Andreas Gursky by 
Art Photography by 
Carrie Mae Weems: Kitchen Table Series by 
Dorothea Lange: Words and Pictures by 
JR: Chronicles by 
The Other Side, 1972-1992 by 
Photography at MoMA: 1960 to Now by 
William Eggleston's Guide by 
Walker Evans and the Picture Postcard by 
Water Towers by
Hilla and Bernd Becher's cool, objective photographs of industrial structures have earned them a special position in international photography. Although their work is widely collected by American dealers and institutions and shown in New York galleries, this is the first time that it has been published in book form in the United States.The Bechers' 224 photographs of watertowers comprise a unique, single minded, even obsessive mission. They were taken from as many as 8 angles, over a period of 25 years, with a stylistic approach so consistent that photographs juxtaposed from the 1950s and 1980s suggest a minute to minute account deadpan portraits of unadorned metal, concrete, and wooden structures.Always taken in overcast skier, or in the hazy sunlight of industrial zones, these seemingly artless photographs belle the elaborate process and decisions involved in creating them elevating the camera on scaffolds or ladders, waiting for clouds to block the sun, enlisting the cooperation of plant foreman and security guards to remove all signs of human life from the scene.The Bechers refer to their photographs as "typology" or "typologies of topographies," situated between established categories such as art and photography. Their work is distancing, deliberately unglamorous, departing from the usual style of architectural photography. Almost everything they photograph is eventually demolished.Hilla and Bernd Becher began their collaborative enterprise in 1957, when they did a study of workers' houses in their native Germany. Through the years, their extensive documentation of industrial landscapes has taken them outside of Germany to France, England, Scotland, Wales, Holland, and the United States. The Bechers follow in a distinguished line of German photographers active in the Rhineland, including August Sander, Albert Renger-Patzsch, and Werner Manz, all of whom contributed in different ways to the definition of "objective" photography.
Wolfgang Tillmans by
"Wolfgang Tillmans (b. 1968) is one of the most significant European artists at work today. His informal and apparently spontaneous photographs of gay pride activists, ecowarriors, and clubbers brought him attention at an early age and eventually won him acclaim as a chronicler of his generation." "Tillmans's work spans the genres of landscape, cityscape, portraiture, and still life. He focuses on the overlooked details of life - a bunch of keys in a door, the chaotic sprawl in an open cabinet - and the grand sweep of natural phenomena, including solar eclipses and electrical storms. Packed with more than 2,000 color illustrations, this book features a fascinating interview with curator Mary Horlock in which Tillmans reveals the art historical connections and the common themes that unite his disparate work." "Published to coincide with a major exhibition at Tate Britain, If One Thing Matters, Everything Matters presents the most comprehensive survey of Tillman's work to date. Conceived and designed by the artist, it demonstrates a continually developing vision, constantly embracing new ideas and offering fresh perspectives on the world around us."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
