I have great admiration for Bill Cunningham for a number of reasons. Bill is one of the fashion photographers for the New York Times. I don’t know how long he has been in that position, but he has been shooting fashion from the streets of New York for about four or five decades now and has seen just about every trend come and go.
Bill is the subject of a recent documentary by Richard Press, who spent a fair amount of time documenting Bill’s dedication to his passion. Bill is a fashionista first and a photographer second. Photography is a tool he uses to record the current trend.
Bill is a former milliner who stumbled his way into fashion critique. He earned his living doing odd jobs while he pursued his passion: making hats. He later started writing about fashion trends and eventually someone gave him a camera to record what he sees. That passion for what people are wearing has carried him through his life.“I’m just about documenting what I see,” he said in the documentary. And he has pursued that for almost five decades now, mostly in New York.
There are other reasons to respect Bill. He has a focus. He knows what he is seeking and why he wants it. His passion is one he has pursued for decades and you have to respect perseverence. He is not a paparazzi. He pursues everyone and holds great compassion for his subjects. His focused has ranged from fanny packs, shoes, colors, men in skirts, and other fashion trends which have come and gone over the years on New York Streets. His focus is on the clothes people wear on the streets as well as what designers put on a runway.
I also admire his somewhat quixotic reaction to money. He wouldn’t take payment for one of his early projects because he didn’t want his editorial freedom compromised. “If you don’t take cash, they can’t tell you what to do,” he told the filmmakers. “Money is the cheapest; liberty is the most expensive.”
He has invitations to just about every social event in New York, but he is generally not interested in the guest list. Rather, he wants to know what cause it is supporting. He really has no interest in the celebrity scene, unless they’re wearing something interesting. That’s Bill.
Finally, I admire Bill for his stamina. He must be about 85 now and still works full time. You can check out his work at www.nytimes.com.