Black and White

"Victory Kiss at Times Square ", Nov.4, 2008. Photograph by Anthony Almeida.

Usually when someone comes up to you at an at fair and tries to present their work, it's at the least bad timing and at the worst a presumptuous intrusion. The point of a fair is so clearly for dealers to sell work that it's obviously inappropriate. Sometimes, however, someone comes up to you in a nice way - as did Anthony Almeida - who said he enjoyed my blog and gallery and had one picture he thought I might like.

Well, he'd certainly done his homework because this is absolutely a kind of picture I like. It's visceral, engaging, romantic, historic, well composed, and the 8x10 inch print he gave me was sharp as a tack. I asked for further information and got this reply:

Hi James,

This photo was taken at Times Square, on Election Night, Nov. 4, 2008, during the four second interval of "the kiss". At about eleven o'clock, when the crowd realized that Obama was victorious, a roar, like rolling thunder ensued. Soon after, my vantage point allowed me to capture the jubilation of the crowd on the bleachers in the foreground, as well as the historical event unfolding on the jumbotron. After reflecting on the image of the kiss, which lasted only a few seconds, framed by transient bill boards, I somehow felt it had somehow sealed a far reaching event long in the making.

I've been an active photographer and teacher of photography for almost 40 years. I originally studied with Lisette Model; although much of my work is quite diversified, most of it deals with humanistic themes. "Circles of the Heart"is a thirty five year photo essay which celebrates the beauty and diversity reflected by individuals from all cultures. The new spirit of humanism ushered in by Barack Obama's Presidency is, in a sense, a validation of so much of what my work has been striving to achieve.

He shoots and writes from the heart. You've got to love this guy!