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11: Witnessing The World Trade Center
A book by the photographers of CONTACT PRESS IMAGES
Within minutes of the attack on the World Trade Center the morning of September 11, 2001, Contact Press Images, one of photojournalism's preeminent agencies that represents some of the world's greatest photographers, had mobilized half a dozen photographers to cover the event. In the following days, their reportage on the disaster would swell to include more than a dozen photographers who documented in a variety of formats and moods the assault on the towers, their collapse, the firefighters and rescue workers, stunned on-lookers and survivors, the torrent of debris blanketing downtown, and the smoldering wreckage at ground zero.
In order to honor the memory, as well as the cultural and social significance of the twin towers, the agency has compiled a memorial book comprised of 110 photographs (the number of floors of each of the towers), both color and black and white, made by twenty-two photographers affiliated with Contact Press Images, including David Burnett, Frank Fournier, Lori Grinker, and Annie Leibovitz, to be released in time for the first anniversary of the attack. Divided into two sections, the first part will be devoted to the horrific events of September 11. The second part will depict the Trade Centers in all their gravity-defying glory, which the agency had photographed since its inception. It will also include text by Nobel-laureate Toni Morrison (Song of Solomon, Sula), Minoru Yamasaki (chief architect of the World Trade Center), Jacques Menasche (Contact Press Images' writer and 9-11 witness).
The first year anniversary will mark a transition from the "moment" to the "monument." Rather than attempting tobe a news presentation, Contact's Eleven is intended to be offered as a visual elegy marking the life and death of the great landmark. In this sense, it is reminiscent of the hundreds of memorial (Yizkor) books produced after theHolocaust by survivors whose villages no longer existed. Then, as now, the function was two-fold. First, as witnessing books -- that is, books that gave testimony to the disaster of the holocaust; secondly, as tributes, meant to memorialize the life and history of towns that had disappeared.
Within minutes of the attack on the World Trade Center the morning of September 11, 2001, Contact Press Images, one of photojournalism's preeminent agencies that represents some of the world's greatest photographers, had mobilized half a dozen photographers to cover the event. In the following days, their reportage on the disaster would swell to include more than a dozen photographers who documented in a variety of formats and moods the assault on the towers, their collapse, the firefighters and rescue workers, stunned on-lookers and survivors, the torrent of debris blanketing downtown, and the smoldering wreckage at ground zero.
In order to honor the memory, as well as the cultural and social significance of the twin towers, the agency has compiled a memorial book comprised of 110 photographs (the number of floors of each of the towers), both color and black and white, made by twenty-two photographers affiliated with Contact Press Images, including David Burnett, Frank Fournier, Lori Grinker, and Annie Leibovitz, to be released in time for the first anniversary of the attack. Divided into two sections, the first part will be devoted to the horrific events of September 11. The second part will depict the Trade Centers in all their gravity-defying glory, which the agency had photographed since its inception. It will also include text by Nobel-laureate Toni Morrison (Song of Solomon, Sula), Minoru Yamasaki (chief architect of the World Trade Center), Jacques Menasche (Contact Press Images' writer and 9-11 witness).
The first year anniversary will mark a transition from the "moment" to the "monument." Rather than attempting tobe a news presentation, Contact's Eleven is intended to be offered as a visual elegy marking the life and death of the great landmark. In this sense, it is reminiscent of the hundreds of memorial (Yizkor) books produced after theHolocaust by survivors whose villages no longer existed. Then, as now, the function was two-fold. First, as witnessing books -- that is, books that gave testimony to the disaster of the holocaust; secondly, as tributes, meant to memorialize the life and history of towns that had disappeared.
- GenresPhotography
172 pages, Unknown Binding
First published September 14, 2002
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September 12, 2024The collection of photos in this book is astonishing. Included are photos taken just minutes after the attack began. They chronicle the events as they unfolded, as the first plane hit the tower, then its collapse, then the collapse of the second tower. Most poignant are the faces of the first responders and the stunned people who witnessed the destruction. Even after seeing the photos of the devastation, it’s still hard to comprehend it. The book then goes on to show the towers in all their glory at various times and from various angles. Also in the book are quotes from Toni Morrison, well-known author and Minoru Yamasaki, chief architect for the World Trade Center. Many world-renowned photographers contributed to this amazing pictorial account. Edited by Robert Pledge, this book is one you will read, then immediately read again.
Displaying 1 of 1 review