(Another) Inspiration

In a previous post, I explained my love for the artist David Hockney. Due to a recent assignment in my photography course, I've discovered a new favorite artist. I should actually say photographer. All of his work is photographic and it's all so well composed. His name is Melvin Sokolsky. When he was only ten, he used his father's box camera, mimicking his father's techniques and actions. His real career started when he was 21, photographing for editorial and advertising purposes; he worked for Harper's Bazaar for which he produced his first collection of work named The Bubble Series (Politanoff). This was one of his most popular series portraying models floating in a bubble over areas in Paris. Another popular series was his "Fly" collection.

Something that really makes Sokolsky different from well-known photographers and artists is that he was never formally trained. At the age of 13, he took countless trips to New York's museums, discovering, devouring, and researching images and artists he found interesting (Schwartz). He found a passion for something so young. It's obvious he was serious about it since he went through so much trouble trying to master photography's history and his attempt to learn new things at such a young age.

This passion led him down the road to success. He has done hundreds of shoots for several magazines worldwide since Harper's Bazaar. He has such a wide range of media as well. Since 2000, he has picked up digital photography, opening so many doors to new and fresh compositions for him. He also has some cinematography experience with a motion picture he called "Motion" from the 70's.

Here is his official website with all of his work and here is a picture of one of my favorite pieces by him. It's actually from his flying collection.

Photograph courtesy of Melvin Sokolsky

References
Politanoff, Evelyne. "Melvin Sokolsky: Fashion in a Bubble". Huff Post: Arts. The Internet Newspaper: News Blogs Video Community, 1 Aug. 2011. Web. 12 Feb. 2012.
Schwartz, Barry. "Melvin Sokolsky: A Specific Palette". PhotoMedia: People and Places. PhotoMedia Mag., 4 Mar. 2010. Web. 12 Feb. 2012.