The Times Quotidian

“a shimmer of possibility: Photographs by Paul Graham” is on view through May 18 at the Museum of Modern Art. I had been unaware of his body of work before I read this review in the NYTimes and being very intrigued decided to rectify that circumstance. After spending some time on Paul Graham’s site I am now excited by the non-linear approach of his books, an strategy he calls “filmic Haiku”. His work bypasses mere road work documentation and pursues vernacular accidents to “replicate the episodic, Chekhovian experience”.
Fine Deal!

So I passed these treasures onto my friend Paul Cabanis whose work has quite a similar bend. Paul doesn’t oft answer my emails with more than one word responses, but this time he spent some time in crafting a response. I knew I had a co-conspirator at hand.

Here is Paul’s List, in order of preference:
The Great NorthRoad
End of an Age
Troubled Land
Television Portraits
Beyond Caring

Here is Nancy’s list, in order of preference: 
Ceasefire
The Great NorthRoad
New Europe
Television Portaits
Shimmer of Posibility

Here is my favorite shot from his New Europe, 1986-1982. It says everything to be said about “waiting”.

Here is my second favorite shot from his A1-The Great North Road 1981-1982. I feel like its Alice looking back through the mirror to the last century. Will this photograph hold up in the long run? Will it become some specific irony or will it tell a more commanding story? In all  fairness, to isolate a picture from a Paul Graham “short story” is silly. But still, I am seduced.