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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Twelve: Using color to express ideas > Courier, New York City, New York, 2010
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15-JUL-2010

Courier, New York City, New York, 2010

Two layers of vivid blue color bring this image together. The courier on the bike in the foreground of the image wears a blue shirt and blue cap, nearly the same hue as on the peeling plywood construction site wall that makes up the entire background. In between them, I use a framing device -- two white vehicles parked so as to leave a space between them. I freeze the courier within that space to create maximum tension. Between the cars and the wall, a woman walks in the opposite direction. Neither the courier nor the woman acknowledges each other’s presence. Such is the nature of New York City.

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Phil Douglis19-Jun-2015 18:14
Thanks, jkfox, for your perceptive commentary on this image. Juxtaposing colors for meaning in photography is an often overlooked aspect of visual communication. I note that you are affiliated with a courier company yourself. It is always a delight to receive a comment from someone who is very familiar with the subject matter of one of my images.
jkfox04-Jun-2015 14:58
Wow, this is a great picture. I really love how the courier almost blends in with the wall behind him; it suggests the seamless integration of couriers into the city. At the same time he looks so out of place between the two white vans. It creates a really interesting juxtaposition in this picture! Great job.

http://www.yellowcorporation.com.au/yellowcouriers/yellow-courier-services/courier-services-within-the-adelaide-cbd/
Phil Douglis20-Aug-2010 21:15
Thanks, River King, for spending the time to enter my image and think about the relationships I am trying to express here in terms of both time and space. You are right -- the streets of Manhattan can be among the most turbulent places on earth. Yet in this image everything is stopped for an instant. As I noted, the courier and woman do not acknowledge each others presence. They never saw each other. Yet I have suspended them in time as they about to pass each other, linking them within an urban moment that has, at least for you, produced a sense of peace.
Guest 20-Aug-2010 21:04
One thing I love about your photography, is that I can stare at the images for so long and still don't feel tired of it. This picture is a good example of it. Both courier and the woman were moving but your photo frozen the moment so well that gives me a great sense of calm and peace in such a busy scene.
Phil Douglis11-Aug-2010 22:31
Thanks, Tim -- the brown also speaks of how New York works (or doesn't work.). Some business entity papered the wall of this construction site in blue as a nod to the neighborhood, yet people have ripped chunks of the blue paper away, exposing large areas of raw brown plywood instead. The ubiquitous graffiti adds a chaotic touch to the scene as well.
Tim May11-Aug-2010 17:01
Brown also plays a unifying role here - the brown of the people and the brown of the fence. I also note the whiteness of her blouse and the wonderful play of the shadows and her hair.
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