Joel Meyerowitz... and me
A Candid Conversation
From a Paris museum to a New York gallery, from an International Photo Festival to a bookstore in Bologna – for decades Joel Meyerowitz has repeatedly crossed paths with our editor. But only through his work. She had never talked to the great photographer himself. Until, one glorious summer morning, in the south of Spain…
“Today was a joyous day, a morning with bells and birds...” The words are the opening line of the inscription Joel Meyerowitz has just written on the title page of my favorite book of his, A Summer’s Day. And indeed, the sound of bells and birdsong will echo melodiously on my recording of this June morning, spent in the shaded courtyard of the splendid Picasso Museum of Málaga. Housed in a continuously expanding 16th-century palace, the museum offers ample space not only for the works of the Spanish master but also for temporary exhibitions. In early summer 2024, and for six months, it is showcasing the American photographer Joel Meyerowitz. I have just spent two hours in conversation with him.
Málaga, Spain, 1967 ©Joel Meyerowitz
Though he has given countless interviews over the years, he remains ever willing. No one speaks more eloquently about his work, his photographic life, or his artistic philosophy than he does himself. A natural educator, an erudite thinker, an actor, a charmer—he articulates his vision with impeccable clarity, weaving logic, elegance, and simplicity into every word. Listening to him discuss his friends, his artistic pursuits, or his passions—whether painting, sports, dance, or cuisine—is nothing short of a delight.
The usual summary of his career is more or less that: a young art director in an advertising agency, he attended a photoshoot by Robert Frank for an ad campaign. Watching Frank’s fluid, unrestrained approach, Meyerowitz had an epiphany—photography didn’t have to be static. He quit his desk job on impulse, borrowed a camera from his supportive boss, and took to the streets of New York.
Without overthinking it, without seeking to provoke or gain recognition from an art world that still deemed only black-and-white photography acceptable, he began shooting color slides: the world around him was in color—that was what he wanted to capture.
Málaga, Spain, 1967 ©Joel Meyerowitz
He soon made a friend—the British photographer Tony Ray-Jones—and found another kindred spirit—Garry Winogrand. They became inseparable, refining their craft together, alongside Tod Papageorge.
He presented his work to John Szarkowski, the legendary curator of photography at MoMA, a visionary advocate for the medium. “He educated a whole generation through his verbal capacity to engage in the discussion of photography. Before that, we could say ‘Yeah, I like that. That’s tough’.”
On the streets of New York, Meyerowitz, sharp-eyed, quick, and attuned to his surroundings, developed a keen ability to sense atmospheres, anticipate amusing, surprising, or touching moments, and compose intricate frames filled with multiple actions.
Though widely recognized as an American photographer, he is, in truth, profoundly international. Having lived for a time in Italy, he is now based in London. His childhood neighborhood in the Bronx was a melting pot of European immigrants from Ireland, Italy, and Eastern Europe, and his studies in art history and painting immersed him in classical European culture.
All that had made the desire for a Grand Tour only natural.
Greece, 1967 ©Joel Meyerowitz
In 1966, Meyerowitz was 28 years old; after completing an advertising campaign, he had earned enough to support himself for a year. With his young wife, he set sail for England. No precise plans—just two 35mm cameras and the open road. The journey would take him through the UK, France, Spain, and beyond. He needed to discover himself as much as he wanted to explore a continent. “I didn’t have my friends around me to converse with. And so the interior dialogue that I had with myself is what helped me evolve. This journey allowed me to understand both how photography says what it says and who I was as a young man; it established me as an adult and a photographer.”
It all happened in Málaga. “I felt like I woke up in a way that was the first step of maturity as an artist. The four years leading up to 1966 were thrilling because I was making photographs and discovering what I saw. But I wasn’t integrated yet. It’s midway to the six months here I suddenly felt as if I took a breath and I began to look around from a different perspective. And that’s rare. People in relationships go through those kinds of changes, too. You’re stumbling around in what makes a relationship. And then finally, one day, you realize ‘Oh, this is who I am now’, and you begin to understand that you flow back and forth with each other. And so I felt that photography and I were in harmony. It’s a very freeing moment of revelation. And that’s not talked about often enough in art.”
A watchful observer who never lets go of his Leica, signed with his own name, he continues to create, to learn. “I just read a scientific book, The History of Color. It analyzes how color has been used across cultures and eras. It also explains that even in the dark, photons still vibrate, which our eyes and brain can perceive. That way, black doesn’t exist.”
Science agreeing with a luminous being!
Nathalie Amargier, May 2025
This text is an extract from a feature article published
in the special Joel Meyerowitz issue of
of LIKE la revue.
You can find it
in selected bookshops
and online HERE.
The cover picture is a still from the film
Joel Meyerowitz : The Pulse of the Street
directed in 2016 by Philippe Jamet
