From House Collective:
The New York-born photographer Meryl Meisler was an all-seeing-eye at the beating heart of the disco era, and her archive provides a unique insight into the Big Apple in the 1970s and 1980s – capturing the high-octane hedonism that fuelled the iconic nightclub Studio 54 with humour, compassion and enthusiastic verve. Sharing an aesthetic commonality with her hero Diane Arbus, Meisler had a camera firmly in-hand from a very young age, and studied her craft as a young woman with legendary photographer Lisette Model. However, despite her passion for reportage, it was only when she retired from her life as teacher in one of Brooklyn’s toughest neighbourhoods back in 2010 that she actually began releasing her extensive archives – captivating time capsules of disco, glamour, family life and strip clubs that have led to global exhibitions, and the publishing of a number of celebrated monographs (purchasing details of prints and at end of article). Here, in a rare interview, the photographer who has provided the world with a vital window into one of the most explosive moments in the cultural history of the USA shares her memories of the era, and tells us why we should all strive to live for the day.