Howard Schatz’s Athlete could be considered an ode to human biodiversity:
A new book of photographs of 125 champion athletes. In such uniquely visionary books as Water Dance, Pool Light, Passion and Line, and Nude Body Nude, Howard Schatz has established himself as one of the great photographers of the human form.
Working primarily with dancers, Schatz has been particularly attracted to form shaped by function. Now, in Athlete, he reaches the zenith of his photographic paean to the human body, creating an astonishing record of the specialized forms both adapted to the wide spectrum of sport and shaped by fiercely focused effort.
His subjects, as varied and meticulously documented as Audubon’s birds, literally embody the astonishing array of physical perfection required for their particular sports. With a seamless blend of art and precision, Schatz shows us the awesome upper-body power of Olympic wrestling champions, discus throwers, and football players; the lissome graces of high jumpers and rhythmic gymnasts, the shock-absorbing legs of downhill skiers, the sculptural perfection of NFL wide receiver Terrell Owens and sprinter Shawn Crawford; the compact muscularity of gymnasts Tasha Schwikert and Sean Townsend; the Giacometti-like slenderness of marathoners Tegla Loroupe and American marathon champion Deena Drossin; as well as 125 other athletes at the top of their games.
In serene portraits and intricately dissected motion photographs, Schatz gives us an unprecedented celebration of the body as divine machine, and manages at the same time to present a collective view of the human spirit at its most intense.
Many of the athletes look surprisingly unathletic, because athleticism isn’t a single trait. Each athlete is a specialist in an esoteric physical task.