Joel Meyerowitz and John Pfahl

"In the pantheon of greats there is Robert Frank and there is Atget.", Joel Meyerowitz.
This quote shows us where Meyerowitzs passion lies, and his greatest strength. He is a street photographer from the tradition of people like Atget, Frank and Winogrand.
Undoubtedly, the work that has been seen the most is the 9/11 series. Those were images that needed to be made and he was in the right place at the right time to make them. I'm sure it was very emotional for him. I try to imagine what would have been going through my mind if I had been the one shooting those images. Street work can be challenging. I have dabbled in it over the years and have grown to enjoy it. People like Joel remind me that even though things may seem to get redundant at times, we are really there for those special moments that need to be captured. As many cameras as there are in the world today we need a reason to to keep going. Meyerowitz's work certainly provides motivation.

John Pfahl is best known for his altered landscapes work. There was a book published in the mid 70's but the theme seems to be an ongoing one for him. He sets up many different items in landscapes that in most cases work with the landscape he places them in.
I am left wondering about the context of this work. Is it purely a matter of design for him? What does it mean when he places cables on a beach that seems to anchor a distant outcrop in the ocean, leading the eye using one point perspective. I think it begins to touch on something a bit deeper, but does so in a clever way using minimal elements. Perhaps he is alluding to humanities reliance on technology to sustain itself in a world of awesome natural power. The rock is so massive, with this huge ocean surrounding it, and we are supposed to believe the thin cables are going to keep these forces in check? Seems to require a bit of suspension of disbelief. This of course is the power of his work, the use of minimal elements to provoke deep thinking.