My Father When Young
Michael Tisserand began a pandemic project: he started going through the boxes he saved after his father, Jerry Tisserand, died in 2008. That’s where he first discovered his father’s penchant for photography. He presents a selection of the elder Tisserand’s photographs in My Father When Young.
All of the images included in this collection date from the 1950s. They are presented in full color, and are divided into three sections, covering Jerry’s weekend leave in Europe while he was in the US Army; shots from his return to Evansville, Indiana; and pictures from New Orleans during Mardi Gras in 1959.
While he was not a professional photographer, Jerry Tisserand had a good sense of composition, took enough shots for his photographs to tell clear stories, and was present for interesting historical moments. His photographs from his European leave include Parisian shots of Yugoslavian President Josip Broz Tito’s visit there in 1956. One photograph shows the motorcade in motion; others focus in on the crowd waiting for Tito. And the Mardi Gras photographs were taken during the second official year of the gay Carnival krewe, and feature memorable, elaborate costumes.
Jerry Tisserand’s Evansville photographs are more family focused, featuring scenes like a New Year’s Eve party and the photographer’s sister’s wedding. They help to make My Father When Young a pleasant collection of 1950s imagery that pays tribute to a father’s hidden talent.
Reviewed by
Jeff Fleischer
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