Passing Time

"During the isolation of the pandemic, I had the opportunity to revisit my archive of negatives and contact sheets from the 1980s, and discovered a number of interesting images that I had never printed. These photographs were made between 1979 and 1985 in a pre-digital, largely un-air-conditioned era, when people fled the heat of their houses to hang out in their yards and on the street. I notice a kind of relaxed sensuality in many of the pictures. Time moved more slowly; restlessness led to spontaneous play. Young people back then were fit and lean from running around outside with their friends and neighbors.

As a young photographer, my rather grandiose ambition was to create a portrait of contemporary America by photographing people in their environments. I was obsessed with making the best complex pictures that I could of people hanging out in neighborhoods, in their homes, and on their porches. I had to work quite quickly, so that I could let people get back to whatever they were doing when I first asked if I could photograph them. Though asking permission usually changed the dynamic of the situation, interesting things would often emerge when I was allowed to stay for longer than a picture or two. Intruding on people’s personal space could feel awkward, and was never easy to do, but most of the time it seemed that my enthusiasm was contagious and people were able to relax and be themselves.”

~ from the Introduction by Sage Sohier

Sage Sohier’s Passing Time was published by Nazraeli Press and was selected as one of the “Best Books at Paris Photo Week 2023” by Vanity Fair. It was also selected as a best photobook of 2023 by Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb, and by Ed Templeton. The project has been featured on: The Guardian’s The Big Picture and In Picture sections, The Eye of Photography, Framelines Magazine 07, Lenscratch, Collector Daily, Elin Spring. Also check out interviews with Framelines and Matt Day, and Matt Day’s video review of the book.

Passing Time presents 57 images printed in rich duotone on Japanese Kasadaka art paper, and bound in dark brown linen. The first printing of the book is limited to one thousand copies. 

Signed by the artist.