Thursday, 16 June 2011

August Sander:

I went to an exhibition on the photographer August Sander while I was in Edinburgh. The exhibition was so striking, the way he photographed his subjects was truly amazing. His idea was to create a truthful vision of the German people in the 20th century- he titled each photo with the profession of the subject, rarely including their name, as he was trying to divide the German people into seven main groups; The Farmer, The Skilled Tradesman, The Woman, Classes and Professions, The Artists, The City, and The Last People. He wanted to show everyone, and he really believed he could, in a completely honest way.


girl in fairground caravan & the boxer
three peasants


pastrycook & bricklayer

the wise one, shepherd
unknown & secretary at a radio station


"Nothing is more abhorrent to me than sugary-sweet photography full of pretence, poses, and gimmickry. For this reason, I have allowed myself to tell the truth about our times and people in a sincere manner."

- August Sander

3 comments:

  1. Yes. And that quote pretty much sums up how I feel about Tumblr these days. x

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  2. wow, these are really amazing! they really seem to capture who the people really are, and they're beautiful - i love the tones.

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  3. the first one is truly amazing.

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