By Mitchell Funk
Located in Miami, FL
Since its construction, Mitchell Funk has been chronicling the Twin Towers, of the World Trade Center. More specifically, he has been recording how light affects and transforms the two giant monoliths. Like us all, Mitchell was inspired by the formidable presence of the two buildings. Living in Brooklyn Heights with great views of lower Manhattan gave him a special advantage and opportunity to assemble some of the most iconic Twin Tower images ever taken.
To Mitchell Funk, the Twin Towers, of the World Trade Center were the perfect synthesis of commerce and art. Most modern architecture is simply functional. Minoru Yamasaki's Twin Towers were in fact something quite radical. They were a steel and glass expression of Minimalism on the grandest scale in human history. Everything in the towers was stripped down to its essential quality with nothing extraneous added ….. except light. The way the buildings reflected light made them unique and inspired Mitchell to record them in color for 32 years. Although, the exterior was actually made of a very reflective blue/grey stainless steel the warm light of daybreak and sunset could change their color and transform them from buildings into and mystical monumental sculptures. With the help of the sun as a key player, Mitchell’s images of the Twin Towers progress from the mystical to the spiritual as they reflect the sun’s intense golden energy. Under these conditions, one could argue, that the Twin Tower housed the same type of divine energy as the adjacent churches.
In the wake of the 9/11 tragedy, one could interpret Twin Tower sunset images differently. A sunset can be a symbol for the end of the day or simply The End.
The 1969 image “Dead End” is a visual prognostication. The North Tower is under construction in the background and in the foreground, Mitchell has framed it between two street signs that read Dead End.
In Mitchell’s Twin Tower photographs, he is not taking a tourist picture that says “here I am on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade...
Category
1970s American Modern Richard Ehrlich Photography
MaterialsArchival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
