What makes a city a city? Is it the buildings, the people or is it an interplay of both?

In his coffee table book Metropolis, Allan Schaller has answered this question in his own individual way, setting standards in modern street photography. For all lovers of spectacular black-and-white photography, the coffee table book Metropolis is a must-have. In a unique way, Allan Schaller depicts urban contrasts that big cities like New York, London, Havana, Kyoto or Istanbul hold in store in their architecture and everyday life.

In Metropolis, Allan Schaller elevates unusual city views to an art form, plays with light and shadow and creates a world in black and white that captivates the viewer. The photographs seem like random snapshots. As if the viewers were walking through the streets himself and catching a glimpse of a scene out of the corner of his eye. This is what fans of Schaller love about his work. The photo artist manages to capture the moment of surprise for eternity.

Text in English and German.

About the Author

Alan Schaller is a London-based photographer who specialises in black and white photography and whose works always illuminate the realities and diversities of human life. They are often abstract, contain elements of surrealism as well as geometry and are characterised by high contrasts.

Schaller's photographs are exhibited worldwide and published in The Guardian, The New York Times and The Independent, among others. He is an ambassador for Leica cameras and co-founder of the Street Photography International Collective.