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KARSH. A Fifty-Year Retrospective. Signed by Yousef Karsh.
The term "iconic" gets tossed around a lot, but that is what this book consists iconic images. Whether you know it or not, Karsh is the photographyer who probably shaped your image of who Hemingway is, who Churchill is, who Einstein is, who Bogart is, and on, and on. The photographic school on display is classic, formal, and dramatic mid-century 20th century photography. It is quite grand in style while still revealing the human being behind the image. Karsh is a great craftsman who brings unabashed enthusiasm for the power of celebrity -- in these two ways, he has probably most influenced the history of photography.
- GenresPhotographyArt
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1983
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 16, 2015
This large and beautifully illustrated book is a great read for any Karsh fan.
He had a difficult start in life. He and his family had a very tough time in Armenia, with persecution from the Turks.....but aged sixteen he eventually got permission to leave, and ended up in Canada living with an uncle, who was a professional photographer. Everything seemed good from then on. He eventually became a talented photographer himself, got happily married, and in time he was able to bring his parents over to live with him.
He comes across as a modest and charming man, who has lived a rather wonderful life, and given his poor start in Armenia, it is cheering to read this.
His portraits are a classic play with light and darkness, and beautifully lit. Close to perfection, but with depth and character. The book consists of mostly of large black and white photographs. Each portrait is accompanied by a write up of Karsh's impressions of his subjects and his experience of photographing them. The chapters are divided into professions - eg artists, musicians, scientists and physicians. Most of his subjects are famous, but not all of them. The book is primarily a book of photographs - the text is very much a secondary issue - but it is autobiographical, and there is enough there to be of interest.
Camus
This sort of classic portraiture is not really my thing, but I'm glad I got the opportunity to read and peruse this book.
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Karsh photographs taken by Père Ubu at flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/michael...
He had a difficult start in life. He and his family had a very tough time in Armenia, with persecution from the Turks.....but aged sixteen he eventually got permission to leave, and ended up in Canada living with an uncle, who was a professional photographer. Everything seemed good from then on. He eventually became a talented photographer himself, got happily married, and in time he was able to bring his parents over to live with him.
He comes across as a modest and charming man, who has lived a rather wonderful life, and given his poor start in Armenia, it is cheering to read this.
His portraits are a classic play with light and darkness, and beautifully lit. Close to perfection, but with depth and character. The book consists of mostly of large black and white photographs. Each portrait is accompanied by a write up of Karsh's impressions of his subjects and his experience of photographing them. The chapters are divided into professions - eg artists, musicians, scientists and physicians. Most of his subjects are famous, but not all of them. The book is primarily a book of photographs - the text is very much a secondary issue - but it is autobiographical, and there is enough there to be of interest.
Camus
This sort of classic portraiture is not really my thing, but I'm glad I got the opportunity to read and peruse this book.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Karsh photographs taken by Père Ubu at flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/michael...
October 2, 2017
I bought this book in London in 1984 when I saw an exhibit of his work at the Tate. Hadn't re-read it in years. These pictures are unbelievable. How a particular photographer can take the same camera, film and subject as anyone else and turn out such unique and spectacular photos with no frills or gimmicks never fails to amaze me.
July 2, 2022
With the exception of the photographer's comment on his picture of Paul Robeson (beautiful photo but the comment made me cringe and reflects Karsh' rose-tinted view of the U.S. rather than an understanding of Robeson's position) this is an amazing book. Reading it means travelling through time. Karsh photographed many prominent figures (his big break was a photo of Winston Churchill) and in his long life had access to a lot of people.
One thing that struck me was the absence of any airbrushing. In this age of photoshopping it was a relief to seen the lines in people's faces, the hair on people's hands, the freckles and sunspots. The humanity, in short. Someone like Sophia Loren is beautifully made up and expertly lit but still human. Norman Mailer just looks like the sad sack he probably was.
Another thing that stood out was how many people smoked. Some pictures could have been printed a tad better in terms of the darkness of the dark parts (the clair-obscur effect needs shades of black and light and some of the pictures are printed too grey to get the full effect), but photos like the one of Humphrey Bogart are still amazing.
One thing that struck me was the absence of any airbrushing. In this age of photoshopping it was a relief to seen the lines in people's faces, the hair on people's hands, the freckles and sunspots. The humanity, in short. Someone like Sophia Loren is beautifully made up and expertly lit but still human. Norman Mailer just looks like the sad sack he probably was.
Another thing that stood out was how many people smoked. Some pictures could have been printed a tad better in terms of the darkness of the dark parts (the clair-obscur effect needs shades of black and light and some of the pictures are printed too grey to get the full effect), but photos like the one of Humphrey Bogart are still amazing.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews