Naked City
by Weegee
On This Page
Description
Weegee was among the first to fully realize the camera's unique power to capture split-second drama and exaggerated emotion. But his profound influence on other photographers, most famously on Diane Arbus, derives not only from his sensational subject matter and his use of the blinding, close-up flash, but also from his eagerness to photograph the city at all hours, at all levels: coffee shops at three in the morning, hot summer evenings in the tenements, debutante balls, parties in the show more street, lovers on park benches, the destitute and the lonely. No other photographer has better revealed the non-stop spectacle of life in New York City.Weegee's first book,Naked City (1945), was a runaway success and made him a celebrity who suddenly had assignments fromLife andVogue. By the publication of his second book,Weegee's People (1946), he had cut the wires to his police radio and had begun to photograph the furred and bejeweledgrandes dames at the Metropolitan Opera as well as his beloved street people.Naked Hollywood (1953) andWeegee by Weegee (1961) feature portraits of Marilyn Monroe, Andy Warhol, John F. Kennedy, Nikita Khruschev, and Liberace-many of them viewed through the distorted lens of his Weegee-scope.Regarded as some of the most powerful images of twentieth-century photography, Weegee's work now resides in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
At turns haunting, and at others humorous or heart-breaking, this collection is more of a time-capsule into New York's past, and perhaps even our country's past, than any other work of writing or media that I can think of. Weegee's work was brilliant, and the translation of its power to contemporary readers isn't at all injured by time. Whether you glance through the photographs half-hazardly or sit down to take your time over his work and words (sparse as they may be), you're sure to find something here worth remembering and returning to.
Excellent photography, but poorly presented in this DaCapo edition. Cheap paper's not a good medium for photos.
Gotta mention the delightful set of pix of Frankie Sinatra and some girl in the audience, though. Even on cheap paper they were delightful.
==========
For the record: I've acquired a different edition of the book. It's much better than this one.
Gotta mention the delightful set of pix of Frankie Sinatra and some girl in the audience, though. Even on cheap paper they were delightful.
==========
For the record: I've acquired a different edition of the book. It's much better than this one.
Weegee represents both an early version of photographer as celebrity and the classic crude newshound with the Speed Graphic. Not only a visual reporter, Weegee was a biting social critic and one of the few really good photo humorists in the history of the medium.
The superb gravure illustrations in this first edition represent both the typical and the best of daily newspaper illustration in the years' of the Speed Graphic.
The superb gravure illustrations in this first edition represent both the typical and the best of daily newspaper illustration in the years' of the Speed Graphic.
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Author Information
22+ Works 676 Members
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, Art & Design, General Nonfiction
- DDC/MDS
- 779.997471 — Arts & recreation Photography Photographic images Other subjects History, geography History of North America Northeastern United States New York
- LCC
- F128.5 .F387 — Local History of the United States, Canada and Latin America United States local history New York
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 207
- Popularity
- 157,870
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (4.14)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 9
