Cheap The Last Day of Summer (Book) (Jock Sturges) Price

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Customer Reviews of The Last Day of Summer

Lovely Work
Well crafted photographs of naturalists, mostly in the seemingly obligatory beach milieu. Many of the subjects are living 'the last day of summer' -- that is, the particular halcyon moment of adolescence wherein anything is possible. Yes, they are predominantly nudes, but photographed with respect and compassion. A special few are among the finest portraits I have seen, truely bringing forth the soul of both photographer and subject. My only complaint is that some of the pictures in the book inexplicably cross the fold in the binding, disrupting the image. A slightly smaller format on just one page would have been prefered.

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Superb artist, not quite so superb book
A slightly less than perfect monograph by one of my favorite artists.

Regarding the work itself, i've not seen any work that surpasses, and little enough that matches, the beauty Sturges portrays. His models are not chosen because they are exemplars of some cultural standard of beauty. They are not high-fashion, trendy, or striking in the ways most people are used to seeing.

They are simply ordinary people. The girls are unenhanced, average girls. No different from any other you may know. But therein lies their beauty. Sturges shows them with a warmth and intimacy borne of long aquaintance; capturing the inner beauty present in all (though hidden in most).

His models are comfortable with themselves and their surroundings; and show that comfort in their unashamed attitudes. They look at the camera, as they would look at one another, not hiding or embarrased; just being who they are. He shows them as humans beings, with their friends and families; rather than the iconic or archetypal abstractions that most photographers portray.

The images themselves are exquisite. There is a gradual smoothness to the tones that echoes the bodies of the models themselves. Lighting and contrast reproduce in the sand and water of the beach scenes the skin tones of the models -- so much so that the girls almost seem to meld with their environment. Both seem to glow in the early morning and late afternoon sun.

Unfortunately, my praise for the book is more reserved. The quality of the printing is excellent. Having seen the original prints in several gallery showings, the duotones in the book do a very good job of capturing the feel of the originals.

A few quibbles, however. The arrangement of the photographs in the book are not in the chronological order that Sturges originally intended; so the progression of his models from youth to adulthood is lost. Many of the images are spread across two pages, instead of being printed on one; which is results in a degradation of the quality of the image.

Sturges himself was not happy with the Aperture monographs (_Last Days of Summer_, _Radiant Identities_) for just this reason (as well as some other problems with the Aperture staff); and has re-released most of these images through Scalo.

Unfortunately, there are some images in this book and the other Aperture monograph which are not available in the Scalo release. I would recommend buying the Scalo book, titled _Jock Sturges_, to see the images as the artist intended; and the Aperture books for the additional images.

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More beautiful photography
These are some of the most beautiful photos I have ever seen.

Sturges has an incredible way of capturing his subjects. Not subjects, really, but collaborators, they are the people in front of the camera who help him make pictures.

The scenes with two or more people are the ones that hold my interest most closely. Parent and child, siblings or friends - there is so much more at work when I see the people together. There is contrast, or affection, or the young woman's later life shown in her mother. Some of the subjects themselves seem to evoke both the children they were and the adults that they will become.

I just have to say it again: these are incredibly beautiful pictures.