John Sypal recently sent me a photocopy of this old interview with Garry Winogrand, conducted by Charles Hagen. It was originally published in Afterimage in December 1977, just before Winogrand's 50th birthday, and arguably near the peak of his career. Some of the photos included are recognizable from Public Relations which had just been published, and Stock Photographs, which would come out a few years later. Maybe they looked ok in the original magazine, but here they're severely degraded by multiple copy/scans. So it's probably best to ignore them and just enjoy the text, which is chock full of interesting nuggets. To the best of my knowledge this is not online elsewhere. For serious photo nerds only!
1/18 Update: PDF version available here (Thanks, Ben Helton)
1/18 Update: PDF version available here (Thanks, Ben Helton)
Thanks!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Blake.
ReplyDeleteI am one of those nerds! Many thanks.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea he had worked in Greece. Perhaps I had missed that being mentioned in the books.
ReplyDeleteSo where are those photographs? Is a GW Greece book in the making unbeknownst to all of us. Suddenly out it will pop from the land of Steidl. That would be nice.
Inspirational. It's awe-inspiring how far ahead of everyone else he still is in his thinking. Thank you so much, Blake & John, for this.
ReplyDeleteJustin, I have no idea where the Greek stuff is. I think all his negs have been examined, so presumably someone out there has seen those photos. But it's just speculation at this point.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Blake - this is SO good on so many levels. His insights into the difference between what's interesting when he shoots vs. what's a subsequently interesting photograph, for example, and the pure Winogrand of the Austin story about the supermarket.
ReplyDeleteGlad you and everyone else are enjoying it. There's a lot to take in- - I'd like to see the Greece and beadspread pictures, too.
ReplyDeleteI distinctly remember reading back in the day (pretty sure it was the NY TIMES) a reviewer commenting on Winogrand's trip to Greece, saying that, "Yes, he can make photos that look like Winogrand photos even in Greece."
ReplyDeletehttps://www.google.com/search?q=garry+winogrand+greece+photos&client=firefox-b-1&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiP58r8ne7fAhXn0FQKHcKpC8wQsAR6BAgDEAE&biw=1920&bih=947#imgrc=O7uGHfk4fdg4RM:
Thanks for sharing! Even the caricatures of the photographs are interesting :P
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Blake.
ReplyDeleteMe, me, I'm a serious photo nerd. Especially liked that stuff about not giving a damn about the students, who couldn't be taught anything anyways. I'll incorporate it into the next workshop.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Harry's beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this article. Gary Winogrand is such a classic street photographer and this article gives some insight into who he is and what drives him.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Randall