Reflections

Felix Oppenheim has photographed his travels around Europe and Asia since 1948, recording his delight in the world about him with his faithful Leica. Now retired as a professor of Analytic Political Philosophy from the University of Massachusetts and a lecturer at several European centers of learning, Oppenheim's fascination with architecture and their companion reflections in seas, pools and canals are now brought together in this dramatic collection of his photographs. As he says in the book's introduction: "These reflections tell us that the building with its scenery 'makes sense' even in reverse, as does the reverse theme of a Bach mirror fugue. Yet, the reflection is not a mirror image. Unlike glass, the water's texture 'plays' with the original, while remaining essentially faithful to it. When the water is moving slightly, the refection creates images of yet greater variety, like variations on an already familiar theme."