AAP Magazine Announces The 25 Winning Shadow-Themed Photographs

In his search for shadow, Hugo Thomassen found light. It is not the play of light that intrigues, but the richness of shadow. The bottles are what they are, yet they inadvertently evoke associations. Are we looking at a nocturnal cityscape with figures? Are we witnessing a chance encounter, a moment frozen in time, or simply an elegant composition with one or more bottles as the photographic subject? The bottle as a shape. The image is meticulously constructed, layer upon layer. Although the associations may suggest coincidence, the composition itself makes no such assumption. It is rich in its simplicity. Each line is deliberate, considered. So much is expressed through so Little. The photograph distils the bottle to its purest form. It lays bare its essence. An idea. Is it truth that we see? Reality being exposed? Or are these simply shadows created by shapes? It is this that Thomassen plays with. Is it a single photograph or a picture composed of several images, a multitude of shots? In a sense, the photographic image is attempting to transcend the flatness of the paper. Photography is the means by which Thomassen explores the world. He exposes order in chaos or reveals an event through an ordering. He is the author of a visual story. His work is a narrative without words. It is exciting without incident, an ode to emptiness, stillness, and shape. The bottle as the bearer of meaning.

Redwood Falls, Minnesota

The photo of the street corner in Minnesota was taken in the winter of 2024 during a long road trip in the Midwest. I drove through small towns in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and South Dakota. It was a dangerous trip, as the blizzard blew very hard and the temperatures were extremely cold. Alone in the car, I stopped when I saw something I liked. The cold was so intense that I only had a few minutes to take a photo. Once I arrived at the Badlands National Park I went back to Chicago where the last step was to preserve the film from the X-rays at the airport.

Woman on Coney Island Pier Looking Skyward from the series 'Coney Island People 50 Years' © Harvey Stein

This is the cover image of my 2022 book Coney Island People 50 Years and my third published book about Coney Island. The young lady is standing on the famous Coney pier. As we spoke, I noticed the shadows made from the sunlight coming through a metal canopy above us that cast shadows. I placed her so the shadows were on her face and shoulders but not distracting or obtrusive. Shooting close to her with a 21mm lens on my Leica, I wanted her in an environment that revealed aspects of Coney Island besides the pier. I was well aware of the iconic Parachute Jump on the left that is a historic monument (inoperative) and that shouts Coney Island. Also shown is the beach and the housing beyond the beach. I don't remember noticing the fisherman on the pier, but I'm happy that he is there as another element in the photograph that both adds a layer of interest and shows one of the many uses for the pier. I took advantage of the beautiful sunlight and shadows to make an image that for me is timeless.

Being in Coney Island is like stepping into another society, rather than just experiencing a day’s entertainment. These photographs, from my book CONEY ISLAND PEOPLE 50 YEARS hopefully bring the viewer a sense of excitement, the adventure and the thrills of escape from daily worries, whether strolling the boardwalk, viewing the mind-bending Mermaid Parade, or just sunbathing on the beach. Coney Island is an American icon celebrated worldwide, a fantasyland of the past with an evolving present and an irrepressible optimism about its future. It is a democratic entertainment where people of all walks of life and places are brought together. There isn’t anywhere else like it and that is much of its appeal.

The photographs in the book, taken from 1970 through 2020, simultaneously look back in time while giving a current view to the people and activities of this “poor man’s Riviera”. The images attempt to capture the wonder and intimacy of Coney Island. Their close observations sweep the reader into the feel and fun of Coney Island while providing insight and surprise. It is very rare that one person has documented one place over a 50-year time period. The photographs are made in a documentary style; black and white film helps to impart a feeling of the past and history. The images are mostly taken very near the subjects, employing wide angle views, that make them intimate and direct; the aim is to involve the viewer, often with an evocative and surreal edge.