Overview

Master American photographer Adger Cowans's predominantly black-and-white photography is collected in this monograph of original images taken over the past forty years. Cowans is one of the great unrecognized photographic luminaries of our time, inspired by growing up in a family that appreciated and respected the arts. Unusually for the time, his mother Beatrice always herself had a camera in hand and encouraged young Cowans to pursue his passion with vigor and dedication. And he did this with gusto and imagination, creating one of the major archives of a living American photographer today, seen here for the first time in an expansive collection. In his works we see shadows stretching across a New York City sidewalk, strollers in Harlem with umbrellas during a snowstorm, children playing in water emerging from a fire hydrant on a hot summer day, gorgeous portraits of starlets, and children smiling with balloons that Mr. Cowans gifted to them-an incredible range of artworks that mirror the greats from Cartier-Bresson to Lee Friedlander to Edward Weston and Richard Avedon.

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9780986250064

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Reviews

Though the Metropolitan Museum and MoMA have exhibited his professional work, [Adger Cowans'] book... features frames from his personal collection. The tome contains 40 years of photographs -- including Malcolm X at a rally on Fifth Avenue, Halle Berry and Al Pacino on set, and portraits of Gordon Parks.--Lena Rawley New York Magazine, January 24, 2017

'Personal Vision' attests to Mr. Cowans' mastery, featuring a broad range of photographic subjects... Pulsing with the heartbeat of their subjects, these images make visible that which is often unseen: the complex humanity that defines each of us, making us far more similar than different... Mr. Cowans' production has been prodigious.--Maurice Berger The New York Times, December 20, 2016

Asked what he has meant to the world of photography, Cowans replied, 'I don't think like that. Spirit touches me and something comes out. It belongs with the world, it doesn't belong with me.' --Michelle Miller CBS

'Personal Vision' attests to Mr. Cowans mastery, featuring a broad range of photographic subjects Pulsing with the heartbeat of their subjects, these images make visible that which is often unseen: the complex humanity that defines each of us, making us far more similar than different Mr. Cowans production has been prodigious.--Maurice Berger The New York Times, December 20, 2016

Author Information

Adger W. Cowans studied photography at Ohio State University under Clarence H. White Jr., then served as a military photographer in the United States Navy before moving to New York City, where he worked with Life magazine photographer Gordon Parks and fashion photographers Henri Clarke, Ben Somoroff, Lillian Bassman, Steve Manville, among others. Adger has received the John Hay Whitney Fellowship, as well as the Lorenzo il Magnifico alla Carriera, in recognition of his distinguished career, at the 2001 Florence Biennale of Contemporary Art. His travels have led him to Morocco, Brazil, Paris, London, Rome, Florence, Switzerland, Bali, Mexico, and all over the United States. Among the numerous museums Adger has exhibited at are MoMa, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, George Eastman House, Harvard University, Chicago School of Design, International School of Photography, and the Studio Museum of Harlem. Tuliza Fleming is a Smithsonian curator at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. Dowoti Desir is a social curator, activist, faith leader, photojournalist, designer, and author. George N. Preston, PhD, is the co-founding director and chief curator at the Museum of Art and Origins, and has taught at City College of New York for over 33 years.

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