Todd Weinstein
Todd Weinstein searches for the humanizing moment amidst the depersonalized urban setting. The frenetic clatter of the city—New York, in Europe or Japan—diffuses to a theatrical background as he spotlights an individual's quiet inner monologue. His focus is on the psyche. He's an urban romantic, intent on reminding us that our emotions have more value than any product.
"People respond to the emotional content of my pictures," Weinstein says. "They identify with what's common. Do you have to show new things all the time? I go the other way. I want to show what's familiar. What we share."
These images reinstate human contact, proclaiming the dignity of the individual faced with an onslaught of debilitating and absurd circumstances. Lovers share a private moment sheltered in the shadows. A business man escapes from a tight parking space. A Fifth Avenue shopper seems enmeshed in the flash of Trump Tower marble.
"My shots tend to be about hope," Weinstein says. "They might be critical but there's humor. Although I've traveled to cities throughout the world, my photographs are not about events or places. I make myself a conduit for a certain kind of experience. That experience is more poetic than definable. Feelings register at the curb."
His work heals.