See John Szarkowski discussing his craft in photography
Photographer and curator John Szarkowski discussing his craft, from the documentary John Szarkowski: A Life in Photography (1998).
Checkerboard Film Foundation (A Britannica Publishing Partner)
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Checkerboard Film Foundation (A Britannica Publishing Partner)Photographer and curator John Szarkowski discussing the photographs of Eugène Atget, from the documentary Speaking of Art: John Szarkowski on Eugène Atget (2004).
Transcript
[Music in]
JOHN SZARKOWSKI: I taught my students that you can't wait until you've got a great idea, because it's not a great idea until you get into it. Start in on something that you're--you're interested in a little bit or you think you might be interested in, and you explore it. And if it's the right subject for you, it becomes more interesting as you work. And the more you work, the more interesting it becomes. But you can't solve artistic problems in your head and then execute them. In real art you never know what the answer is. You have to work toward it. And finally when you can't go any further, you think that must be the answer.
I don't need to take two. I know that exposure by heart.
[Laughter/music out]
JOHN SZARKOWSKI: I taught my students that you can't wait until you've got a great idea, because it's not a great idea until you get into it. Start in on something that you're--you're interested in a little bit or you think you might be interested in, and you explore it. And if it's the right subject for you, it becomes more interesting as you work. And the more you work, the more interesting it becomes. But you can't solve artistic problems in your head and then execute them. In real art you never know what the answer is. You have to work toward it. And finally when you can't go any further, you think that must be the answer.
I don't need to take two. I know that exposure by heart.
[Laughter/music out]