Voyeur [Hardcover]

Charles Melcher (Editor), Steven Diamond (Editor), Luc Sante (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 20, 1999

"Voyeurs are not hard to please. They want to look upon sex, sex parts, the settings of sex. They like their sex hot, cold, sweet, sour. They want it at night and in broad daylight, mysterious and seedy, sun-dappled and wholesome. Fundamentally, they want their pleasures snatched from the vine like stolen fruit. They want in another words to recapture the dizzying shock of sex in those early days when it was still new and dangerous and scary."

--Luc Sante

Throughout the history of the medium, the greatest photographers have also been voyeurs. Gathered in this beautiful volume are 119 of the most suggestive stolen glances ever captured on film. A tour of the erotic world of looking, featuring artist such as:

Atget
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Sophie Calle
Larry Clark
Edgar Degas
Patrick Demarchelier
Elliott Erwitt
Walker Evans
Larry Fink
David Hockney
Izis
Dorothea Lange
Jacques Henri Lartigue
Duane Michals
Susan Meiselas
Cindy Sherman
Edward Steichen
Alfred Stieglitz
Weegee
Garry Winogrand

 

Essay by Luc Sante
Edited by Charles Melcher and Steven Diamond
A Melcher Media Book
Design by Eric Baker

Editorial Reviews

Review

The ideal gift for the person you want to stuff your stocking, this deliciously dirty book details the inherent relationship between voyeurism and photography from the 20s to today. Photographers from Atget to Mario Testino have caught friends, lovers and strangers in all stages of the act. Whether it's teenagers in a rec room or an unexpected flash of girl pie, these beautifully presented images are hotter than a yule log. -- Paper

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

From the Essay
Voyeurs are not hard to please. They want to look upon sex, sex parts,the settings of sex. They like their sex hot, cold, sweet, sour. Theywant it at night and in broad daylight, mysterious and seedy,sun-dappled and wholesome. They like it when celebrities are involved,and when the players are nobodies from nowheresville. Fundamentally,they want their pleasures snatched from the vine like stolen fruit. Theywant, in other words, to recapture the dizzying shock of sex in thoseearly days when it was still new and dangerous and scary.
-Luc Sante

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Harper; 1st edition (October 20, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060195223
• ISBN-13: 978-0060195229
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 9.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,365,729 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and Intense, July 6, 2000

By 

"kmatley" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Voyeur (Hardcover)

Voyeur is a beautiful book filled with top-notch images that that deliver an intensely sexualized look at the world. Often the images derive their power from the rawness of clandestine photography, but to characterize Voyeur as entirely raw or clandestine would be inaccurate. The book explores a range of perspectives. Sometimes the pictures are nothing more than a gentle glance at a stranger in a compromised position, while other images seem to be made by someone enjoying the wildest night of his life. Some of the pictures are dark and shadowy while still others are sharp and precise. Voyeur is a book that can take you from an innocent glimpse of panties to a run-down backroom and leave you enthralled at any point in-between.

There is another aspect to Voyeur. It's a book that combed art history and mixed up sexy pictures from the most renown photographers with paparazzi photos, anonymous snapshots and images made by up-and-coming photographers. From a design, art historical or purely emotive point of view, Voyeur is an A+.

If you expect something Playboy-esque, for under the bed or on the toilet, you'll probably be disappointed. If you think that good photographs can only be made by following the rules printed on Kodak packaging, you'll probably be disappointed. If you find yourself undressing strangers with your eyes, then this is the book you've been waiting for.

32 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I like to watch, December 11, 1999

By 

Harper21 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Voyeur (Hardcover)

This book is a wonderful tribute to the voyeuer in all of us. The images are tantalizing - you feel a little a little naughty every time you turn the page - but it's almost impossible not to.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing compilation, August 13, 2002

By 

Roberto Remes (Mexico City, DF Mexico) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Voyeur (Hardcover)

I really like this work. May be some pictures don't have enough quality but as a whole, this work is amazing. It awakes us the voyeur side of each one, our eye is in every picture.