Tony Ray-Jones

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Tony Ray-Jones (born June 7, 1941 in Wells , † March 13, 1972 in London ) was a British photographer.

life and work

Holroyd Antony Ray-Jones was born in 1941 to the painter and etcher Raymond Ray-Jones (1886–1942). His mother moved with her three sons to their parents in West Sussex and worked as a physiotherapist . After completing school at Christ's Hospital in West Sussex, Raymond Ray-Jones studied graphic design at the London College of Communication and then began to take an intense interest in photography.

A scholarship to Yale University in New Haven enabled him to stay there. Tony Ray-Jones later got a place to study in Alexei Brodowitsch's “Design Laboratory” at the New School for Social Research in Manhattan . The workshops there were very popular and only six participants were admitted at a time. The students include: Diane Arbus , Eve Arnold , Richard Avedon , Lisette Model , Garry Winogrand , Lee Friedlander , Joel Meyerowitz . Tony Ray-Jones' work was shaped by photography (also by Robert Frank ), which he got to know in America in the early 1960s, and at the same time Henri Cartier-Bresson and Bill Brandt were admired .

In 1966 Ray-Jones returned to England and photographed his permanent subject, the English doing various activities during their free time. The road and the sea were his favorite places.

“My goal is to convey something of the spirit and attitude of the English, of their way of life and the irony of the way they do things based on tradition, the environment and their mentality. I try to present the everyday contradicting things of our time in a straightforward and descriptive way. For me there is something very typical and humorous in the "English way of life" and I want to express this from my personal point of view before it becomes even more Americanized. "

- Tony Ray-Jones

In 1971 Tony Ray-Jones was offered a position as a professor at the San Francisco Art Institute . Ray-Jones fell ill in late 1971 and returned to London on March 10, 1972, where he died three days later of a rare form of leukemia .

Creative Camera

Ray-Jones introduced himself to Bill Jay, the first editor of the photography magazine Creative Camera , which had just evolved from Camera Owner magazine for amateur photographers. The performance began with the words:

"Your magazine's shit, but I can see you're trying. You just don't know enough, so I am here to help you. "

- Tony Ray-Jones

Ray-Jones presented editor Bill Jay with a yellow box of photos he had taken during his stay in New Haven and New York between 1961 and 1965 and in England between 1966 and 1969.

"I looked through the box of prints, and then I gave them back and said," OK, you've got a lot to teach me, what do we do now? "

- Bill Jay

In 1969 Ray-Jones worked as a consultant for Creative Camera . Together the two went on a trip to New York. They stayed at the Chelsea Hotel and Ray-Jones introduced Bill Jay to Winogrand, Frank, Meyerowitz and Arbus, among others.

Approach / working approach

Ray-Jones meticulously recorded all the details and thoughts on his photos in notebooks. One of the lists, "Approach", can be seen as a guideline to get better pictures:

  • Be more aggressive
  • Get more involved (talk to people)
  • Stay with the subject matter (be patient)
  • Take simpler pictures
  • See if everything in the background relates to subject matter
  • Vary compositions and angles more
  • Be more aware of composition
  • Don't take boring pictures
  • Get in closer (use 50mm lens-or less, hard to make out in notes)
  • Watch camera shake (shoot 250sec or above)
  • Don't shoot too much
  • Not all at eye level
  • No middle distance

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Guardian, Liz Jobey The English seen accessed on December 22, 2014 (English)
  2. ^ Roy Hamman's Tony Ray-Jones-Through a Looking Glass, accessed December 22, 2014
  3. ^ Catalog for documenta 6: Volume 2: Photography, film and video; Kassel, page 104, 1977 ISBN 3-920453-00-X
  4. ↑ Tony Ray-Jones and Martin Parr: English rituals of the 60s , accessed on December 22, 2014 (English).
  5. ^ Roy Hamman's Tony Ray-Jones-Through a Looking Glass, accessed December 22, 2014
  6. ↑ The Telegraph Tony Ray-Jones and Martin Parr: Photographing the English accessed on December 22, 2014 (English)
  7. ↑ Only in England: photos by Tony Ray-Jones and Martin Parr , accessed on December 22, 2014 (English).
personal data
SURNAME Ray-Jones, Tony
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ray-Jones, Holroyd Anthony
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British photographer
DATE OF BIRTH June 7, 1941
PLACE OF BIRTH Wells
DATE OF DEATH March 13, 1972
Place of death London