Reframed: Alex Webb explores ‘The Suffering of Light’

Photojournalist Alex Webb, associated with Magnum Photos, has contributed to such magazines as GEO, Time and the New York Times Magazine over several decades. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Rebecca Norris Webb, also a photographer.

How and when did the idea for “The Suffering of Light” — a 30-year retrospective — come about? What inspired the title?

The creation began some years ago as a series of discussions with two different museum curators about putting together a midcareer survey exhibition and book of my work. Neither exhibition transpired; however in the process, the idea of publishing the book with Aperture emerged. “The Suffering of Light” evolved into an exploration of my primary photographic obsession — working a certain way in color as a street photographer, predominantly in the tropics. Aperture also decided to curate an exhibition, which is now traveling.

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The title comes from a quote from Goethe: “Colors are the deeds and suffering of light.” As I understand it, one of the tenets of Goethe’s theory of color is that color emerges from the tension between light and dark, a notion that seems to resonate with my use of color, with its intense highlights and deep shadows. Also, my photographs are often a little enigmatic — there’s sometimes a sense of mystery, of ambiguity.

How did you select the images?

I first went through my previous eight books, then I began to sift through other projects. Ultimately, about 40% of the book selection is unpublished work.

What was the emotional journey like for you reviewing 30 years of your photography from every corner of the globe?

Perhaps surprisingly, the actual process of pulling together the images was not emotionally grueling. What proved simultaneously exhilarating as well as debilitating was the finished book. One part of me was excited and somehow fulfilled, as I had made perhaps my most significant statement as an artist. Another part of me, however, was anxiously wondering about the future. That big question of “What’s next?” can be daunting after producing a book like this.

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You have spoken about what informs the content of your work — borders, edges of society and where cultures come together. What draws you to these themes?

I can’t fully explain why. Is it my fascination with uncertainty, tension and complexity? Perhaps. What I do know is that I seem to come alive photographically in such places. The critic and photographer Max Kozloff once told me he thought I needed to be “a little uncomfortable” to photograph well.

Your images are so meticulously layered, rich in color, possess a wonderful visual rhythm. Can you tell me about the process?

I come from a family of visual artists. Growing up, we Webb children were immersed in art.

The sculptor Henry Moore, after a long and successful career, said the following: “The secret in life is to have a task, something you devote your entire life to, something you bring everything to, every minute of the day for the rest of your life. And the most important thing is, it must be something you cannot possibly do.” That quote resonates with my sense of the frustrations and difficulties of street photography.

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