Where I Find Myself: A Lifetime Retrospective

Photographer Meyerowitz’s learned approach to photography and his devotion to his art form are evident throughout this second career retrospective (after 2012’s Taking My Time). The large-format book is both intimate and revealing as Meyerowitz revisits his decades-long career in reverse chronological order, from his 2012 still-life photos of rusted bottles and other objects purchased at flea markets around Tuscany to his 1960s snapshots of New Yorkers on the street. Though his early work was shot in black and white, Meyerowitz became a strong advocate of color photography, and his commentary here reveals his extensive insight into his craft. A side-by-side comparison of a color photo and a monochrome photo of the same bus, taken in New Orleans in 1963, perfectly illustrates his point that the use of color in a photo compels the viewer to “ ‘read’ everything in the frame more carefully.” Over the course of his half-century career, Meyerowitz has shot over 50,000 photographs; the selection here illustrates his range in genre, including landscapes, seascapes, and portraits. There’s also a surreal series of photos documenting Ground Zero in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. More than just a career retrospective, Meyerowitz’s book is a personal celebration of photography as an art form. [em](Mar.) [/em]