Text by Margit Erb, Pauline Vermare, Motoyuki Shibata.
"The very best of Saul Leiter's work comes together as an almost novel-like stream of images, interspersed with poetic quotes by the man himself. I have never seen his work so delicately and thoughtfully presented." –Todd Hido, Photo-eye
Photography lovers the world over are now embracing Saul Leiter, who has enjoyed a remarkable revival since fading into relative obscurity in the 1980s. In this gorgeously produced volume—the Japanese edition of which was selected by photographer Todd Hido as one of Photo-eye online bookstore's Best Books of 2017—some 200 works, from early street photographs and images for advertising to nudes and paintings, cover Leiter's career from the 1940s onward. These are accompanied by quotations from the artist himself that express his singular worldview.
Saul Leiter was born in Pittsburgh in 1923. He pioneered a painterly approach to color photography in the 1940s and produced covers for fashion magazines such as Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, before largely withdrawing from public attention in the 1980s. The publication of his first collection, Early Color, by Steidl in 2006, inspired an avid "rediscovery" that has since led to worldwide exhibitions and the release of a documentary, In No Great Hurry: 13 Lessons in Life with Saul Leiter (2014). He died in New York in 2013.
Featured image is reproduced from 'Saul Leiter: All about Saul Leiter.'
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
Globe and Mail
Elliptical images and his own quotes highlight the artist dubbed “Zenmaster of street photography”and his poetic manipulation of light, saturation and colour.
"In the spring of 2009, Saul Leiter and I unearthed a large black portfolio from under a heap of items in his bedroom. We gently laid the creaky old case on the bed and Saul opened it, revealing a number of watercolors he'd painted on tissue. The paintings were abstract but boldly took on impressions of windows, landscapes, and planetary outbursts. The paper was Japanese tissue and therefore translucent and fragile. As Saul held up each sheet, the room's soft light illuminated the textured paper; the painted hues changed each time the light hit, and the dabs and strokes of paint turned three-dimensional. The lightweight pages, caught by a slight draft, lifted away from us as if with the desire to float upward. For me this magical discovery was like stumbling into a painted paradise. I was elated and in awe. For Saul it was more like being reacquainted with old friends." —Margit Erb, from All about Saul Leiter, new from RM & Seigensha. continue to blog
Originally shot for Harper's Bazaar, "Carmen" (c. 1960) is reproduced from All about Saul Leiter, one of our staff favorite Holiday Gift Books for Photography Lovers 2018. A beautifully produced and finely edited collection of Leiter's street photographs, commercial photography, nudes and paintings, this volume presents a perfect blend of Leiter's work, as noted by Todd Hido in PhotoEye: "The very best of Saul Leiter's work comes together as an almost novel-like stream of images, interspersed with poetic quotes by the man himself. I have never seen his work so delicately and thoughtfully presented." continue to blog
"I've never been overwhelmed with a desire to become famous," painter and photographer Saul Leiter once said. "It's not that I didn't want to have my work appreciated, but for some reason—maybe it's because my father disapproved of almost everything I did—in some secret place in my being was a desire to avoid success." It took seventy years, but Leiter's subconscious desire for obscurity has been blown to smithereens. "Taxi" (1957) is reproduced from All about Saul Leiter, the subtle but thorough new overview from RM & Seigensha. continue to blog
FORMAT: Pbk, 6 x 8.5 in. / 312 pgs / 230 color. LIST PRICE: U.S. $29.95 LIST PRICE: CANADA $39.95 ISBN: 9788417047498 PUBLISHER: RM/Seigensha AVAILABLE: 8/28/2018 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Out of stock indefinitely AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: NA ONLY
Published by RM/Seigensha. Text by Margit Erb, Pauline Vermare, Motoyuki Shibata.
"The very best of Saul Leiter's work comes together as an almost novel-like stream of images, interspersed with poetic quotes by the man himself. I have never seen his work so delicately and thoughtfully presented." –Todd Hido, Photo-eye
Photography lovers the world over are now embracing Saul Leiter, who has enjoyed a remarkable revival since fading into relative obscurity in the 1980s. In this gorgeously produced volume—the Japanese edition of which was selected by photographer Todd Hido as one of Photo-eye online bookstore's Best Books of 2017—some 200 works, from early street photographs and images for advertising to nudes and paintings, cover Leiter's career from the 1940s onward. These are accompanied by quotations from the artist himself that express his singular worldview.
Saul Leiter was born in Pittsburgh in 1923. He pioneered a painterly approach to color photography in the 1940s and produced covers for fashion magazines such as Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, before largely withdrawing from public attention in the 1980s. The publication of his first collection, Early Color, by Steidl in 2006, inspired an avid "rediscovery" that has since led to worldwide exhibitions and the release of a documentary,
In No Great Hurry: 13 Lessons in Life with Saul Leiter (2014). He died in New York in 2013.
