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“People in the subway, their flesh juxtaposed against the graffiti, the penetrating effect of the strobe light itself, and even the hollow darkness of the tunnels, inspired an aesthetic that goes unnoticed by passengers who are trapped underground, hiding behind masks, and closed off from each other.”
Bruce Davidson
Last year, I saw an exhibition of Davidson’s work, and it struck me as strange that this was the NYC that so many romanticize. Depicted was a gritty, crowded, distinctly urban environment, but one far more unsettling than that existing in, say, a comparable Berlin.
Then again, I have always been appreciative of societies that place greater importance on rules. Japan. Scandinavia. Collective versus egocentric cultures. Not necessarily less exciting, just more comfortable.
Still, I can’t deny the visceral appeal of Davidson’s photographs.
