I
just got home after a wonderful Sunday afternoon viewing the exhibit “The
Radical Camera: New York's Photo League, 1936-1951” at the Jewish Museum in New York
City. This exhibit highlights the work
of the photographers who were part of the Photo League in Manhattan from 1936
to 1951.
These photographers, mostly
Jewish and first generation Americans were idealistic and commonly believed in
the expressive power of the documentary photograph. Today we would probably equate the
documentary photograph to photojournalism.
The scope of this work takes in the period that spanned the new deal,
reforms of the depression, World War II
and the Cold War.
Most of the
photos centered on the gritty realities of urban life during that time and
poverty. They explore neighborhoods,
street by street, and the people who lived there. The portraits of the people are vivid and
transform your thoughts into what it was like to live in that time.
I was
struck by how real the images were to that time, but also how they related to
how we live today. The camera…then and
today…shows you that moment in time and how it relates to the world at
large. Looking at these photos that were
50 (and 60) years old, I was astounded how the subject and style were so timely
to today’s world. I highly recommend
this exhibit….
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