A photographer should look like the president of the United States, and the color of life is green
An interview with Harry Benson, the man through whose works we have known the 20th century At the Lumiere Brothers Center of Photography, for the first time in history, an exhibition of Harry Benson is taking place. Harry Benson is the photographer who took amazing photos of The Beatles, of various presidents of the United States, of Michael Jackson and other world celebrities. In addition, Benson was in the car with President Kennedy at the time of his assassination and took close-up pictures of the fall of the Berlin Wall. We were able to interview this “cult master” of photography of the 20th century and learn some of the secrets of his profession and lifestyle.
— Do you have a favorite color? If yes, which one?
Forrest Green like the pocket square I wear - it is the color of life.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— The official voice of the audioguide for this exhibition is Noize MC’s, who is a famous Russian musician. Have you listened to his music? Is it possible for him to be captured by Harry James Benson?
I would be pleased to photograph Noize MC— I am always interested in young innovative people.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— You’ve met the greatest people on planet Earth, who influenced culture, society, politics - after all that, did you find the answer to the most complicated question in the world?
I have found that we are all more alike than unalike.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— Which camera is your favorite?
Wide Angle Rolleiflex - I used it to take the Beatles Pillow Fight photo. Now I use a modern Canon camera.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— Which Russian would be interesting for you to capture?
President Putin.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— How would you describe your leisure time, if you have such a thing?
I like to watch Ice Hockey and to play with my dog, Tillie. I also lie to review photographs I took many years ago.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— Top 5 music bands in your playlist today.
The Beatles is still number one — followed by The Rolling Stones. The others include orchestras from the past like Count Basie and Louis Armstrong.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— How do you find Moscow from the photographer’s perspective?
It never ends. There is always sometime interesting to discover. Moscow has some magnificent architecture and some interesting small spaces, too. What’s more, the faces of the people are beautiful.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— You’ve captured the fall of the Berlin Wall - how could you describe people’s reaction from both sides?
The people from both sides of the wall were jubilant — and also I believe they were stunned—they couldn’t believe it had happened.
© Harry Benson/ Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
— Three must-have items that you bring to photo shoot (except camera stuff)
1. Panadol, which is Tylenol in case I get a headache.
2. A good nights sleep the night before.
3. Dress the proper way out of respect to the subject, so that I can get as close to the subject as I can. If I am not careful about what I wear, I will not get to the second floor private quarters of the White House. Whoever said that photographers should look like maintenance men.
© Russian Photo Magazine (rosphoto.com)
