Exploring Color Photography, 6th Edition

When pressed about his way of working, Robert Bergman paraphrases Plato: “Sound reason crumbles in the presence of the poetry of madmen,” clearly aligning himself with the latter. He has stated that his “ambition is to subvert types and to absent myself so the essential particularity of a person shines through. I have no preconceptions, no intelligible goals. I value not knowing and operate according to animal instinct.” Relying on the language of vision, shape, form, and color palette, Bergman considers his close-up, expressionistic portraits to be a “collaborative act” between himself and the strangers he encounters on the street. He relies ...