This haunting collection of photographs reflects the surreal vision of the New York collector W. M. Hunt. The photographs have a common theme - the gaze of the subject is averted, the face obscured or the eyes firmly closed - and range from Andre Breton's self-portrait with eyes closed to Ruth Snyder in the electric chair in 1928 and from Weegee's multi-imaged portrait of Andy Warhol in sunglasses to Robert Mapplethorpe's photographs of the artist Alice Neel with her eyes closed. The pictures present a catalogue of anti-portraiture, characterized at first glance by what its subject conceal, not by what the camera reveals. The continuous plate section, broadly ordered as a portrait of humanity from birth to death, has a commentary by Hunt running through it, in which he offers his own intense and perceptive responses to the images he has gathered over many years, as well as insights into the psychology of collecting.

A haunting compendium of photographs on the compelling theme of the obscured face and averted gaze

About the Author
W. M. Hunt is a renowned photography collector and dealer, and co-founder and director of Hasted Hunt Krauetler photography gallery in New York.

Reviews
'Utterly captivating' - Sunday Telegraph
'A wonderful selection of images ... a great anthology. But combined with the brilliant text that accompanies it we are taken through a maze of ideas that investigates the powerful psychological depths which visual language can reach. ... lovingly curated with great verve and I'm sure will become an instant classic, to be treasured for many years to come' - For London Independent Photography
'Incredible ... tactile and imaginative with depth and emotion' - Hotshoe International
'Put together with exquisite taste ... a seductive text in the form of personal-sounding notes [that] make browsing the book a compelling experience ... This is a book of stillnesses and depths that doesn't takes its readers for fools ... a wonderful book' - The Art Newspaper
'Elegant ... seductive ... an interesting balance of familiar and unexpected pictures contributes to new readings ... the alternation between the historical and the contemporary, and the mix and match are immensly graceful and fun ... The commentaries, all by Hunt, are remarkable' - Photography & Culture



Book Information
ISBN 9780500543955
Author W. M. Hunt
Format Hardback
Page Count 320
Imprint Thames & Hudson Ltd
Publisher Thames & Hudson Ltd
Weight(grams) 2280g