"Obama's People"

The more I think about portraiture and the more portraits I see, the less I understand. Portraiture is a puzzle within puzzles.

For instance, one starts with the premise (from Barthes, as summarized by the NYTimes)  that

any time a subject steps in front of a camera to have his portrait taken, four people show up: who that individual thinks he is, who he wants others to think he is, who the photographer thinks the subject is and whom the photographer will try to make use of to bring about his art.

And it just gets worse from there.

Today's  slideshow feature in the Times, "Obama's People," containing 52 photographs by Nadav Kander of 52 key players in the forthcoming administration, is pure delight.  And while the photographs will also appear in this sunday's Magazine (along with an intelligent, nuanced "editor's letter" by Gerald Marzorati), the online version has a wonderful 4-minute audio, in which Kander and the Magazine's director of photography Kathy Ryan, discuss the setup underlying the project.

The subjects were photographed against a white background. They were asked to bring something that would say something about who they are, or represent them in some way.  Some did, some didn't.

The results are fascinating.  Each is different.  Nuances of gesture and appearance are magnified.

Given nowhere to hide, have the subjects revealed something true to us?  Too easy.

Something is revealed, yes, but what -- that's the question. (Well, it's one of them.)

To my eyes, the photographer's hand is quite visible. The pictures are as much the fruit of Kander's desire as the subjects', if not more. 

Anyway, given the subject matter, the photographs are a must-see even for non-photonerds.  A new Camelot, indeed. Hope -- for better or worse.