Garry Winogrand: Public Relations

by Garry Winogrand (Photographer), Garry Winnogrand, Tod Papageorge

[What Winogrand] has given us in these photographs is a unilateral report of how we behaved under pressure during a time of costumes and causes, and of how extravagantly, outrageously and continuously we displayed what we wanted. --Tod Papageorge
Public Relations is a distillation of a photographic project begun by Garry Winogrand in 1969 when he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to photograph what he called "the effect of media on events." With his characteristic zeal, passion, spontaneity and intensity, Winogrand photographed an array of public events including museum openings, press conferences, sports games, demonstrations, award ceremonies, a birthday party and a moon shot. The photographs depict our emerging dependence on the media as well as how the media changes and sometimes even creates the event itself. First published to accompany a 1977 exhibition at The Museum of Modern Art, New York.

Genres: Photography, Art

112 pages, Hardcover

First published December 31, 1977

About the author

Garry Winogrand (1928-1984) was a street photographer known for his portrayal of America in the mid-20th century. John Szarkowski called him "the central photographer of his generation".

Winogrand was influenced by Walker Evans and Robert Frank and their respective publications American Photographs and The Americans. Henri Cartier-Bresson was another influence although stylistically different. Winogrand was known for his portrayal of American life in the early 1960s. Many of his photographs depict the social issues of his time and in the role of media in shaping attitudes. He roamed the streets of New York with his 35mm Leica camera rapidly taking photographs using a prefocused wide angle lens. His pictures frequently appeared as if they were driven by the energy of the events he was witnessing.

Winogrand's photographs of the Bronx Zoo and the Coney Island Aquarium made up his first book The Animals (1969), a collection of pictures that observes the connections between humans and animals. His book Public Relations (1977) shows press conferences with deer-in-the-headlight writers and politicians, protesters beaten by cops, and museum parties frequented by the self-satisfied cultural glitterati. These photographs capture the evolution of a uniquely 20th and 21st century phenomenon, the event created to be documented. In Stock Photographs (1980), Winogrand published his views of the Fort Worth Fat Stock Show and Rodeo.

At the time of his death there was discovered about 2,500 rolls of undeveloped film, 6,500 rolls of developed but not proofed exposures, and contact sheets made from about 3,000 rolls. The Garry Winogrand Archive at the Center for Creative Photography (CCP) comprises over 20,000 fine and work prints, 20,000 contact sheets, 100,000 negatives and 30,500 35mm colour slides as well as a small group of Polaroid prints and several amateur motion picture films.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

'The media is the message' in photographs...eye opening. I am going to say something I am not quite sure I am saying right: Garry Winogrand (in my opinion) is an existential photographer. His ability to capture the existence (of a time and place) yet tap into the essence (of the universality of the moment) is why I say this.

[Jeff Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best photos here - mostly of protests and demonstrations - are gobsmacking genius. The images of upper class parties and fundraisers have terrific moments, but they're (purposefully?) stultifying when they take up half a book. Great essay by Tod Papageorge.
4.5 stars

[Mai M Ibrahim · Rating 3 out of 5]

كتاب كويس مجمع فيه المصور Garry صور من ١٩٦٩ ل ١٩٧١ بالأبيض والأسود مصورها لمؤتمرات او مظاهرات
كلها ف مجال السياسة
تجميعة حلوة والفكرة مختلفة
هصور كل كتب المصور ده اللي لاقتها ف المكتبة عنه وهنزلها ع قناة "عن الفن" ع اليوتيوب لو حد مهتم 👇
@3nelfn

[Bill Adelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recommend this book of photographs.

[Shameel]

Brilliant.

[Donald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genius.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I still think I prefer Winogrand's street photography.

[Graeme · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up because I read good things about Garry Winogrand in an article about Lee Friedlander's nudes, by Ingrid Sischy. Perhaps Winogrand's later work, when he was not working as a photojournalist, is more interesting and original. These were just records of things that happened. Some of those things were exciting as events, and a few human juxtapositions occurred, but that was the long and short of it.

[Leigh · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found Tod Papageorge's essay to be meandering, and not as interesting as I hoped. His personal recollections of Winogrand were the best; the last couple pages felt needless.

There's a few classic Winogrand images in here, but overall it felt like when a band you like puts together a b-sides album instead of making new work. (The original was published in Winogrand's lifetime.) It didn't feel very cohesive to me.

Happily passed the book on to someone who will enjoy it more than I did.

[Yujia · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite street photographers.