The Invisible Man
by, Gilles Peress
“I’ve known Viorel Fiorescu for many years. We have traveled together, shared rooms, food, cars, cameras, computers, ideas, pain, joy and dangers together. Viorel is the reverse of what you would call a prima-donna. He is the ideal travel companion, he is modest and above all unassuming. Viorel has this unique ability to disappear in the landscape. He is like a chameleon that takes the color of whatever environment he is in. You see Viorel in the midst of a group of Afghan Pashtuns and he blends in, he disappears. And that unique ability frees him to photograph unencumbered. Suddenly out of nowhere the invisible man steps into action and produces an exceptional image that is straight from the heart that is unique in many ways; unique because of its justness to the moment, unique because of its emotionality and its empathy for the circumstances and fate of the subject, unique because of the respect for the subject that comes from one man looking at another one and not out of a position of arrogance – e.g. photojournalist star making his definitive statement for the next World Press, unique by its simplicity and transparency, and unique by its perfect balance of form and content.
I have enormous respect and affection for Viorel because of all of the above and hope to find myself again on some dusty road with this most compassionate man.”
Gilles Peress
Gilles Peress is the recipient of many awards including fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, La Fondation de France, and the National Endowment for the Arts. He also received the W. Eugene Smith Award for Humanistic Photography. more
