William Eugene Smith - Master of the Editorial Photo Essay
Hello, photography fans! Last week I talked about the photo essay “Country Doctor” by W. Eugene Smith and today I would like to focus more on his life and photography in general. Smith was described as "perhaps the single most important American photographer in the development of the editorial photo essay." He shot photo projects so large that they cannot be displayed in any museum. Let’s take a closer look at brilliant photographer William Eugene Smith.
William Eugene Smith was born in Kansas in 1918. He was given his first camera at the age of 9 since he wanted to photograph airplanes. By the age of 15 he was already published in local newspapers. Unfortunately his father committed suicide the same year Smith graduated. When the local news twisted the story about his father’s death, it inspired him to start his photojournalist career. This event shaped him and his standards for the rest of his life.
“Available light is any damn light that is available!” – W. Eugene Smith
When he moved to New York, he worked for several magazines such as Life. He was known to be a perfectionist and stubborn. He was even fired from Newsweek because he refused to stop using his 35mm Contax in favor of large-format negatives.
When we talk about his work, it’s very hard to present his pictures in a complete way. He typically shot what we would today call a photo essay: when he was assigned to cover a story, he would bring tens of thousands pictures to support the it. So even though I know it is not possible to cover every event in his life I have picked some assignments that I think will demonstrate his photography.
One of the first assignments Smith took was a photojournalistic profile of Maude E. Callen who was a trained nurse and midwife in South Carolina. Smith photographed her for six weeks during her work taking care of her patients. Deeply moved by her work he wrote:
W. Eugene Smith, ©LIFE Magazine, 1951
“No story could translate justly the life depth of this wonderful, patient, directional woman who is my subject — and I love her, do love her with a respect I hold for almost no one. Humble, I am in the presence of this simple, complex, positive, greatness; on end on in herself appointed rounds beyond paid-for duty.”
After that, American readers actually donated money to build her clinic in South Carolina
Country Doctor
I have already talked about this photo essay in a previous article. If you would like to find out more about this topic, you can also watch the video I posted.
Pittsburgh
In 1954, Smith resigned from Life magazine, mostly because of their restrictions, and joined Magnum Photo Agency as an associate. His next project was actually to photography Pittsburgh for picture editor Stefan Lorant’s pictorial history of the city. The project that was supposed to take three weeks turned into a three-year project with more than 17,000 images. The book was eventually published as Pittsburgh: The Story of an American City and Lorant used 64 images taken by Smith. When looking at his photos you can see contrasts he emphasized: water and land, steel and grass, rich and poor. Smith seemed to be little conflicted when later judging this project. He saw it as a failure, as it was unfinished, but also as the finest set of photographs he had ever produced.
Jazz Loft Project
The Jazz Loft project is a series of recordings and photographs taken by Smith from 1957 to 1965 at a Manhattan loft. It contains approximately 4000 hours of recordings and almost 40,000 photographs. The cataloging and preserving of his work is directed by Sam Stephenson at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University in cooperation with Center for Creative Photography. I will leave the links in description as always, in case you want to find out more.
Let Truth be the Prejudice Jazz musician Thelonious Monk - W. Eugene Smith 1965
©The Heirs of W. Eugene Smith / ©Magnum Photos
Japan and Minamata
In 1971, Smith and his wife Aileen stayed in small fishing village for three years. He helped to uncover the story of Minamata disease, a tragedy cause by mercury poisoning caused by the Chisso factory, which was spoiling water sources with heavy metals, resulting in children being born with disabilities.
The story was published by several magazines and newspapers after Smith and his wife were attacked by Chisso employees and almost did not survive the attack.
“Minamata” was Smith’s last big photo essay. From Japan, he first returned back to New York and soon after that to Arizona to teach at the University of Arizona. However, he suffered several strokes and died in 1978.
If you want to find out more info check out this book"W. Eugene Smith: Shadow and Substance - The Life and Work of an American Photographer": This comprehensive biography takes an in-depth look at the life and work of photojournalist William Eugene Smith, exploring his passion for photography and the significant impact he had on the art form. Readers will gain a deeper understanding of Smith's dedication to capturing the truth, his relentless pursuit of meaningful stories, and his unwavering commitment to social justice. The book not only highlights his accomplishments but also provides a glimpse into the man behind the camera, revealing the complexities and contradictions that made him such an influential figure in the world of photography.