Photobooks of 2023: Ed Templeton
There have been so many great books published this year I have not had a chance to get or even see up close yet. For instance Nick Waplington’s Comprehensive I have not seen yet but it looks right up my alley. So this list is composed of books I have physically collected over this year mildly ranked. (As opposed to rigorously ranked.) I believe that looking at pictures about humans, both old and new, can help expand our collective empathy and highlight our commonalities, hopefully bringing us closer together rather than pulling us apart. You want the opposite of watching Cable News or doom scrolling social media? Dive into some photobooks.
Coming and Going by Jim Goldberg, Mack
A major haymaker from one of my all time favorite photographers? Yes please! It has great photographs collected over a lifetime in art and photography. A personal story bravely told in Jim’s trademark hands-on style. It also includes visitations of past work, all wrapped up into one serious tome to be reckoned with over multiple sittings.
Passing Time by Sage Sohier, Nazraeli Press
Wow. This book is a scorcher. How she is not a household name is beyond me. These photographs collected from her archive were shot between 1979-1985. A master of composition, these photos get me stoked to go out and shoot myself and make me wish I had been born earlier.
Ueno Park by Yuta Fuchikami, Self Published
This book is great and well worth seeking out if you can find copies from the artist himself or a bookseller in Japan. He invests time with people inside the famous Ueno Park in Tokyo, building relationships and making portraits of them, revealing a facet of Tokyo that visitors rarely get to see.
The End Sends Advance Warning by Todd Hido, Nazraeli Press
Another barn-burner of a book from the master of night photography. He has essentially minted his own genre. Moody and atmospheric cranked up to 11. Get it before it inevitably sells out.
Weekend by Shigeru Yamazaki, Sokyusha
Great street photography from Japan from 1974-1977 and 2015-2020.
Dislocations by Alex Webb, Aperture
An expanded edition of a small and rare book Webb made in 1998 with the original “misfit” photos plus many more from subsequent years, all of which did not fit into any of his projects over the years. If you are familiar with Webb’s work you will be delighted to see these off-kilter images.
Gallup by Roswell Angier and Susan Hawley, MIT Press
What a cool book. Really cool photos and paintings from Gallup, New Mexico made in the late 70’s and early 80’s along with journal entries.
Juggling is Easy by Peggy Nolan, TBW books
It says 2022 in the colophon, but I think it came out very late in the year, which puts it in a bad spot for remembering when the year end list season comes. But this book should be seen by more people. In my opinion it’s probably the best “shoot your own family” book I have seen. Really captures the home life of teenagers in an authentic way.
Lonely City by Jerry Hsu, Friend Editions
All these books I have listed so far are relatively serious. Luckily, Jerry has not forgotten how to laugh and his sharp eye for the absurdities of daily life will have you rolling.
Minor Mysteries by Hans van der Meer, FW: Books
A sneaky book I got early in 2023 and nearly forgot about. Street photography in the classic sense shot in Hungary from 1983.
You Will Look To The Mountains by Anne Rearick, Deadbeat Club
A time capsule style body of work from time spent with an Appalachian family over 30 years ago. A Touching and frank look at this family's day to day life.
Teens Unpublished by Joseph Szabo, Amusement Parking
A box of collected postcards publishing a series of unpublished photographs from Joseph Szabo’s famous work documenting Teenagers.
Private Scenes by Masahisa Fukase, Atelier EXB
This is a collection of the entire Private Scenes photographic series that was begun in the late 1980's. Such an interesting and playful approach to self portraiture.
Images:
top - The End Sends Advance Warning by Todd Hido, Nazraeli Press
below - You Will Look To The Mountains by Anne Rearick, Deadbeat Club
