Water for tears - Joan Liftin

Joan Liftin's third monograph,
Water for Tears , is a lyrical memoir. The book is about
family and trips, about running away and coming back, short texts and photographs
about pleasure in the newness of everyday life. There are layered images from
everywhere, like the blind woman feeling her way by a timeworn splattered wall in
Mexico or the teenage boys posing with a head of Reagan in the Soviet Union in 1988,
while the darkest ones are from the American South's brutality during the struggle of
the Civil Rights Movement. Her observations are mysterious, sensuous and often very
funny. At the heart of the book is a tender farewell to her life with Charlie, Magnum
photographer Charles Harbutt. There are no captions or dates, except in the back of
the book, but you know where you are - you are with Joan.