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From the reviews:
A critical survey written and edited by A. D. Coleman that includes duotone reproduction of more than 200 images by Adál Maldonado, Erwin Blumenfeld, Bill Brandt, Brassaï, Robert Delford Brown, Ellen Carey, Paul Diamond, Louis Ducos du Hauron, Allen Dutton, Alexander Gardner, Charles Gatewood, Emmet Gowin, Robert Heinecken, Eikoh Hoseo, Peter Hujar, André Kertesz, Richard Kirstel, Les Krims, Vilem Kriz, Clarence John Laughlin, Michael Martone, Ralph Eugene Meatyeard, Duane Michals, William Mortensen, Eadweard Muybridge, Lucas Samaras, Arthur Tress, Jerry Uelsmann, Max Waldman, Todd Walker, Weegee, Edward Weston, and others.
Winner of the Chicago '78 Certificate of Excellence, for "distinguished achievement in the communicating arts."
"In this book . . . [Coleman] is breaking ground in a very real sense . . . It makes the reader, think, and argue, and it opens a whole new area to investigation."
— Vicki Goldberg, American Photographer
" . . . a demoniacal anthology . . . A. D. Coleman, a brilliant writer, critic, and observer of the photographic scene, produced this work in part with an Art Critic's fellowship from the National Endowment of the Arts in ashington. he has created an anthology of great merit and importance to photographers, scholars, and art historians . . . "
— Jack Manning, New York Times, February 17, 1978
"A virtual Pandora's box . . . a powerful document, a kind of thinking-man's tabloid."
— Gerritt Henry, ARTnews
"The best collection of photography and critical writing to appear in some time. Coleman is not afraid to do the job of a critic; he names, defines and categorizes to promote discussion and understanding of various modes in which photographers work."
— Michael Beard and Ted Hedgpeth, Latent Image
"Recommended for upper-level undergraduate and libraries serving a public interested in contemporary trends in photography."
"The text is revealing and lucid. The book will repulse some readers and fascinate others, but it will bore practically no one."
— New York Daily News
"An important new book . . . that is certain to generate interest and controversy . . . With the publication of The Grotesque in Photography, A. D. Coleman has enchanced his position as one of the most astute observers of the photographic scene."
— Willard Clark, Camera 35
" . . . An incisive slice of contemporary photography."
— Petersen's PhotoGraphic</P>
" . . . un ouvrage formidable!"
— News Reporter (Paris)
From the book:
(Note: The entire text of this book appears in the Photography Criticism CyberArchive, available by subscription.)
. . . My intent in anthologizing and grouping these images has been to establish a groundwork for consideration of the grotesque as a mode of photography. I believe it is particularly pertinent to contemporary photography. In the next chapter I have attempted to indicate its historical antecedents within the medium itself. I have refrained from tracing its origins back into the history of the other graphic arts, on the assumption that such connections can be easily made by the reader. To be sure, the images in this book have parallels elsewhere in the other visual arts, whether in ancient Greek frescoes, illuminated manuscripts, medieval bestiaries, or the works of such masters a Bosch, Breughel, Goya, Tchelitchew, Orozco, and countless others. The impulse from which the grotesque springs is ancient and deep. But rather than establishing "credentials" for such work in photography by belaboring its analogues in other media, I have been concerned with exploring its photographic evolution, variety, and volume.
This book, therefore, should not be considered a definitive study. For various reasons, a considerable amount of imagery central to this mode was unavailable for inclusion in this volume — enough so that I hesitate even to call it comprehensive. Moreover, I have no doubt that there is much relevant work that has been overlooked. Certainly one consequence of this publication will be to acquaint me with the extent of my own ignorance of the field.
From my standpoint, this book is a critical survey — a foundation, a beginning. Certain lines of inquiry merit much further investigation. For example, why have so few women worked extensively in this mode? Why has it been so persistently slighted by critics and historians? What impact is it having on its culture? What are the connections between and influences on these particular artists?
The issues raised by this body of imagery are not only crucial to photography and to contemporary art generally, but reach into psychology, sociology, and history. It is my hope that this initial survey will stimulate others to add their own perceptions and questions to mine.
Publishing information:
The Grotesque in Photography
(New York: Summit Books/Simon & Schuster, 1977). First edition.
ISBN: 0671400169 paper, $10.00.
ISBN: 0671400142 hardbound, $20.00.
Out of print. Published in a hardcover edition of 2500 copies and a softcover edition of 12,500 copies.
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