Hidden Cities: A Photobook

AARON SISKIND
December 4, 1903 – February 8, 1991
BIOGRAPHY
Aaron Siskind was an American photographer whose work focuses on the details of things,
presented as flat surfaces to create a new image independent of the original subject. He was
closely involved with, if not a part of, the abstract expressionist movement, and was close
friends with painters Franz Kline (whose own breakthrough show at the Charles Egan Gallery
occurred in the same period as Siskind’s one-man shows at the same gallery), Mark Rothko, and
Willem de Kooning.
Siskind was born in New York City, growing up on the Lower East Side. Shortly after graduating
from City College, he became a public school English teacher. Siskind was a grade school English
teacher in the New York Public School System for 25 years, and began photography when he
received a camera as a wedding gift and began taking pictures on his honeymoon.
Early in his career Siskind
was a member of the New
York Photo League, where he
produced several significant
socially conscious series of
images in the 1930s, among
them “Harlem Document”.
In the 1940s, Siskind lived
above the Corner Book Shop,
at 102 Fourth Avenue in Manhattan;
he also maintained a
darkroom at this location.
Siskind was born in New York City, growing up on the Lower East Side. Shortly after
graduating from City College, he became a public school English teacher. Siskind was
a grade school English teacher in the New York Public School System for 25 years, and
began photography when he received a camera as a wedding gift and began taking
pictures on his honeymoon.
Early in his career Siskind was a member of the New York Photo League, where he
produced several significant socially conscious series of images in the 1930s, among them
“Harlem Document”.
In the 1940s, Siskind lived above the Corner Book Shop, at 102 Fourth Avenue in
Manhattan; he also maintained a darkroom at this location.
“
Photography is
a way of feeling,
of touching, of
loving. What you
have caught on
film is captured
forever... it
remembers
little things,
long after you
have forgotten
everything.
“
In 1950 Siskind was the first
to obtain the guggenheim
grant met Harry Callahan
when both were teaching at
Black Mountain College in
the summer, where he also
met Robert Rauschenberg
who throughout his life always
kept a particular Siskind
print on his work wall (see
MOMA retrospective 2017).
Later, Callahan persuaded
Siskind to join him as part of
the faculty of the IIT Institute
of Design in Chicago (founded
by László Moholy-Nagy as
the New Bauhaus. In 1971 he
followed Callahan (who had
left in 1961) by his invitation
to teach at the Rhode Island
School of Design, until both
retired in the late 1970s.
Siskind was an influential American
photographer known for his abstract and
expressive photography, particularly in
the realms of documentary and street
photography.
The quote reflects Siskind’s profound
understanding of the emotional and
lasting impact that photography can
have. Siskind believed that throughthe
act of photography, one could not
only capture visual moments but also
convey and evoke deep emotions. He
saw the camera as a tool that allowed
photographers to connect with their
subjects and the world around them on a
profound level.
Siskind’s quote suggests that a
photograph has the ability to preserve
memories and emotions that might
otherwise fade away with time. It implies
that the act of photographing is an act of
love and a means of capturing the essence
of a moment. According to Siskind, even
the smallest details that might be forgotten
by the human mind can be retained
through photography, serving as a lasting
testament to the experiences and emotions
captured in the image.
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