Featured Artist - John Hardman

Gesture: The Language of Street Photography

Gestures are a universal form of communication. When captured in a photograph, they often stir an emotional response. Sometimes, we see ourselves in these photographic slices of life, or they help us sympathize with a human condition.  

Capturing these fleeting moments is the challenge of street photography. It requires an ability to see evolving situations before they become photographic images. Even with this foresight, the failure rate is high, but success is still possible with practice and a measure of luck.

When I’m making these photographs, I go out of my way to avoid attention—I want to be invisible. My shutter release is silent, and I never look through my viewfinder to compose the image, nor do I ever make eye contact with my subject.

Though my childhood and career placed me in Milwaukee and Minneapolis, my older brother inspired me with his photography of world travels. A workshop with award-winning photographer Valerie Jardin further fostered the channeling of my efforts into one specific genre: street photography.

Reception photos by Brady Conn, and Richard Coles