60-Second Critic: Vintage Views Philadelphia

Vintage Views Philadelphia
(Aesthetic Press; $12.99)

Both the ordinary and the extraordinary history of our city are captured in this calendar edited by contemporary photographer Walter

Vintage Views Philadelphia
(Aesthetic Press; $12.99)

Both the ordinary and the extraordinary history of our city are captured in this calendar edited by contemporary photographer Walter Choroszewski. The black-and-white and sepia-toned images from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania include a diverse array of shots, from the blizzard of 1945 to a close-up of female painters in Rittenhouse Square, dating back as far as the 1800s. Some pictures are timeless — Penn's College Hall — while others show how much we've changed, especially the one taken facing west from 12th and Market to City Hall. Though the images are nicely natural and not overly romanticized, they don't all scream “Philly”; some could have been taken anywhere. But this makes the calendar all the more appealing — we are given the chance to obsess over everyday moments. Grade: A-