Amateur Photographer - UK (2019-08-23)

66 17 August 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113

Legends

of photography

A

nybodyconsidering

makinga careerin

photojournalism

maythinktheyhave

toseekouta warzoneortrack

downundiscoveredtribesdeep

ina rainforest,butMarkCohen

is livingproofthatsuchan

approachisn’trequired.This

uniquephotographerwasborn

inWilkes-Barre,Pennsylvania,

USA,in 1943 andlivedand

workedthereuntila 2013

movetoPhiladelphia.

Aged 13 hegothisfirst

camera– a small,plasticmodel

Mark

Cohen

• andbegana lifelongpassion
  fortakingpictures.By 1966 he
  hada commercialphotostudio
  andchosetosimplystayinhis
  hometowntopursuehis
  photographicpath.So,what
  makesCohenunique?Aside
  frompursuinga careerina
  townofaround60,000people
  hechosetoshootmuchofhis
  workfromthewaist,rather
  thantheviewfinder.He
  literallyshotfromthehipand
  explained,‘Ifyouhaveyour
  camerauptoyoureye,youcan’t
  keeptrackofwhat’sgoingon.’

Wilkes-Barretowalkandshoot

fora coupleofhours,several

timesa week.Ina 2018

interview,hesaid,‘I wouldtake

three36-exposurerollsand

thendevelopthemandusually

makeabouteight16x20in

printsthatnight.[I’ddothis]

threeorfourtimesa week.’

Cohenkeptthisdisciplined

approachupfordecades,but

it meanthewasdiscarding

around 100 imagespershoot.

Heestimateshehasnever

seenordevelopedbetween

600,000and800,000ofhis

photographs– anastonishing

amountofworktoignore.

Despitea comparativelull

inthepopularityofhispictures

inthe1980s,Cohen’swork

deservedlyholdsa placeamong

greatUSstreetphotographers,

suchasHelenLevitt,Gary

Winogrand,VivianMaierand

WalkerEvans.Perhapshis

greatestlegacywillbethe

sheer,everydaynormalitythat

hisimagesshowviaa close-up

stylethathasoftenbeen

imitatedbyothers,but

neversurpassed.

SteveFaircloughexplainshowMark

Cohenprovessomeofthebeststories

can be found on your doorstep

Alongsidehiswaist-level

shootingapproach,Cohen’s

‘style’is tobeunobtrusive;just

takinga frameandmovingon.

Onoccasion,thisdidn’tgo

downwell– notablyinhis 1969

image‘ManFlinching’,whena

manswunga punchatCohen

inangerathisspacebeing

invaded.Ina 2013interview,

Cohenadmitted,‘Thatkindof

interactiontooka psychological

tollovertheyears.I madea lot

ofniftypicturesbybeingthat

closetopeople.Butaftera

whileI wenttoa widerlens–

28mm,then35mm.NowI’m

at50mm,soI feelverysafe.’

Histalentwasrecognised

quicklywitha Guggenheim

Fellowshipin 1971 anda 1973

exhibitionattheMuseumof

ModernArtinNewYork,when

hewas29.Thiswasa direct

resultofCohentakinga course

underthetutelageofLIFEand

MagnumphotographerKen

Heyman,whoencouraged

himtoshowhiswork.

Throughoutmuchofhis

career,Cohen’smodusoperandi

wastotaketothestreetsof

© MARK COHEN

‘Boyin YellowShirt

Smoking’, 1976

Mark Cohen’s exhibition ‘Just Outside’ is at the Leica Gallery London, 64-66 Duke Street, Mayfair, London W1K 6JD, until 1 September 2019. Visitwww.leicastore-uk.co.uk.