The mono in the chrome
Above/featured: “Interchange (after Harry Callahan).” Downtown Vancouver – 28 Jul 2016 (6D1).
“Color is descriptive. Black and white is interpretive.”– Eliott Erwitt
“I work in color sometimes, but I guess the images I most connect to, historically speaking, are in black and white. I see more in black and white – I like the abstraction of it.”
– Mary Ellen Mark
For me, the pull towards photography has always been about images in colour and landscape format to highlight a location, illuminate a historical event, or to feature a person who touched many lives. Thinking about and making images either square, in monochrome, or both have provided useful challenges to push the working dynamics of creativity. I hope the following images will get the viewer to ask if there’s more than what’s presented and to get possible answers on their own.
Berlin, Germany
“Der Rufer (The Caller)”, by Gerhard Marcks. The sculpture’s position in West Berlin’s Tiergarten faces east towards East Berlin – 13 Nov 2016 (6D1).
Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin – 12 Oct 2017 (6D1).
Cape Town, South Africa
Going past District Six on bus or by foot, it’s difficult not to be haunted by the ghosts and victims of apartheid. Cape Town – 14 Oct 2012 (450D).
Cologne, Germany
Stencil by kurznachzehn, on Venloer Strasse in Köln-Ehrenfeld – 24 May 2016.
Dessau, Germany
Bauhaus Dessau (1925-1932), a modern blend of steel and glass – 28 Oct 2016 (6D1).
Frankfurt, Germany
“Humans as living data receptacles” – Flughafen FRA/Frankfurt Airport, 4 Jun 2018 (X70).
Hamburg, Germany
Hamburg’s Kontorhausviertel, UNESCO World Heritage Site: labelled are two key buildings in the city’s quarter – 3 Dec 2015 (6D1).
Leipzig, Germany
Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz station, Leipzig City Tunnel – 4 Dec 2014 (6D1).
Prague, Czech Republic
“Downstream at StaromÄ›stská”. Prague Metro A – 8 Nov 2016 (6D1).
Salzburg, Austria
“Sky-space” by James Turrell – next to Museum der Moderne Salzburg, 23 May 2018 (X70).
Seattle, USA
“Sail and fly”. Puget Sound (Salish Sea) from Bremerton to Seattle – 6 Jan 2015 (6D1).
“How meta: the selfie slouch”. Near Seattle Center – 10 Oct 2016 (6D1).
“Saturday morning”. West Thomas Street Overpass in Seattle’s Lower Queen Anne – 9 Dec 2017 (6D1).
Sydney, Australia
Ken “Bluey” Curran, OAM JP. Martin Place in Sydney’s CBD – ANZAC Day 2013 (450D).
Vancouver, Canada
“No entry”. UBC Nitobe Memorial Garden – 22 Aug 2019 (X70).
“The three wise”. Downtown Vancouver – 29 Dec 2018 (X70).
Vienna, Austria
Afternoon in the 6 (Mariahilf). Wien, 16 May 2018 (X70).
I made all pictures above with various detectors: Canon EOS450D/XSi (450D), Canon 6D mark 1 (6D1), and Fujifilm X70 (X70); alle Fotoaufnahmen sind mit Wasserzeichen versehen worden. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-fXk. Acknowledgements go to Patti for LAPC no.70 (2 to 8 Nov 2019).
Fotoeins Fotografie 
12 Responses to “The mono in the chrome”
Henry, these are RIDICULOUS (which is a major compliment). So creative. For me I think the slouch selfie is most compelling
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Hi, Tina. I’m glad the images elicited a wonderfully “ridiculous” reaction 😊 Thank you very much for your kind comment. As much as I like the “selfie slouch” because of the random circumstances under which I made that image, my favorites for now are Berlin’s “Alte Nationalgalerie” (look closely!) and Vancouver’s “No entry”.
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Hi, Henry. I was hoping you were going to join us this week! I am astounded at the beauty and range of your monochromes. They are spectacular. I’m so moved by the shot in the library and the selfie slouch made me smile. Your architectural shots are so crisp and clear. This is a wonderful visual feast, Henry. Thank you for posting!
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Hi, Patti. Until you mentioned it, I hadn’t realized there was a wide range of “greys” about which you rightly observed, because I had only considered what was in the images themselves and asked myself if they’d look all right in monochrome. Thank you very much for your kind comment. 😊 I’d also like to clarify that the “Nameless Library” is the name of a sculpture that is a public Holocaust memorial at the centre of Judenplatz square in Vienna. But the young man wearing a kippah in relaxed stance truly makes that image. Thanks again!
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Thanks for your explanation, Henry. And you deserve high praise for your work!
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Great selections, many with noteworthy lines and perspectives. Well done.
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Thanks, John!
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A marvelous gallery, Henry – a feast for the eye! I must agree with Tina – the selfie slouch is just superb!
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The great thing about a visual feast is that one can always go back, “dine” again, and not be afraid it’s too much on the eyes. 😊 Thanks, Ann Christine!
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True 🙂
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Fascinating!
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Thank you!
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