Who was James Hamilton?
D.W. Young's documentary brings a photographer's legacy into focus
Back to the pictures.
Thank you, everyone, for your thoughtful responses to my post last week. It felt good to connect with so many of you; knowing how you’ve been feeling lately has been helpful. I lost a bunch of subscribers after sending that message, which bummed me out, but I get it. I know I’m not for everyone. I appreciate you sticking with me.
I will keep this newsletter focused on photography. If you disagree with my political views, fear not; you can still expect pictures moving forward. Someone called FlakPhoto a “safe haven” from so much political disagreement. I appreciate that: we all need a break from the noise sometimes, right? I know I do. Writing here will surely be therapeutic for me. Hopefully, reading will be for you. If you want to discuss politics or other non-photography topics, you can find me on Bluesky or Threads.
I’m excited this week because we’re screening another documentary film at the Arts + Literature Laboratory in downtown Madison. We’ll show D.W. Young’s Uncropped on Thursday, November 14, at 7 p.m. The show is free, and I hope you can join us.
I was happy to see Steven Spoerl review the film in Tone Madison this week. Tone is one of our alternative papers here in town, and they consistently publish excellent cultural criticism. I asked if we could excerpt his review, and Steven graciously agreed. It’s a terrific piece that sets the stage for the film. But the review is a fun read and stands on its own. I know some of you will enjoy it. Here’s a little starter:
“We never crop James Hamilton’s photographs.” Renowned art book editor Eva Prinz delivers this line with clear-eyed conviction during a quiet moment in Uncropped, a documentary that purports to be about legendary New York photographer James Hamilton. And it is. But it’s also about journalism, ceaseless commitment, and how Hamilton’s legacy is inseparable from the medium’s evolution.
Directed by D.W. Young and executive produced by Wes Anderson (among several others), Uncropped is a tender and occasionally tangential look at Hamilton’s life. Beautifully shot by Marika Hacking and Francesco Saviano—who had the unenviable task of living up to Hamilton’s eye for composition—Uncropped exudes respect for both Hamilton and photography itself.
The film is neatly segmented into sections that chronicle the years in which Hamilton was working at various publications: Crawdaddy, The Herald (a very short-lived Sunday newspaper in New York), Harper’s Bazaar, The Village Voice, and New York Observer. It also features Hamilton working alongside a few of his favorite filmmakers (including George Romero and Anderson) as a stills photographer. Young’s film covers Hamilton’s body of photographic work in the process, which extends from 1969 to 2008, as well as his present day-to-day. As it traces Hamilton’s oeuvre, Uncropped also—and with a clear sense of justifiable anger—documents the ongoing collapse of creative journalistic freedom.
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This looks like such a fun movie, and I can’t wait to see it. The doors open at 6:30 p.m. we’ll start the show at 7 p.m., and I’ll facilitate a discussion after the film.
If you can’t make it to Madison, Uncropped is streaming on VOD. But if you’re free on Thursday and looking for a photography diversion to lift your spirits, ArtLitLab is the place to be.
See you there?
I love his work! Find it baffling that it — and he — aren’t well known. A reason can be gleaned from the excellent documentary: he was self-effacing, didn’t seek out the spotlight. Still, it’s a mystery why his work never garnered any attention from the museum and art world.
I'm really looking forward to watching this movie; I wish I could be at the screening.