"Whether he is an artist or not, the photographer is a joyous sensualist, for the simple reason that the eye traffics in feelings, not in thoughts."
"Leaving aside the mysteries and the inequities of human talent, brains, taste, and reputations, the matter of art in photography may come down to this: it is the capture and projection of the delights of seeing; it is the defining of observation full and felt."
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Source: Walker Evans at Fortune, 1945-1965.
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More quotes by Walker Evans
"Stare, pry, listen, eavesdrop. Die knowing something. You are not here long."
"In order to put meaning back into our lives, we should recognize illusions for what they are, and we should reach out and touch the fabric of reality."
"The secret of photography is, the camera takes on the character and personality of the handler."
"With the camera, it's all or nothing. You either get what you're after at once, or what you do has to be worthless. I don't think the essence of photography has the hand in it so much. The essence is done very quietly with a flash of the mind, and with a machine. I think too that photography is editing, editing after the taking. After knowing what to take, you have to do the editing."
"Documentary: That’s a sophisticated and misleading word. And not really clear… The term should be documentary style… You see, a document has use, whereas art is really useless."