What does it look like to have eyes that see?
Walking through the streets of NYC, what do you see? If your Bill Cunningham you have an eye to see and appreciate the eclectic fashion of everyday people. Bill Cunningham, at 82 years old, has given his life to documenting and celebrating the narrative of NYC street life. He has photographed NYC fashion and society for over 50 years. Currently he’s well known for his weekly columns: “On the Street” and “Evening Hours” in the New York Times.
Cunningham is a remarkable anomaly of a man. He is kind, daring, and humble. He is an egalitarian and a maverick. He’s a historian. He uses his camera like a pen, not trying to take the best photographs but wanting to honestly document ordinary New Yorkers going about their days. Cunningham truly has eyes that see. Yes, they are keenly trained to see all things fashion, but they see in incredibly beautiful and fascinating ways.
It took Richard Press, the director, 10 years to ease Cunningham into being the subject of this documentary. And even still the film is shot without a film crew and Cunningham himself has yet to see it.
Cunningham is a cultural anthropologist and this documentary is his story. There is something absolutely endearing and captivating about this simple man and he has a thing or two to teach all of us about what it means to be an artist with eyes that see.
