Great Photos: 5
Roger Mayne
From a recent visit to the V&A I picked up some quotes from photographer Roger Mayne. Mayne has taken many photos in Southam Street, London W10 - I like his style. He describes himself as a fine artist.
"The two qualities that are really decisive are austerity and tension.... for me tension is not only the very life blood of art, but also that which can make art uncomfortable and disturbing"
"To paraphrase Susan Sontag - the fascination of photography is as a trace of an event that has actually happened"
"One has to start with what photography does which is to take records of things. So I think you take a record and if, for various reasons, everything comes together, then the record will raise itself to a work of art"
I like the sentiments in these quotes, and certainly the last one where the value of a piece of work can take the creator by surprise.
