Review: "Misty Copeland" by Gregg Delman

Misty Copeland by Gregg Delman
Published September 2016 via Rizzoli
★★★

Second of two books of photographs of Misty Copeland that I found at the library—after checking out the first one, I had to see how this would differ. This is more varied than Henry Leutwyler's take; the photos with Leutwyler look like they come from one photo shoot, with a uniform style, while the photos in Delman's book are from multiple shoots over multiple years. Some overtly balletic, in motion or still; some with Copeland in what appear to be costume pieces; some in simple leotards; some that would not look out of place in Vogue. (And, I think, some outtakes of a shoot for Copeland's memoir?) Again very limited words—a foreword by Copeland and an introduction by Delman (the latter a bit more interesting than the former, which holds little more than praise).

The photos are, again, great. It would be hard for them to be anything else! Not all to my style (a little too much sexy in places? Personal preference; I think I prefer ballet photos that are simpler but have explosive movement), but it's impossible to miss the skill on both sides of the camera. But what can I say—the word nerdery runs deep, and I'm reviewing my experience of "reading" this as a book, not just what I think of the photos themselves. My rating would have gone up with more words on these pages.

I do want to know: where are the photo books of other ballerinas? I'm not questioning why there are multiple books of photographs of Misty Copeland—you only need to look at a picture or two of her, or see her perform, to understand that (plus she either has a good PR team or is very good at PR herself). But why am I not also seeing books of photographs of...I don't know. Megan Fairchild, Isabella Boylston, etc.? Don't tell me Instagram has become the new coffee-table book!