Anarchy, Protest, & Rebellion & the Counterculture That Changed AmericaPhotography by: Fred W. McDarrah
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
*A book highly suggested for those readers interested in the cultural and political scenes in and around New York City during the mid-1960's through the early-1970's. Also highly suggested for readers who enjoy looking at old photos more than actually reading - this is after all, as the cover states, a photographic memoir. The majority of the hundreds of stunning black & white photographs contained in this amazing 375-page collection consist of images shot in and around New York City - the city, not so antiseptic in those days, providing the perfect backdrop of urban grit and grime to unforgettable scenes of political challenge and social change.
From the back cover of the book:
Culled from an archive of over 5,000 photographs, "Anarchy, Protest & Rebellion and the Counterculture that Changed America" presents America's most tumultuous decade through the eyes of renowned photojournalist Fred W. McDarrah. As staff photographer for the leading counterculture weekly the "Village Voice," McDarrah was everywhere - and he photographed everything and everybody. From the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago to the Newark riots; from the Beatles' first American press conference to Andy Warhol's Factory; from Woodstock to the closing of the Fillmore East; from Broadway to Stonewall to Harlem to City Hall, Fred's award winning pictures capture the struggle and promise of the sixties and define a generation.
Many of these photographs have never been published, or were seen only once in the "Village Voice," where for forty years McDarrah ran the photo desk. A number of his portraits, however, like those of Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, and Abbie Hoffman, have become some of the most celebrated icons of their subjects. These pictures represent a depth and breadth of public and private events and emotions, both political and startlingly intimate, that is rarely found in the work of one man - a powerful synthesis of American photojournalism, cultural and political documentary and, despite McDarrah's modest protestations, art.
*Click HERE to view a Village Voice photo archives slideshow of some of McDarrah's work, including several photos that appear in the book.
