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Review by Jack Foley |
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THE events of September 11, 2001, continue to maintain a presence in everyday
life. Not an image, film, or television programme set in and around New York
passes without some form of reminder - whether it be post-September or pre.
The image of the Twin Towers has entered the modern psyche.
And while the search for the perpetrators continues and life in America (and
the world) attempts to get back to normal, the reminders of that historic
day continue to bombard us, almost as mercilessly as the news footage taken
of the attack itself.
Countless theories, documentaries and books have appeared on the subject -
yet it is little wonder. Man's morbid fascination with death and destruction
is, quite possibly, part of the driving force behind his insatiable quest
to see the worst in everything.
September 11, more than any other attrocity in recent history, changed a world
and a people. People say that they remember exactly where they were on the
day that Kennedy was assassinated, or that Pearl Harbor was bombed, or even
when Princess Diana was killed in a car crash. Yet even these tragedies become
dwarfed by the scale of the attrocities in America (in both NY and Washington)
on that fateful day.
I have written before on this site of how I have visited New York post-September
and stood at the spot where the Twin Towers once occupied. It moved me almost
to tears and will remain with me forever.
Of the many books on sale chronicling the events of the day, Reuters September
11 is a very stark reminder, as is New York, September 11 by Magnum photographers,
which I review here.
The book contains many startling images from the day - of the attack itself
and its aftermath, when a nation struggled to come to terms with what had
happened and pulled together in great adversity. It pays tribute - both pictorally
and verbally - to the tremendous acts of courage and bravery which took place
in the hours and days after the attrocity; while mourning the loss of those
who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
Each photographer whose work is depicted was working or living in the Big
Apple at the time, and each gives a poignant, heartfelt and honest insight
into what it was like being there on the day. The chapters themselves speak
for the types of feeling contained within - from the 'On 52nd Street' section,
to 'Uncertain and Afraid', 'Waves of Anger and Fear' and 'The Unmentionable
Odour of Death'.
Each page contains images which have to be seen to be believed - some of which,
such as the work of Thomas Hoepker - have become infamous.
And then, rounding it off, is a collection of images of the Twin Towers in
all their former glory, taken from close-up, above and below and from different
parts of New York. For anyone who loves New York, the book is a heartfelt,
poignant and gutsy reminder of an event the world will never forget.
RELATED STORIES: The shots that changed the world. Exhibition review.
Click here...
Underexposed. Exhibition. Click here...
