You know when you buy a present for a friend that you secretly want for yourself? Happens quite often, for me at least. After an hour or two randomly trawling online for present ideas recently, I came up with a true gem.
Have you heard of this guy? Bob Mazzer doesn't seem to be widely recognised, he had his first gallery exhibition only this year. But one of his photos inspired Mark Knopfler to write the Dire Straits song 'Walk of Life', and became the artwork for the single, so he must have had a following for a while.
Have you heard of this guy? Bob Mazzer doesn't seem to be widely recognised, he had his first gallery exhibition only this year. But one of his photos inspired Mark Knopfler to write the Dire Straits song 'Walk of Life', and became the artwork for the single, so he must have had a following for a while.
Mazzer spent the 70s and 80s photographing commuters on the London tube, mostly at night, as he went to and from work as a projectionist in a porn cinema (an unnecessary detail in some ways, but every write up includes it, and I couldn't resist either). As Mazzer describes it, "Coming home late at night, it was like a party and I felt the tube was mine and I was there to take pictures."
I just received the book in the mail and it's a beautiful object. When I turned to the first page, I expected to see the usual third person praise by some gallery curator, art historian or fellow documenter of 70s/80s London. But I was pleased to find that all the text is by Mazzer himself, mostly small notes that reveal a little more about particular photos. His character comes through really nicely in his writing - my impression is of a curious, good humoured fellow who just loves people and images.
I particularly liked the note that went with the above photo:
"If you don't want to be photographed, you must put a bag on your head. If you see someone with a bag on their head, you have to photograph them. These women were part of the army of workers that clean the stations and tunnels when we have all gone home to bed. On no way did I intend to make them figures of fun, but it is funny."
The photos reveal what it is to be a true street photographer. Being there, a lot. Spending time in the realm of strangers, up close, ready to capture moments as they flit past. Being part of what you are photographing. So many serendipitous moments in these shots, that you only get by waiting and watching closely. Add to that a beautiful technique - Leica camera, film, and darkroom.
You can see a selection of Mazzer's photos at the link below (and a whole lot more if you do a Google image search):
This book could be a good companion piece to the book I gave Sean for his birthday this year, Londoners by Craig Taylor, an oral history of the city. Here is the radio talk that made me want to buy that book:
And then there's that Londoners podcast that you mentioned ages ago, Sean. I now can't find it, can you remind me of the link? That's why we need this blog rather than using work email to swap links!
I had a look at the online gallery, I love the images! I could actually smell the distinct odour of the London Underground as I viewed. Here comes another Sean "I was there" anecdote! Sorry, I don't mean to boast or anything, it's just that my appreciation of the photographs is linked directly to memory. It's almost like they come from my memory, in a slightly dreamlike way. I've spent two extended periods in London, 6 months in 1977 when my father was on a Uni sabbatical (we lived in a big terrace house in the then working class suburb of Islington), and then for nearly a year in 1984. So, many journeys on the underground during the very era in which these images were shot. I love London as a city (or at least as it was back then, haven't visited since 1996), and my appreciation was intrinsically linked to the Tube (as it was nicknamed, not sure if anyone calls it that anymore), as I'd explore the city almost at random jumping on and off the underground at different stations, venturing to the surface often not quite knowing what I'd find. I especially loved getting out at Tottenham Court Rd, checking out the dozens of bookshops, and getting back on at Leicester Square. Strangely, I'd sometimes run into people I knew in the pedestrian tunnels of the underground - like guys I went to school with! Mazzer's photos really capture the grimy, kind of down-at-heels atmosphere of the London underground in those days. Might have to get myself a copy of the book. And as for the London podcast, I can't actually find it either. Can't recall what it was called, or even where I heard it! I'll keep looking.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I had never heard of Mazzer, or seen his photographs before, so VM you've really uncovered a wonderful find.
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