“Within every man and
woman a secret is hidden, and as a photographer it is my task to reveal it if I
can. The revelation, if it comes at all, will come in a small fraction of a
second with an unconscious gesture, a gleam of the eye, a brief lifting of the
mask that all humans wear to conceal their innermost selves from the world. In
that fleeting interval of opportunity the photographer must act or lose his
prize.”
-
Yousuf
Karsh
Yousuf
Karsh (1908-2002) is one of the masters of 20th century photography. His body
of work includes portraits of statesmen, artists, musicians, authors,
scientists, and men and women of accomplishment. His extraordinary and unique
portfolio presents the viewer with an intimate and compassionate view of
humanity.
Karsh
was born in what is now Turkey and was sent to live with his uncle, a
photographer, in Canada during the Armenian Genocide at the age of 16. His
uncle saw his great potential from Karsh helping out in his studio and sent him
to apprentice with portrait photographer John Garo in Boston. Karsh’s place in
photographical history was sealed in 1941 when he photographed Winston
Churchill after he had given a speech in Ottawa, Canada.
He
published 15 books of his photographs which also included brief descriptions of
the sessions. Among others, he had photographed “Nelson Mandela, Audrey
Hepburn, Mother Theresa, and Humphrey Bogart.
Karsh
was a master of studio lights and one of his distinctive characteristics was
lighting the subject’s hands separately. He photographed some of the most
celebrated people of his generation. He had a gift for capturing the essence of
his subject in the frame of a portrait. He chose to photograph people “great in
heart, in mind, and in spirit, whether they be famous or humble”, as he so
perfectly put it.
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