Remembrance of Summers' Past | Charles H. Traub
Written by Simran Tuteja
In his new book, Remembrance of Summers’ Past, Charles H. Traub decided to head to beaches all around the world and capture photographs of the humans enjoying the sun during the few months of summer. Through his photographrty, the artist astutely showcases the human body as an expression of our humanity and beaches as a judgement-free setting where no one seems to care about appearances. A compilation of 52 images dating back to 1977 until 2004 captured in various locations, this book was released in July 2023 by Interlocutor Press, NYC.
The book opens with the image of a woman lying on a white beach towel with yellowish orange flowers on it. She is wearing an army green swimsuit reading a book that is covering her face. The book cover contains a cartoon of a woman’s face with exaggerated blond hair, big eyes and red lips. The subject is holding the book in a manner that makes the image on the cover look like it could be our subject’s face. The artist cleverly plays with the angle and the placement of the book and manages to capture this caricature-like photograph.
Summer is one of the most joyous time of the year for children. It is the season of ice cream, cold beverages and no school. Traub’s new book also features images of delighted early adolescents taking advantage of the season. One of the images consists of four girls sitting and one boy standing as subjects at the beach. Four of the subjects are staring at the lens whereas one of them is looking away. The boy is holding a bottle, two of the girls are enjoying ice cream and the third girl can be seen wiping her face. Their innocence is very artistically portrayed by the artist further providing the viewers a reason to feel nostalgic and reminisce the good all days.
In another image captured candidly, a man and a woman can be seen enjoying pasta at the beach. They are surrounded by red and yellow umbrellas and barricades to create sections. The woman is lying down in a red bikini, holding a fork and licking her fingers whereas the man is sitting and holding the bowl of pasta. Behind them is a small table with a glass, two knives and a bottle on it. Through the image, the artist skillfully showcases the ephemeral freeness of humans and their idea of recreation.
According to the American photographer. Aaron Siskind, ‘Traub accomplished a miraculous blend of genial acceptance and critical caricature of that place where everyone is temporarily free.’ Remembrance of Summers’ Past is quintessential of Siskind’s statement. Founder of the MFA program of Photography, Video and Related Media at the School of Visual Arts, NYC, Charles H. Traub has been a photographer and educator for more than 50 years. He has been presented with several awards such as ICP Infinity Award for his works. His artwork has been featured in major museums and collections across the globe and he has authored several books.
