Garry Winogrand (American, 1928–1984). New York, ca. 1962. Gelatin silver print. Posthumous print (frame not marked by Winogrand on contact sheet), courtesy The Garry Winogrand Archive, Center for Creative Photography, The University of Arizona
«In the words of Garry Winogrand, subject of the current exhibition bearing his name, "If you didn't take the picture, you weren't there." Today, when most people hear a bizarre story, they want to have some sort of evidence, like a photograph. They want to see whatever happened with their own eyes. Winogrand upends this scenario. Instead, he simply provides the proof, and denies the audience the story behind it.»
In Winogrand's view of the world, back stories are irrelevant. What mattered most to Winogrand was capturing a good photograph. What makes a photograph good is if it documents the rhythms of life and finds universal moments in the personal.
Winogrand's photographs are particularly compelling because they show his world in its most natural state and rawest form. He captures unique, fleeting moments in time that encapsulate different levels of society. He does this without judgment, and he treats each subject with equal adeptness, whether it be a sophisticated couple dancing or a group of teenagers at a music festival.
Although his photographs elude total comprehension, through his lens we are invited to expand our imaginations and engage intimately with his subjects. As the viewers, we become the ones who can conjure up the details and fill in the gaps. Perhaps this is why Winogrand took photographs—to understand what was happening in the world around him and to share his world with us.
Ann (American, b. 1998). Before the Show, 2014
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