Pictures and Their Stories

Still under 30, Sahihi in 1986 emigrated to New York via Germany from his native Iran and since has become a leading magazine portrait photographer known for penetrating sensitivity. Here the 152 black-and-white and 18 color plates are characteristically simple and direct portraits of contemporary personalities in the arts, along with auxiliary shots from each sitting. The portraits are accompanied by trenchant comments from the photographer's studio journal. ``Her hands cling to whatever she can find,'' notes Sahihi of author Joan Didion; Billy Wilder ``would not sit still.'' Lounge Lizards band leader John Lurie lounges and watches TV for the camera. The book's refreshingly original format enlivens pictures and stories of, among others, John Irving, Norman Loftis, Philip Glass, Jerzy Kozinski and the Rev. Al Sharpton. (Jan.)