DogDogs Book

Though the British are well-known for their unswerving dedication to their pet dogs, American photographer Eliott Erwitt proves in Dogdogs that this can be a worldwide phenomenon. France, Greece, Ireland, the USA, Germany, Vietnam, New Guinea, Morocco, Japan, Brazil--all, according to Erwitt's pictures, have inhabitants equally dedicated to their pets as those in the UK. From the Midwestern family who place their thoroughbred at the centre of the formal family portrait, to the Vietnamese mongrel scrabbling around in the dirt, Erwitt's portraits show dogs in all their various moods. But the beauty of the collection is the real value Erwitt gives the dogs as subjects--they are not accessories to enhance cutesie pictures, nor companions for a human centrepiece; rather the focal point of his attention. Even scantily-clad joggers or sunbathers can't outshine their canine companions when seen through Erwitt's lens. With more than 850 black-and-white pictures (captions are virtually non-existent), Dogdogs needs no introduction, and Erwitt leaves his eight pages of text until the centre of the book. Even his occasional feline imposters cannot detract from what is a dog-owner's dream. From the hardy Doberman pinscher scrabbling through the dustbin for food, to the pampered poodles of New York's dog shows, Erwitt never fails to entrance. The small, thick format of Dogdogs (which is only about seven by five inches in size) elevates it above a mere coffee-table distraction--this is an intelligent, insightful, and most of all passionate, celebration of everything canine. --Lucie NaylorRead More