Book Review: #nyc by Jeff Mermelstein
©Jeff Mermelstein 2020 courtesy of MACK
In #nyc published by MACK, New Yorker and street photographer Jeff Mermelstein exhibits three years’ worth of secret photographs of people on their phones. This project is a compilation of photographs of text conversations and more. Using his own iPhone, he captures “screenshots” of the erotic, humorous, heartbreaking, sorrowful, and mundane nature of interplay on our phones.
©Jeff Mermelstein 2020 courtesy of MACK
This often goes unacknowledged, but texting is an intimate mode of communication. People use texts to communicate their ideas, thoughts, and emotions. It also has become most people’s preferred mode of communication in order to deliver big or difficult news. In these pictures, the viewers witness break ups occur, transactional relationships begin, friends ranting to each other, etc. One person declares their undying love and support for a friend who was diagnosed with a life altering disease.
©Jeff Mermelstein 2020 courtesy of MACK
Some pictures aren’t text messages at all, they are shots of people typing up notes on their phone, reading a saved quote, and browsing online. Phones have become a modern-day diary, so it should come as no surprise that the feel of this book is the same as looking through the personal entries of strangers. However, by cropping out the person’s identity, Mermelstein is able to bypass questions of morality such as, “should we be viewing other people’s messages?” The anonymity helped to empathize with the sender/receiver of the text message.
©Jeff Mermelstein 2020 courtesy of MACK
You’ll notice that the pictures are tinted blue in order to mimic the glow of a phone screen. Mermelstein took over 1200 photographs, however #nyc only features 150 of those photographs.
Jeff Mermelstein has practiced street photography for four decades. Most of his work can be found on Instagram. To check out his Instagram page, click here and to get your very own copy of #nyc, click here.
