Speaking about W. Eugene Smith from the book "W. Eugene Smith Shadow & Substance" by Jim Hughes
"Gene didn't make many prints. He gave birth to a print like a child out of his own womb. And he kept taking them back to spot."
"(A Smith print) has a presence. It has a brooding dark power that comes off a piece of paper, a power that was imparted to it by Gene physically, spiritually, mentally. You can't separate the image, the print from the man. He worked to create the legend about himself that makes all this a fact. He lived with such intensity, with such self-destruction, with such drama. He was mad. He wanted to be mad. But he was a beautiful human being and he really cared, and photography was his whole life. All of this makes the prints have a kind of vibration, which is Gene's vibration...."
"Gene didn't make many prints. He gave birth to a print like a child out of his own womb. And he kept taking them back to spot."
"(A Smith print) has a presence. It has a brooding dark power that comes off a piece of paper, a power that was imparted to it by Gene physically, spiritually, mentally. You can't separate the image, the print from the man. He worked to create the legend about himself that makes all this a fact. He lived with such intensity, with such self-destruction, with such drama. He was mad. He wanted to be mad. But he was a beautiful human being and he really cared, and photography was his whole life. All of this makes the prints have a kind of vibration, which is Gene's vibration...."
