CORY REYNOLDS | DATE 2/20/2014

Aaron Stern: I Woke Up in My Clothes

In Aaron Stern's new monograph, I Woke Up in My Clothes, essayist Rich Appel writes, "I know firsthand how much more Aaron sees than ordinary folks. One of my favorite images of his is that of a mustard-colored banquette. There's nothing fancy about the picture. The booth looks worn and faded and a little lonely. It's empty except for a place setting with no plates, and no food either. And yet that's not the whole story. The booth is also solid and well-made and resilient; there aren't any tears in the seat and back cushions. And the tufts, on second glance, create a series of diamonds, some of which literally shimmer in the light. It looks inviting and reassuring in its unpretentiousness. The color scheme and its no-nonsense style remind me of a favorite photograph by Stephen Shore of a Howard Johnson's hotel room in 1973. I told Aaron how much I liked his photograph and asked him where it was taken. He looked at me as if I were joking. Turns out it's a booth in a Mexican restaurant about two miles from my house in Los Angeles; I've been there many times. More embarrassing still, he told me that I was in his group the night he stepped away from our meal and took the picture. For all I know, I've sat in that booth, and it all looked new; I had never seen it the way Aaron did. And now that picture hangs on my wall, a reminder that I've got to learn from Aaron and open my eyes a little wider to the world around me."