The Topography of Tears

by William H. Frey II (Foreword), Ann Lauterbach (Foreword), Rose-Lynn Fisher (Photographer)

“When you first view Rose-Lynn Fisher’s photographs, you might think you’re looking down at the world from an airplane, at dunes, skyscrapers or shorelines. In fact, you’re looking at her tears. . . . [There’s] poetry in the idea that our emotional terrain bears visual resemblance to the physical world; that our tears can look like the vistas we see out an airplane window. Fisher’s images are the only remaining trace of these places, which exist during a moment of intense feeling―and then vanish.” ― NPR “[A] delicate, intimate book. . . . In The Topography of Tears photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher shows us a place where language strains to express grief, longing, pride, frustration, joy, the confrontation with something beautiful, the confrontation with an onion.” ― Boston Globe Does a tear shed while chopping onions look different from a tear of happiness? In this powerful collection of images, an award-winning photographer trains her optical microscope and camera on her own tears and those of men, women, and children, released in moments of grief, pain, gratitude, and joy, and captured upon glass slides. These duotone photographs reveal the beauty of recurring patterns in nature and present evocative, crystalline imagery for contemplation. Underscored by poetic captions, they translate the mysterious act of crying into an atlas mapping the structure and magnificence of our interior lives. Rose-Lynn Fisher is an artist and author of the International Photography Award-winning studies Bee and The Topography of Tears . Her photographs are exhibited in galleries, festivals, and museums across the world and have been featured by the Dr. Oz Show , NPR, Smithsonian , Harper’s , New Yorker , Time , Wired , Reader’s Digest , Discover , Brain Pickings , and elsewhere. She received her BFA from Otis Art Institute and lives in Los Angeles.

Genres: Photography, Art, Psychology, Nonfiction, Science

128 pages, Paperback

Published May 2, 2017

Reviews

[Maria Tegtmeier · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a picture book but, read the introduction, forward and explanation on tears. I find that looking at the tears and reading the descriptions of the tears expand my world of compassion. Totally worth the money and time to ponder over the pictures.

[Nadine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book of photographs is fascinating for several reasons. From reading the afterward and introduction you understand the meaningful reasons that lead Rose-Lynn Fisher to photograph tears using an optical microscope at 100X magnification. The Foreward gives fascinating information about tears (tear glands are different in men and women) and its medical importance. The photos are so varied in their abstract beauty in black and white. Some look like frost on an object, some like the photos taken of the land from space and some like the drawing of layouts of archaeological locations. This would be an excellent gift book and could be used in classrooms as writing prompts for what one sees in the photos. I received a copy for review from the LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

[Bunny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Received via Edelweiss in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

MAN, this book is cool........in theory.

It's close-up views of tears. Different kinds of tears. Happy, sad, baby, compassionate. Lots of them.

MAN, do they all kind of look alike after awhile.

I really thought I would like this more. Maybe it's just me.

[Tonya Jakubowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are a few introductions and reviews and a brief summary at the end, but the majority of this book contains microscopic photos of various types of tears. I LOVE looking at anything under a microscope; that said, these slides of various types of tears (grief, joy, remorse, etc.) are not only beautiful but insightful as well. Loved this book!

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book. Mainly photographs with a short essay about tears, a foreword and an afterword. Without knowing they were tears I’d probably think of them as aerial photographs of an unrecognisable place. I love the abstract nature of them.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun browse/picture book.
I love the concept but it turns out not all the pictures were situational or emotional (like onion tears or tears of joy) but kind of random captions/explanations.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not smart about photography but this book kicks ass I think

[Lisa Garnier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book! I actually bought 2 and made a framed photo collection out of the first book! The photos are stunning and thought provoking.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating look at tears at a microscopic level shed for a multitude of occasions, all exceedingly unique.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome!!!

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although not the size of a typical coffee table book, this one certainly qualifies. Set this out, and see discussions begin. The photographs are amazing, who knew tears under a microscope would look like topographic maps? I love this book, it will be a cherished addition to our family room!