Lee Friedlander Dog's Best Friend, A Pet Project

Working primarily with Leica hand-held 35 mm cameras and black-and-white film, Friedlander's style generally focuses on the "social landscape". His photographs use detached images of urban life, store-front reflections, structures framed by fences, and posters and signs all combining to capture the look of modern life. This will be the first monograph Friedlander has released that is neither landscape nor portrait, but one centered on the popular animal, the dog. Titled "Dog's Best Friend, A Pet Project," the book features 100 photographs by the renowned American master of dogs in their domestic environments. The photographs cover a range of years from 1958 to the most recent in 2016. As the title implies, Friedlander has focused his lens on the relationship between dog and owner or caretaker. His pictures show the role these precious pets play in our day-to-day lives. We see dogs as companions, objects of affection, waiting alone in their gated yards, in parks, and in cars - the usual breadth of situation that Lee Friedlander is known for. Not much misses the roving eye of Friedlander (this will be the 55th book of his prolific career), but this title is sure to delight as it is filled with the warmth and humor of the human condition as it interacts with the favored pet, all framed and juxtaposed in the stunning style of Lee Friedlander.