A Maritime Album: 100 Photographs and Their Stories (Hardcover)

~ Mr. John Szarkowski (Author), kamens Richard Benson (Author) "If we consider that Thomas Jefferson never saw a railroad, and that Warren Harding never flew in an airplane, it will help us put those..." (more)
Key Phrases: hull speed, United States, World War, New York Harbor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Though the title is A Maritime Album, this book is less about the sea than about man's perceptions of it, as expressed through photographs. Authors John Szarkowski and Richard Benson have collected 100 photos taken between the years 1859 and 1956, all concerning some aspect of boats, boat building, and maritime life: the exuberance of a boat christening in 1900 and the eerie foreignness of arctic whalers in 1882, for example; shipwrecks and shipbuilders abound, and many of the photographs--those from the 19th century, especially--focus on the skin and bones of the trade, from the rotting shells of abandoned boats to the boilers and propellers of ships in the making.

The camera's subject might have been the sea, but the book is about so much more. Szarkowski, the former director of the photography department at the Museum of Modern Art, has selected each of these photos as much for what they say about humanity's relationship to the sea as for the artistry of the pictures themselves. Richard Benson's commentary, meanwhile, speaks of technology, the futility of war, and the effects of mass production, as well as a wealth of information about maritime life. More than just a coffee-table book, A Maritime Album offers plenty of food for thought about the sea and the place it occupies in our lives and dreams.

Review

A Maritime Album is a book for coffee tables and collectors, a moving testimonial to the exaltation and apprehension of human interaction with the sea. In fishermen's parlance, it's a keeper. -- The New York Times Book Review, W. Jeffrey Bolster

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 246 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press; First Edition edition (November 13, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300073429
• ISBN-13: 978-0300073423
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,205,948 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great coffee table book..., January 26, 1998

By	Mark Friedman (Hampton Roads, Virginia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I own a signed copy of this book, and it sits proudly on my coffee table. I have read it twice already, and each time I learn something more about a specific photograph which I had not realized before. A great collection of images, from the Civil War to imported VWs on the dock in Baltimore, MD.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic imagery, in photos and text., January 22, 2004

By	"yakbak" (Andover, CT United States) - See all my reviews

There is no question that the photographs in this work are wonderful, bringing "old salts" back to their environment and leaving landlubbers in awe.

However, the text, as indicated by fellow reviewers, can be considered a bit obscure if you are looking for cut-and-dry captions. It should be noted that one of the most appealing aspects of the book is that it does not simply apply a caption to an associated photo but rather tells the story behind it, providing details you simply would not be privy to from viewing the picture alone.

This wonderful book has been given as a holiday gift time and again in our family and has provided many a pleasurable moment flipping through the pages.

"Tight Lines!"
~..~..~.. ><((((*>

5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Photographs are wonderful, the text disappointing., February 12, 1999

By A Customer

I bought this book with great anticipation expecting a wonderful book on maritime photography. I am a fan of John Szarkowski and love his earlier work. While the choice of images is superb and the reproduction is wonderful, I was extremely disappointed by the text. Written by Richard Benson, it can only be characterized as bizarre, irrelavent and self indulgent. Opportunities to place the work in an historical or artistic context were often lost to flights of fantasy.