Kertesz On Reading

Speaking of books, I didn't know that this book had been reprinted...André Kertész's On Reading is slight, only six and a half by eight and a half inches with fewer than a hundred pages. Pictures he made over many years of readers reading. A minor masterpiece from the genial and charming Hungarian, who must be among the most humane people ever to have taken up a camera.

Jim Newton mentioned it in the Comments to the "Engage" post. He said: "Reading and photography come together in this beautiful little book by André Kertész. Published on 1971, it is available as a reprint. If you are a reader and a photographer this belongs in your library." I'll second that.

Mike
(Thanks to Jim)

Original contents copyright 2017 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site.

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Curt Gerston: "I teach middle school photography, and this is a book I use as an example for thematic shooting (an assignment I give). It's not always easy to explain to a 12-year-old, but when I show them On Reading they get it pretty quickly. It's a wonderful little book."

Martin: "I saw the exhibition of these pictures at the Photographers' Gallery in London, but it works just as well as a book; small images you can hold in your hands."

Rodger Kingston: " I got my copy of André Kertész's On Reading in February 1973 while my wife Carolyn and I were on our wedding trip to NYC. We wandered into the Hallmark Gallery on Fifth Avenue in what turned out to be the last hour of the last day of a large André Kertész show. As luck would have it, who should be there but the master himself. I dashed across the street to a Doubleday Bookshop, and bought a copy of On Reading. He signed the book for us, and sometime after we got home, I wrote to him that meeting him at his exhibition was one of the highlights of our wedding trip.

"Almost nine months later, I received the following letter in reply: 


2 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10011
November 17, 1973

Dear Mr. Kingston:
This reply to your appreciative letter has been so long delayed that you may have thought the written word had by now completely succumbed to the visual image. I am indeed touched by the fact that you feel the Hallmark Gallery exhibit will remain memorable over the years as a part of your wedding trip. You see, that way I know my photographs will have as many happy anniversaries as you and your wife Carolyn! With every good wish for your success as poet and photographer, and my warmest regards to both of you.

Sincerely,
Andre Kertesz 


"A year or two later, Kertész delivered a lecture in Boston. When I approached him during the reception, his eyes lit up; he reached out his hand to me and exclaimed, 'Ah, the bridegroom!'

"In a month we will be married 44 years, and André Kertész was right: his photographs have had many happy anniversaries with Carolyn and me."

Rodolfo Canet adds: "Just let me say in public how touching and delightful I found Mr. Kingston's story. Great way to start my day."

Comments

[Simon Robinson]

Great book. I bought a copy in 2008 while I was working in Edinburgh (Scotland). One lunchtime I was out with my camera and came across a paramedic sat on the kerb reading a book next to hi motorbike. I took a photo and to this day I am still taking photographs of people reading. When I looked back in my archives I discovered that I had always been drawn (subconsciously) to this subject. So far I have published 5 zines of people reading, with more to come in the future - it's such a great subject!

[Trecento]

Ha! I've read that! A very nice book, and it provides a nice slice of his technique across his career, as he went from one kind of technical limitation (early cameras) to another (lots of telephoto lenses).

[Mark Kinsman]

One of my favorite photography books by Kertesz. Highly recommended. I've done my own interpretation of the subject as a small book too. It's a project I keep adding to as the years pass by, with a mix of people using traditional printed and electronic devices while reading.

[Ed G.]

Oh, that's a nice book. It must have been reprinted a few years ago--I bought a copy perhaps three or four years back, I forget where. Not my favorite Kertész, but nothing of his that I have seen is less than excellent.

[David Zivic]

I found the 1971 edition on a FREE book shelf in a Mexican book store and library just a couple of months ago. I have already enjoyed it several times and will enjoy again. Candid street photography with a central theme of people reading and often with lots of books in the shot. There are 63 photos with location and date and the pages are in sequence but the pages are not numbered. Excellent.

[Benjamin Marks]

"A gem . . " - Ben Marks

[Norm Geary]

What do you think of "On Reading" by Steve McCurry?

[Geoff Wittig]

Dang it, Mike. Another book you've made me buy, to add to my already excessive collection. A classic I can't pass by.

It may not be entirely coincidental that Steve McCurry's latest photo book is 'Steve McCurry: On Reading'. On the one hand, it has McCurry's usual vivid colorful compositions and appealing Asian vignettes. On the other hand, it kind of has the feel of mining the archives, and placing his name first in the title makes the 'branding' overt. I love much of McCurry's work, but the recent mini-scandal about image manipulation makes me look at all of his images differently. You can't un-break the glass.

[Sean]

Tod Papageorge, changed Robert Capa's famous words on why your pictures aren't good enough to

"If your pictures are not good enough, you're not reading enough"

I'll get the book

Sean

[Ade]

I bought the reprint a few years ago as a treat to myself (at full retail, from an actual store!). It is one of my favourite photo books, even if it doesn't carry the cachet and heft of the more well-known examples in the genre: Kertesz took some wonderfully quiet, intimate shots of individuals, and occasionally even objects, in commune with their books. There's a charming story in the preface to the newer edition about his habit of distracting autograph hunters while surreptitiously shading in some of the brighter highlights in the original book with a pencil kept on his person for this purpose (they cheerfully note that digital production has obviated the need to supply a soft pencil with the new printing).
It's a great example of a simple, classic work that can be acquired for minimal outlay, and should be ahead of most other intended purchases in the field for that reason alone.

[B. Collinson]

I just had to comment that Rodger Kingston's post is an example of why TOP remains such a delightful stop on my daily sojourns on the Internet. A wonderful story, giving insight into both Kertész and Mr. Kingston. How can you not absolutely love all the comments, stories, anecdotes, and thoughtful opinions that accompany Mike's posts? Thank you!

[Keeps me coming back. :-) --Mike]

[Kenneth Tanaka]

Yes, this is a truly lovely little book! Robert Gurbo, Kertesz's assistant late in his life and now the curator or Kurtesz's estate, gave me a copy as a wonderful thank-you gift some years ago. Completely charming!

Beyond being just relaxing and enjoyable to walk through, "On Reading" is also an excellent example of how to assemble a small but effective thematic collection of images. These were images Kertesz took over 5 decades around the world, not as a manic project but as interest memos. I'll just bet that many TOP readers could mine their image libraries to extract similar monographic material!

I am delighted to see that it's being republished.

----
p.s. Love Roger's story! I hope Robert Gurbo reads it. He'll love it, too.

[Ann]

What a lovely story. Roger Kingston's I mean. Made my day. Thanks.

[Hans Muus]

Just ordered a copy through your link at (with?) Amazon UK. It's temporarily out of stock, but I am in no hurry - in two months, it's going to be a birthday present for my eldest son, who writes book reviews for a living. Needless to say, I am looking forward to having a preview myself... Mike, thank you for bringing it to my attention!