I saw the great Sebastião Salgado in NYC yesterday!

[NY_Dan]

9/17/2014. iPhone photo of Sebastião Salgado at ICP (International Center of Photography) 1133 Avenue Americas, Manhattan, New York City. In the photo Sebastião Salgado (his wife Lèlia Wanick Salgado -- she's holding his hand) is at the lower gallery level of ICP discussing/planning his show (set to open Friday 9/19/2014) with ICP staffers/directors. The show is for his Genesis Project.

For the record Sebastião Salgado is one of, if not my favorite photographer. I'm unable to comprehend the depth of his talent and mastery. As such I was totally surprised to see him by complete happenstance. Going to ICP that day was not my intention. I was merely out taking photos and decided to cruise by to see if I had any interest in the current show. A yeah! The ICP show was not open -- the bookstore was. I was able to peer from the side and see some of the show. The prints are not to be believed -- sublime. They were so wonderful I wanted to throw my camera in the trash -- why bother? 🙂 When I looked over a railing there was Salgado - in person. Amazing! I shot a photo with my Rolleiflex (haven't developed it yet) and the one above with my iPhone 4s.

Before leaving I viewed a copy of Genesis (published by Taschen). What a masterpiece. I would have bought a copy but the thing's gigantic (by the by ICP website has signed copies) and no way could I carry that for the 4 or so hours I had ahead of me walking around NYC.

By the way, Salgado is popular with the ICP staffers manning the front desk -- they had the nicest things to say about him and his wife -- no attitude, friendly, down-to-earth, and more. Evidently Salgado and his wife, when first viewing the statement at the beginning of show, each stopped to silently read it, and when they finished they high-fived. Now that would've been THE shot.

Here's a link to a wonderful YouTube video of Salgado discussing Genesis with Benedikt Taschen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHJWgQxTous

If anyone knows more about Salgado's process and printing -- please share!

 

[kxl]

Nice... My favorite photographer as well.

 

[Villanova]

Very cool! I'm headed to the opening tomorrow. I interned at ICP briefly last summer. It's a fantastic place.

Dan, if you don't already know, some of Salgado's work was on display yesterday at the Aperture Gallery. It was opening night of their NY Times Magazine exhibit. Salgado's contribution was about the Kuwaiti oil fields and their destruction after the 1991 war with Iraq. The photos are phenomenal. Do go if you haven't already!

 

[pschauss]

I showed this post to my wife and she wants me to take her to the show for her birthday. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[lucasjld]

I don't know if his latest bio/book has been published in english (i'm brazilian) already, but might be soon. Literally translating would be something like "From my earth to the Earth". It is just amazing. You can understand how his childhood and all what he went through during the dictatorship in Brazil "built" his mind and heart.

Last year I was amazingly lucky to be invited by a friend of mine to his "lecture" for his main sponsor, big mining company Vale. After that, we received free copies of "Genesis" and he sign each one of them. Such a peaceful guy, very gentle. He was quite surprised as I was the youngest (21) among all those directors and executives. Amazing person.

 

[lucasjld]

Not many people think he would use a canon pancake

 

[35mmdelux]

I went by ICP a few days ago but was in too much of a hurry to visit. oh well..

 

[shortstop]

9/17/2014. iPhone photo of Sebastião Salgado at ICP (International Center of Photography) 1133 Avenue Americas, Manhattan, New York City. In the photo Sebastião Salgado (his wife Lèlia Wanick Salgado -- she's holding his hand) is at the lower gallery level of ICP discussing/planning his show (set to open Friday 9/19/2014) with ICP staffers/directors. The show is for his Genesis Project. For the record Sebastião Salgado is one of, if not my favorite photographer. I'm unable to comprehend the depth of his talent and mastery. As such I was totally surprised to see him by complete happenstance. Going to ICP that day was not my intention. I was merely out taking photos and decided to cruise by to see if I had any interest in the current show. A yeah! The ICP show was not open -- the bookstore was. I was able to peer from the side and see some of the show. The prints are not to be believed -- sublime. They were so wonderful I wanted to throw my camera in the trash -- why bother? 🙂 When I looked over a railing there was Salgado - in person. Amazing! I shot a photo with my Rolleiflex (haven't developed it yet) and the one above with my iPhone 4s. Before leaving I viewed a copy of Genesis (published by Taschen). What a masterpiece. I would have bought a copy but the thing's gigantic (by the by ICP website has signed copies) and no way could I carry that for the 4 or so hours I had ahead of me walking around NYC. By the way, Salgado is popular with the ICP staffers manning the front desk -- they had the nicest things to say about him and his wife -- no attitude, friendly, down-to-earth, and more. Evidently Salgado and his wife, when first viewing the statement at the beginning of show, each stopped to silently read it, and when they finished they high-fived. Now that would've been THE shot. Here's a link to a wonderful YouTube video of Salgado discussing Genesis with Benedikt Taschen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHJWgQxTous If anyone knows more about Salgado's process and printing -- please share!

I saw "Genesis" here in Rome. Wonderful photos, bue I prefer the Salgado of sone years ago.
About the process used by him for the photos of Genesis, can say he shot in digital adding the TriX grain i postproduction. Then he saved the better files printing them with a tool I don't remember the name, on a large film negative. This permits to have an archive of the most important shots. This procedure is the opposite of scanning from a film.

 

[shortstop]

I saw "Genesis" here in Rome. Wonderful photos, bue I prefer the Salgado of sone years ago. About the process used by him for the photos of Genesis, can say he shot in digital adding the TriX grain i postproduction. Then he saved the better files printing them with a tool I don't remember the name, on a large film negative. This permits to have an archive of the most important shots. This procedure is the opposite of scanning from a film.

Here the procedure and why he follow this procedure now. (The text is in italian, but think comprehensible with the aid of google translator).
http://www.fotopadova.org/post/74722319257

 

[kdemas]

I had the chance to speak with Salgado in San Francisco a few years back. Very nice man, enjoyed his talk he gave as well that same evening as well.

 

[Laviolette]

Wonderful! I bought the book Genesis a few months ago...incredible photos. I think I will be planning a short trip to New York this fall to see the exhibition!

 

[pedaes]

I saw the Genesis exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London. Magnificent . I hope the show you get has the 6x4 feet and sometimes larger prints London had.

 

[peter_n]

I don't know if his latest bio/book has been published in english (i'm brazilian) already, but might be soon. Literally translating would be something like "From my earth to the Earth". It is just amazing. You can understand how his childhood and all what he went through during the dictatorship in Brazil "built" his mind and heart.

Yes it is published, and I have a signed copy in the mail to me from the ICP. Very much looking forward to reading it!

 

[raid]

Excellent! he seems to be a cool guy.

 

[ZlatkoBatistich]

There is a small (home?) version, but it seems so tiny when you see it next to the original size.

The standard edition is 9.6 x 14 inches. It's a nice size. I saw it a bookstore recently and it is magnificent. The giant $4k version must be beautiful, but so expensive.

 

[ian_watts]

The larger edition basically looks like the prints. The little version is certainly well printed, but it pales by comparison.

Not really. I've seen the exhibition (when it was in London) and both books. I personally prefer the scale of the printing in the standard edition.

 

[Colin Corneau]

Not many people think he would use a canon pancake

Not too surprising -- it's a very underrated lens. I love what mine does.

 

[charlesholland]

Two days ago I saw the salt of the earth: a documentary by his son and Wim Wenders on his life. A monument: both the film as well as Salgado's work and pathos.

 

[ian_watts]

So if they were exactly the same price you would go for the smaller version?

I admit I am not sure how would store the larger one.

Yes. Partly for the reason in your second sentence but mainly because I prefer to look at photographs on a smaller scale than is the vogue nowadays. I also prefer books that I can physically hold easily rather than balance on a table or some kind of stand. A case in point: I recently bought the Eggleston book From Black and White to Color even though I already have most of the contents of it in the physically larger Chromes, Los Alamos Revisited and Before Color. I bought the first because I rather like the portableness of the smaller book and the scale of the tiny prints in it.