Weegee at MOMA

Intimacy and sensation are seamlessly united in Weegee's photographic exploration of New York in the 1930s and '40s. This collection of original prints, on show at MoMA until the 2nd of July, offers a powerful insight into humanity. Weegee moved to America from the Ukraine as a boy in 1910. He grew up in New York's East Side and his relationship with the underbelly of the city provides the subject matter for most of his photography. The exhibition is divided thematically, capturing the way Weegee's photographs tend to form quasi-cinematic narratives. The five rooms each have a distinct feel yet the reoccurrence of certain images and techniques, ensure that a unity is preserved. The same streets, shop signs and clocks appear in different contexts throughout the exhibition. When dealing with sensational public events, Weegee always steps back from the focus of attention to include the spectators in the frame. This technique brings us nearer to the action than any close up ever could.

The actual close-ups are equally revealing. Taken in the dark with an infrared film or by stealth using a remote control for the camera, Weegee's subjects are unaware that they are being photographed. What Weegee captures is their vulnerability and essential humanness, always absent from conscious poses. A freelance journalist working at a time when tabloid journalism was an opening market, Weegee pioneered a new kind of reporting. His approach was both uncompromising and strangely moving, in a way that previous attempts at social documentary had failed to be. The black and white prints have an extraordinary depth and definition that immediately draws you in, making you feel part of the scene rather than a mere spectator. Appropriately for a news reporter, text is an integral part of Weegee's photos. A situation's humour or irony is emphasised by nearby advertising boards, announcing "the joy of living" above the body of a dead man or "just add boiling water" on the side of a burning building.

Stylistically, murders and parades, Hollywood stars and the homeless all get the same treatment, emphasising how at some deeper level there is nodivide. The same people with the same expressions gather for the deaths as for the celebrations. This exhibition offers us all a penetrating insight into a particular time in New York. More than this, it shows us a picture of humanity that we are still able to identify with today. It is the familiarity of these distinctive photographs that make 'Weegee' such a thought provoking exhibition.

Emily Wood 24.5.00