Sao Paulo
by Claudia Jaguaribe
Euro 77 -
Entrevistas
by Claudia Jaguaribe
sold out -
Deeper Shades #04 Vienna (signed - last copies)
by Andreas H. Bitesnich
sold out -
A Grande Seca
by Ronald Ansbach
Euro 33 -
Cakes & Balls (last copies)
by Martin Parr
Euro 48 -
Cakes & Balls (book+print)
by Martin Parr
sold out
more books tagged »American« | >> see all
-
Fire (signed)
by Lucy Helton
Euro 44 -
One Picture Book 83: Witness (signed+print)
by Dan Solomon
Euro 195 -
Le Luxe
by Roe Ethridge
Euro 95 -
One Picture Book 76: Portraits ii (signed + print)
by Leon Borensztein
Euro 89 -
Imperial Courts (signed - last copy)
by Dana Lixenberg
sold out -
Wayward Cognitions
by Ed Templeton
sold out
more books tagged »urban« | >> see all
-
Valparaiso
by Alberto Garcia-Alix
sold out -
Hanon (signed)
by Yoshinori Mizutani
sold out -
In Search of Habitat
by Lars Rolfsted Mortensen
Euro 35 -
Composite (book + signed print)
by Jan Kempenaers
sold out -
Cactoceae
by Claudia Jaguaribe
Euro 28
Random selection from the Virtual bookshelf josefchladek.com
The Present (last copy)
by Paul Graham
Photographs: Paul Graham
Publisher: MACK Books
114 including 13 gatefolds pages
Year: 2012
ISBN: 978-1-907946-18-9
Comments: Hardcover with embossed cover, 24,5 x 30,5 cm
Street photography is perhaps the defining genre of photographic art. Seminal works by Walker Evans, Harry Callahan, Robert Frank and Garry Winogrand display photography’s astonishing dance with life, and its unique role in forming our perceptions of the modern world.
The Present is Paul Graham’s contribution to this legacy. The images in this book come unbidden from the streets of New York, but are not quite what we might expect, for each moment is brought to us with its double – two images taken from the same location, separated only by the briefest fraction of time. We find ourselves in sibling worlds, where a businessman with an eye patch becomes, an instant later, a man with an exaggerated wink; a woman eating a banana walks towards us, and a small focus shift reveals the blind man right behind her.
Although there are flashes of surprise – a woman walks confidently down the street one moment, only to tumble to the ground a second later – for the most part there is little of the drama street photography is addicted to. People arrive and depart this quiet stage, with the smallest shift of time and attention revealing the thread between them. A suited young businessman crosses the road, only to be replaced by his homeless alternate; a woman in a pink t-shirt is engulfed with tears, but seconds later there is a content shopper in her place.
The Present gives us an impression quite different to most street photography where life is frozen rigid. Here we glimpse the continuum: before/after, coming/going, either/or. A ‘present’ that is a fleeting and provisional alignment, with no singularity or definitiveness; a world of shifting awareness and alternate realities, where life twists and spirals in a fraction of a second to another moment, another world, another consciousness.
The Present is the third in Paul Graham’s trilogy of projects on America which began with American Night in 2003 and was followed in 2007 by a shimmer of possibility (winner of the Paris Photo Book Prize 2011 for the most significant photo book of the past 15 years). The Present takes Graham’s reputation as a master of the book form to new heights, employing multiple gatefolds to convey passages of time and the unfolding of urban life.
More books by Paul Graham
-
Films
by Paul Graham
Euro 98 -
Hasselblad Award 2012: 1981 & 2011
by Paul Graham
Euro 165 -
Does Yellow Run Forever?
by Paul Graham
Euro 39 -
Does Yellow Run Forever? (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 49 -
The Whiteness of the Whale
by Paul Graham
Euro 71.50 -
Paris 11-15th November, 2015 (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 35 -
a shimmer of possibility (signed, pre-order)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
End of an Age
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Mother (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
A1 - The Great North Road (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Beyond Caring (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
But Still, It Turns
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Troubled Land (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 65 -
Verdigris / Ambergris (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 104.50
more books tagged »New York« | >> see all
-
First Pictures (signed)
by Joel Sternfeld
Euro 250 -
CARS - New York City. 1974 - 1976
by Langdon Clay
sold out -
New York Waterways
by Susannah Ray
Euro 23 -
Blackout New York (SIGNED - last copy)
by René Burri
sold out -
March (signed)
by Ren Hang
sold out -
Topography of Quiet
by Bastienne Schmidt
sold out
more books tagged »time« | >> see all
-
Time Collapsing (signed + numbered)
by Christine Miess
Euro 88 -
Wolfsburg Diary
by Peter Bialobrzeski
sold out -
Art This Way
by Robert Zahornicky
Euro 40 -
Send me a lullaby
by Emma Phillips
Euro 45 -
Dark Rooms (signed)
by Nigel Shafran
Euro 50 -
The Complete Essays 1973–1991
by Luigi Ghirri
Euro 21
more books tagged »street photography« | >> see all
-
People of London
by Peter Zelewski
sold out -
All About Saul Leiter
by Saul Leiter
sold out -
ON (signed)
by Eamonn Doyle
Euro 350 -
London Youth
by Julian Mährlein
Euro 24 -
Planet Lithuania
by Antanas Sutkus
sold out -
Street Level
by Paul Trevor
Euro 9.50
more books tagged »city « | >> see all
-
Sobre Sao Paulo
by Claudia Jaguaribe
Euro 77 -
Entrevistas
by Claudia Jaguaribe
sold out -
Deeper Shades #04 Vienna (signed - last copies)
by Andreas H. Bitesnich
sold out -
A Grande Seca
by Ronald Ansbach
Euro 33 -
Cakes & Balls (last copies)
by Martin Parr
Euro 48 -
Cakes & Balls (book+print)
by Martin Parr
sold out
more books tagged »American« | >> see all
-
Fire (signed)
by Lucy Helton
Euro 44 -
One Picture Book 83: Witness (signed+print)
by Dan Solomon
Euro 195 -
Le Luxe
by Roe Ethridge
Euro 95 -
One Picture Book 76: Portraits ii (signed + print)
by Leon Borensztein
Euro 89 -
Imperial Courts (signed - last copy)
by Dana Lixenberg
sold out -
Wayward Cognitions
by Ed Templeton
sold out
more books tagged »urban« | >> see all
-
Valparaiso
by Alberto Garcia-Alix
sold out -
Hanon (signed)
by Yoshinori Mizutani
sold out -
In Search of Habitat
by Lars Rolfsted Mortensen
Euro 35 -
Composite (book + signed print)
by Jan Kempenaers
sold out -
Cactoceae
by Claudia Jaguaribe
Euro 28
Random selection from the Virtual bookshelf josefchladek.com
The Present (last copy)
by Paul Graham
Photographs: Paul Graham
Publisher: MACK Books
114 including 13 gatefolds pages
Year: 2012
ISBN: 978-1-907946-18-9
Comments: Hardcover with embossed cover, 24,5 x 30,5 cm
Street photography is perhaps the defining genre of photographic art. Seminal works by Walker Evans, Harry Callahan, Robert Frank and Garry Winogrand display photography’s astonishing dance with life, and its unique role in forming our perceptions of the modern world.
The Present is Paul Graham’s contribution to this legacy. The images in this book come unbidden from the streets of New York, but are not quite what we might expect, for each moment is brought to us with its double – two images taken from the same location, separated only by the briefest fraction of time. We find ourselves in sibling worlds, where a businessman with an eye patch becomes, an instant later, a man with an exaggerated wink; a woman eating a banana walks towards us, and a small focus shift reveals the blind man right behind her.
Although there are flashes of surprise – a woman walks confidently down the street one moment, only to tumble to the ground a second later – for the most part there is little of the drama street photography is addicted to. People arrive and depart this quiet stage, with the smallest shift of time and attention revealing the thread between them. A suited young businessman crosses the road, only to be replaced by his homeless alternate; a woman in a pink t-shirt is engulfed with tears, but seconds later there is a content shopper in her place.
The Present gives us an impression quite different to most street photography where life is frozen rigid. Here we glimpse the continuum: before/after, coming/going, either/or. A ‘present’ that is a fleeting and provisional alignment, with no singularity or definitiveness; a world of shifting awareness and alternate realities, where life twists and spirals in a fraction of a second to another moment, another world, another consciousness.
The Present is the third in Paul Graham’s trilogy of projects on America which began with American Night in 2003 and was followed in 2007 by a shimmer of possibility (winner of the Paris Photo Book Prize 2011 for the most significant photo book of the past 15 years). The Present takes Graham’s reputation as a master of the book form to new heights, employing multiple gatefolds to convey passages of time and the unfolding of urban life.
More books by Paul Graham
-
Films
by Paul Graham
Euro 98 -
Hasselblad Award 2012: 1981 & 2011
by Paul Graham
Euro 165 -
Does Yellow Run Forever?
by Paul Graham
Euro 39 -
Does Yellow Run Forever? (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 49 -
The Whiteness of the Whale
by Paul Graham
Euro 71.50 -
Paris 11-15th November, 2015 (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 35 -
a shimmer of possibility (signed, pre-order)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
End of an Age
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Mother (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
A1 - The Great North Road (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Beyond Caring (signed)
by Paul Graham
sold out -
But Still, It Turns
by Paul Graham
sold out -
Troubled Land (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 65 -
Verdigris / Ambergris (signed)
by Paul Graham
Euro 104.50
more books tagged »New York« | >> see all
-
First Pictures (signed)
by Joel Sternfeld
Euro 250 -
CARS - New York City. 1974 - 1976
by Langdon Clay
sold out -
New York Waterways
by Susannah Ray
Euro 23 -
Blackout New York (SIGNED - last copy)
by René Burri
sold out -
March (signed)
by Ren Hang
sold out -
Topography of Quiet
by Bastienne Schmidt
sold out
more books tagged »time« | >> see all
-
Time Collapsing (signed + numbered)
by Christine Miess
Euro 88 -
Wolfsburg Diary
by Peter Bialobrzeski
sold out -
Art This Way
by Robert Zahornicky
Euro 40 -
Send me a lullaby
by Emma Phillips
Euro 45 -
Dark Rooms (signed)
by Nigel Shafran
Euro 50 -
The Complete Essays 1973–1991
by Luigi Ghirri
Euro 21
more books tagged »street photography« | >> see all
-
People of London
by Peter Zelewski
sold out -
All About Saul Leiter
by Saul Leiter
sold out -
ON (signed)
by Eamonn Doyle
Euro 350 -
London Youth
by Julian Mährlein
Euro 24 -
Planet Lithuania
by Antanas Sutkus
sold out -
Street Level
by Paul Trevor
Euro 9.50
more books tagged »city « | >> see all
-
Sobre Sao Paulo
by Claudia Jaguaribe
Euro 77 -
Entrevistas
by Claudia Jaguaribe
sold out -
Deeper Shades #04 Vienna (signed - last copies)
by Andreas H. Bitesnich
sold out -
A Grande Seca
by Ronald Ansbach
Euro 33 -
Cakes & Balls (last copies)
by Martin Parr
Euro 48 -
Cakes & Balls (book+print)
by Martin Parr
sold out
more books tagged »American« | >> see all
-
Fire (signed)
by Lucy Helton
Euro 44 -
One Picture Book 83: Witness (signed+print)
by Dan Solomon
Euro 195 -
Le Luxe
by Roe Ethridge
Euro 95 -
One Picture Book 76: Portraits ii (signed + print)
by Leon Borensztein
Euro 89 -
Imperial Courts (signed - last copy)
by Dana Lixenberg
sold out -
Wayward Cognitions
by Ed Templeton
sold out
more books tagged »urban« | >> see all
-
Valparaiso
by Alberto Garcia-Alix
sold out -
Hanon (signed)
by Yoshinori Mizutani
sold out -
In Search of Habitat
by Lars Rolfsted Mortensen
Euro 35 -
Composite (book + signed print)
by Jan Kempenaers
sold out -
Cactoceae
by Claudia Jaguaribe
Euro 28
Random selection from the Virtual bookshelf josefchladek.com