The Paris Chong Show

Mark Edward Harris reflects on the defining moments of his career, including his 1998 book *Faces of the 20th Century*, which featured photographic legends like Gordon Parks and Helmut Newton. He offers grounded advice for emerging photographers—emphasizing that while feeling lost at the start is common, the key to success is to simply keep moving forward.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Mark Edward Harris

https://youtu.be/5mvmBs9eHuM

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#photgraphy #advice #podcast

Acclaimed photographer Mark Edward Harris and host Paris Chong discuss the power of the Olympics to unite the world and how that spirit of connection can inspire meaningful work. Mark shares how his own experiences capturing Olympic stars like Alina Zagitova opened doors to new professional opportunities, illustrating a crucial lesson he learned from photography icons like Eve Arnold and Sebastião Salgado: never wait for the phone to ring. By emphasizing personal initiative and the importance of creating your own path, Mark offers practical advice for photographers on why being proactive is the ultimate key to a successful and fulfilling career.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Mark Edward Harris

https://youtu.be/5mvmBs9eHuM

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#olympics #photography #podcast

Paris Chong and photographer Mark Edward Harris discuss the importance of historical distance when curating and viewing photography of challenging global events like 9/11 and the pandemic. They explore how allowing these images time to breathe transforms them from painful, raw experiences into meaningful historical artifacts. The conversation also shifts to a lighthearted, serendipitous story about their shared professional connections, including a chance encounter at a Tokyo gallery opening that beautifully highlights the interconnected nature of the photography community.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Mark Edward Harris

https://youtu.be/5mvmBs9eHuM

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#photography #documentary #art

Paris Chong and acclaimed photographer Mark Edward Harris share a candid, lighthearted detour into the personal side of life as they discuss relationships, dating dynamics, and the secrets to defying the aging process. From navigating age gaps in dating to sharing a laugh over the "Dorian Gray effect," the two explore the humorous and relatable realities of growing older while staying true to one's self. This unfiltered segment offers a warm, personal glimpse into their friendship and their shared outlook on living life well.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Mark Edward Harris

https://youtu.be/5mvmBs9eHuM

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#photography #dating #travel

Paris Chong welcomes acclaimed travel and documentary photographer Mark Edward Harris to discuss his extensive career and global adventures. With a background rooted in documentary history, Mark shares his journey from starting out with stills for *The Merv Griffin Show* to photographing in over 100 countries across all seven continents. The conversation highlights his acclaimed work, particularly his artistic book *The Way of the Japanese Bath*, and his deep-seated passion for capturing stories that matter, including his experiences documenting the Winter Olympics and the World Cup.

The discussion delves deep into Mark’s philosophy as a photographer, emphasizing the importance of investing time in a location to create humanistic photo essays rather than "parachuting in" for quick, superficial shots. Mark reflects on his long-term projects in challenging environments like North Korea and his work with orangutan rescue foundations, underscoring the value of persistence, preparation, and building genuine connections with subjects. He explains how his drive to tell a story through images—whether it’s the cultural nuance of Japanese baths or the stark realities of war—has shaped his identity as a storyteller and visual artist.

Beyond the technical side of photography, the episode offers a warm and candid look at Mark’s life and outlook. He shares personal anecdotes about his love for travel, his deep connection to Japan, and his advice for aspiring photographers to be proactive rather than waiting for opportunities to come to them. Paris and Mark discuss the balance of work and personal life, the changing landscape of the industry, and the power of photography to unite and inform. It is a thoughtful conversation that inspires creators to pursue depth in their work and to keep moving forward in their own artistic journeys.

Show Notes:

www.theparischongshow.com/episodes/mark-edward-harris-documenting-the-world-with-photos-and-beautiful-books

Chapters:

00:00 Season Three Kickoff

00:40 Meet Mark Edward Harris

02:00 World Cup Ticket Chaos

03:33 Japanese Bath Book Reveal

04:53 Bathing Rituals Explained

07:18 Publishing and Photo Awards

16:02 North Korea Stories

25:31 Leica Olympics Show

26:29 Tokyo Win and COVID

27:11 Naked Hollywood Project

27:52 Let History Breathe

28:58 Phil Penman - Small World

31:15 Olympics Lessons and Access

37:58 Orangutans Books and Farewell

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

Lee Kaplan shares heartwarming memories of the late Diane Keaton, highlighting her unique spirit and her status as a devoted patron of independent bookstores. He recalls a curious anecdote about Keaton window-shopping at his former location—a behavior he notes was shared by the great painter Richard Diebenkorn—offering a glimpse into her idiosyncratic charm. The conversation then shifts to the core of Arcana Books’ identity, as Lee explains his "visually driven" philosophy. He details the store's extensive curation—spanning photography, modern art, design, fashion, cinema, music, and even cookbooks—affirming why Arcana remains a premier destination for visual culture enthusiasts in Los Angeles and beyond.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Lee Kaplan

https://youtu.be/lHTJIxcMj44

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#books #artbooks #podcast

Lee Kaplan and host Paris Chong discuss the realities of running a long-term business, with Lee candidly describing the transition from the thrill of the hunt for rare books to the daily "grind" of operations. The conversation shifts to the history of Arcana Books’ home within the iconic Helms Bakery complex, which Lee reveals was built for the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics. They explore the building's previous life as a high-end mattress showroom and share a mutual understanding of how challenging it can be for business owners to find the time and energy to engage with the art and culture scene outside of their own daily work environments.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Lee Kaplan

https://youtu.be/lHTJIxcMj44

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#arcanabooks #artbooks #podcast

Paris Chong chats with Lee Kaplan, the owner of Arcana Books, about the evolution of the independent bookselling scene in Los Angeles. Lee shares the story behind starting his iconic store in 1984, operating initially from a small one-bedroom apartment in Westwood, and explains the strategic reasoning behind choosing the name "Arcana" to stand out in the pre-internet Yellow Pages. Throughout their conversation, they reflect on how the industry has shifted over the last four decades, the disappearance of many historic and metaphysical bookstores, and Lee’s personal journey of building a long-lived, all-consuming business with passion and energy.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Lee Kaplan

https://youtu.be/lHTJIxcMj44

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#books #artbooks #podcast

Paris Chong sits down with Lee Kaplan, the owner of Arcana Books and a former fixture at the legendary Rhino Records. Kaplan shares his memories from 1975, when he served as one of the record store's original employees during its pre-label era, and details his role in scouting rare imports of creative improvised music, free jazz, and Jamaican reggae. Beyond his music industry roots, Kaplan reflects on his lifelong connection to the West Los Angeles area, offering a nostalgic look back at the neighborhood's history and his evolution from musician and visual artist to a cornerstone of the LA bookselling scene.

Show Clip from The Paris Chong Show with Lee Kaplan

https://youtu.be/lHTJIxcMj44

https://www.theparischongshow.com

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com

#arcanabooks #photography #podcast

Paris Chong welcomes Lee Kaplan, owner of the long-lived Arcana Books in Culver City, a destination known for its vast selection of visually-driven material, including modern and contemporary art, photography, music, and fashion. Kaplan discusses his eclectic background, revealing he was a musician and visual artist before opening his store. Notably, he was one of the original three employees at Rhino Records starting in 1975, where he pioneered the store's renowned selection of jazz, world music, and reggae imports.

Kaplan founded Arcana Books in 1984, originally operating out of a one-bedroom apartment in Westwood. The name "Arcana" was inspired by an avant-garde composer (and was strategically chosen to start with "A" for the pre-internet Yellow Pages). He reflects on the dramatic transformation of the book-selling landscape since the 1980s, noting the closure of many original, small used bookstores. Kaplan contrasts the early days of "the thrill of the chase" when hunting for used books with the modern grind of managing the business, sharing that his wife and partner, Whitney, assists with the operations from an annex in the Helms Bakery complex.

Today, Arcana is situated in the Helms Bakery complex, in a building rebuilt on the site of the official bakery for the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics. Kaplan emphasizes that the store serves as more than just a retail space; it acts as a "confluence and meeting place" that connects artists, photographers, and publishers for various projects, an aspect he finds very rewarding. They also discuss the importance of books as a tangible calling card for photographers, mentioning the legendary initial success of Ed Templeton’s “Teenage Smokers*”*, and reflect on the patronage of late client Diane Keaton, who was a passionate book lover and photographer.

Show Notes:

www.theparischongshow.com/episodes/lee-kaplan-arcana-books-art-and-the-history-of-los-angeles-book-culture

Chapters:

00:00 Show Intro and Guest

01:27 From Music to Books

03:24 Rhino Records Deep Dive

06:00 West LA Food Detour

07:27 Family Roots and Influences

11:09 Why Arcana Books

15:10 Bookstore Life and Partnership

24:32 Old Hollywood Holdouts

25:03 Diane Keaton at Arcana

29:22 Arcana’s Book Universe

31:11 Famous Faces and Connections

34:45 Selling Books and Being Cut Out

40:04 Why Photographers Need Books

44:17 Martin Parr Pick and Final Plug

🎵 Music by ⁠Andrew Raiher⁠ https://andrewraiher.com/

📸 Shot & Edited at ⁠Visible Audio Studios https://www.visibleaudiostudios.com