Light & Shadow: The Photographs of Claire Yaffa - Hardcover

Yaffa, Claire

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0893817791 ISBN 13: 9780893817794

Publisher: Aperture, 1899

Synopsis

Light & Shadow is a personal meditation by Claire Yaffa on the subtleties of photographic vision. In this monograph, Yaffa, an artist previously known for her documentary work on child abuse, homelessness, and children with AIDS, bridges the gap between the seemingly disparate territories of photojournalism and artistic statement. The connective tissue linking the abstractions presented in this volume and her previous work are similar themes of the fragility of life and perception.

"Often I find it difficult to summon the real me." says Yaffa, "I only know that I am there somewhere, and that I mustn't disappear. While the exposures are taking place I am far away, in another world it seems."

In these quiet moments of introspection, details such as the trace of stippled light on an obscured nude torso or the finely etched veins of a palm frond lead both photographer and viewer to consider the fluctuating boundaries between darkness and epiphany. Jeffrey Beam's clear, imagistic poems are woven throughout these pages, likewise drawing inspiration from botanical forms and allowing for moments of rich contemplation. Gordon Parks, in his introduction to Claire Yaffa's work, praises the artist for her ability to explore the ineffable worlds of shadow and light that challenge photographer and painter alike.

About this title

About the Author

Claire Yaffa is a noted freelance photographer who works for the New York Times. Her photographs have been published with Condé Nast and Gannett papers, among others. Her photographs portraying child abuse, the homeless, children with AIDS, and the aging population have appeared as a part of television documentary reports on NBC, ABC, and PBS. She has published two monographs of her reportage work, Reaching Out and A Dying Child is Born: The Story of Tracy. The recipient of the 1995 Westchester Arts Council award, her work has been exhibited throughout the United States, including the Hudson River Museum, the International Center of Photography, Sarah Lawrence College, the White Plains Museum Gallery, and the United Nations.

Gordon Parks began his career in photography working for the Farm Security Administration and has continued as an esteemed photojournalist ever since--documenting the civil rights movement, exploring issues surrounding crime, poverty, and discrimination worldwide, as well as producing portrait studies of many notables. His recent art combines painting and photography in a reflective studies of form and color. Parks is the author of many works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Now eighty-four, he lives and works in New York City.

Jeffrey Beam lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He has published widely in small magazines and anthologies, including: the Harvard Gay and Lesbian Review, Black Men/White Men, The Worcester Review, Dreamworks, and Yellow Silk. Additionally, Beam is the author of eight books of poems. His volume entitled Midwinter Fires was nominated for a 1991-2 Pushcart Prize.

Edition details

• Publisher: Aperture
• Publication date: 1899
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0893817791
• ISBN 13: 9780893817794
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 63