Stepping Through the Ashes [Hardcover]

Eugene Richards (Author), Janine Altongy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2002

Many photographers have recorded the devastation of September 11, but Eugene Richards transcends description to offer instead a way of beginning to come to terms with this tragedy. He says, "the fenced-in sight of the World Trade Center has been largely dealt with as a crime scene, as a 'marvel' of destruction, or as the tourist attraction it is fast becoming. What I see when I stare downtown is an ever-evolving repository for the missing, a focal point for grieving, for remembering, for reflection, for self-examination."

This project is about New York and America during a period of sudden and massive historical, economic, and psychological change. It's about how we feel about September 11, how we feel about our country today, how we feel about those lost in the disaster.

In Stepping Through the Ashes, Richards, like so many of us, digs into the depths of his soul, trying both to work through his own feelings, and to live with the specter of September 11. It is for this reason that Stepping Through the Ashes is not only an extraordinary reflection in the wake of such tragedy, but also another turning point in the remarkable work of Eugene Richards.

These often-metaphorical images are accompanied by interviews with some of the families who lost sons, daughters, husbands, wives, mothers, and fathers on September 11.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A lone fireman stands partway up a mountain of gnarled metal and debris, while nearby smoke wafts up from underneath the pile--it could be the gateway to hell. Award-winning photographer Richards (Americans We, etc.) presents a powerful and evocative collection of images of the aftermath of the World Trade Center collapse: black-and-white photos allow him to use light and shadow to great effect, complemented by dramatic interviews that writer and documentary producer Altongy conducted with survivors and relatives of victims.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Of the many books of photographs that have attempted to capture some aspect of the attacks on 9/11 and their aftermath, few have managed to do so without coming off as exploitative, insensitive, or simply rushed. These two new titles join the short list of exceptions. Here Is New York sprang from Michael Shulan's private reaction on 9/11, when he pasted a photo of the World Trade Center in a SoHo window. The gathering crowd inspired him to put up more photographs, and he and friends made a call for any and all images associated with the day. They hung the photos simply, selling each to raise money for the Children's Aid Society. This book reproduces almost 900 of the exhibit's over 5000 inkjet images (archived online at www.hereisnewyork.org). Page after page of full-color and black-and-white images show the graphics of destruction and the precise details of the city in mourning, framed by images of the towers standing. Many recognizable images gain depth in the company of those that show what many New Yorkers experienced beyond the TV's eye. The now-touring show and this book are, according to Shulan, "partly an impromptu memorial, partly a rescue effort, and partly a testimonial of support...." As such, it is a moving record; for all collections. In the more meditative Stepping Through the Ashes, partners Richards and Altongy study New York after the attacks. Richards's black-and-white portraits and cityscapes alternately express the chaos and stillness of grief. They are complemented by sections of commingled memories from firefighters, police officers, and citizens compiled by Altongy. Since Richards was not in the city on 9/11, this book doesn't have any of the traumatic views present in other books: a welcome respite. Richards's more ethereal images are not essential, but these books have a place with Magnum's New York September 11 and Sterling's homage to firemen, Brotherhood.
Rebecca Miller, "Library Journal"
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 194 pages
• Publisher: Aperture; 1St Edition edition (September 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931788014
• ISBN-13: 978-1931788014
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,781,276 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Moving Photographic Testament to 9/11/01, August 21, 2004

By 

John Kwok (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Stepping Through the Ashes (Hardcover)

"Stepping through the Ashes" may be the most emotionally riveting, least manipulative, collection of photographs of New York City in the immediate aftermath of 9/11/01 published which I've come across. Distinguished documentary photographer Eugene Richards captures the anguish felt by survivors with ample grace and dignity in these photographs made in the weeks immediately after the 9/11 terrorist attack (Richards was photographing in Bosnia on 9/11/01; immediately upon his return, he headed down to the World Trade Center site, and began photographing.). His partner Janine Altongy recorded interviews with the families of those who perished on 9/11; transcribed excerpts from many of these interviews accompany Richards's photographs. Eugene Richards is yet another distinguished member of celebrated photo agency Magnum Photos, which counts the late Henri Cartier-Bresson as one of its founders (Magnum Photos's published collection of 9/11 photos is also as dignified a body of work as Richards's.).