Mike Mandel: Myself is a revised edition of Mandel’s first photobook, originally self-published in 1972. The project, titled Myself: Timed Exposures, began in 1971, when Mandel set out to make “self-portraits” by placing himself in public situations with strangers. He was influenced by Lee Friedlander’s self-portraits, the early work of Jacques Henri Lartigue, and the role of chance in Marcel Duchamp’s practice. The book documents a method that combined conceptual planning with unpredictable results.
Mandel used a 35 mm camera mounted on a tripod and a self-timer. He walked through public spaces looking for social situations where he could enter the frame without arranging the scene in advance. Once he found a suitable location, he set up the camera, activated the timer, and moved into position. People around him were often surprised by the presence of the camera and by his appearance in the scene. The exposure was made automatically, without Mandel controlling the exact moment of the shot. He could only see the results later, after developing the film.
The photographs show Mandel in parks, streets, beaches, and other public areas, interacting indirectly with passers-by who had no prior connection to the project. The images record the reactions of strangers to an unusual situation: a man positioning himself in front of a camera on a tripod while they go about their daily activities. The work raises questions about authorship, timing, and the role of the photographer in street photography.
This new edition keeps the structure of the original book while updating the production. It includes a gatefold, sewn sections, an open spine, and a Swiss-bound cover. Myself remains an early example of conceptual approaches to self-portraiture and documents a specific moment in American photography when artists began to test the limits of documentary practice through staged but uncontrolled situations.
Mike Mandel: Myself
Category: Photographer Monographs & Art Books
Author: Mike Mandel
Publisher: Eighteen Publications
Publication Date:
October 2026
Print Length: 80 pages
Language: English
Price: paid
paid
paid
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