Why were William Klein and Lisette Model known for an aggressive style of street photography?

William Klein and Lisette Model were known for an aggressive style of street photography because they confronted their subjects head-on with their cameras.1

This approach was part of a broader postwar movement that challenged the prevailing "straight photography" aesthetic, which had previously emphasized basic camera capabilities and traditional darkroom processes. Instead, Klein, Model, and their contemporaries often utilized unconventional perspectives and produced grainy, high-contrast prints that captured blurry forms in motion. By engaging directly and provocatively with their subjects, these photographers moved away from objective documentation to express a more subjective, critical, and sometimes unsettling view of contemporary culture.12