Steve I know little to nothing of Ms Arbus's work. Name is familiar but I have not viewed any of her work.
I must do that.
Glad you have that opportunity!
Great composition.
Dan
Danpbphoto wrote:
Steve I know little to nothing of Ms Arbus's work. Name is familiar but I have not viewed any of her work.
I must do that.
Glad you have that opportunity!
Great composition.
Dan
She is one of the most renowned although controversial photographers of the 20th century. She photographed many people then considered on the margins of society: transvestites, circus side show performers, nudists, homosexuals, intellectually disabled people, strippers, etc. She grew up in NYC, married, had two children, divorced, and worked as a fashion and freelance photographer for many years. Unfortunately, she was troubled and committed suicide at the age of 48.
eeneryma wrote:
She is one of the most renowned although controversial photographers of the 20th century. She photographed many people then considered on the margins of society: transvestites, circus side show performers, nudists, homosexuals, intellectually disabled people, strippers, etc. She grew up in NYC, married, had two children, divorced, and worked as a fashion and freelance photographer for many years. Unfortunately, she was troubled and committed suicide at the age of 48.
taildraggin wrote:
Yes, Gotta go. (She lived on E10th by Stuyvesant St, near Saul Leiter.)
Hi Charles, Arbus lived for a few years at 120 East 10th Street, right across the street from Saul Leiter. I don't know if they knew each other. After that, she moved to Westbeth where she lived until her death.
I don’t know why you posted this in two forums and while I do think the forum categories are somewhat arbitrary I think it definitely belongs here in “People Photography.” So that’s where I’ll add my review of her show (and the Armory).
I’ve been to a lot of events and exhibitions at the Park Avenue Armory over the years. It has to be 15+ years since it was renovated and converted to (primarily) a public art exhibition space. I had this exhibit on the calendar from when it was announced.
It did not disappoint. Bottom line is I thought her body of work is extraordinary and presenting it at the Park Avenue Armory was special.
For those unfamiliar, the Armory building is massive taking up an entire city block and the Drill Hall where they have the larger events/exhibitions is 55,000 square feet (I looked it up.) with a very tall curved ceiling. It’s just a very impressive room to present anything.
They only use a portion of the Drill Hall for the Arbus exhibit. When you get to the East end of the exhibit you realize there is a temporary mirror like surface hung. The portion they use is split into a smaller space that you enter first which has a timeline of each year of her life on one of the walls. And then you enter into the large space with her prints. She was not only a very talented photographer she was a very talented film developer/printer (is that what you call it?). I have some phone photos from the exhibit but i don’t know how to display them here and anyway they don’t do any justice to her a silver gelatin prints.
I think many readers of this forum will instantly recognize some of her work even if they weren’t aware who the photographer was such as the “Identical twins, Rosell, NJ, 1967.” She was a New Yorker so many of her photos were taken around and of people in the city.
In addition to the photographic exhibit in the Drill Hall in another room there is a movie about her and her process. And there are other rooms worth checking out. The Veterans Room where they set up a small bar is quite an impressive room. There are also paintings along the hallway walls. I particular like “The Departure of the 7th Regiment to the War, April 19, 1861” painted by Thomas Nast outside of The Veterans Room.
If you are local and have any interest whatsoever in “people photography” which you likely have if you’re reading this you should see this exhibit. Ditto if you will be in Manhattan while it’s ongoing.
PS, for a bit of trivia, her ex-husband Allan Arbus who she remained friendly with left the commercial photography business and subsequently had a very successful career in TV and movies. Among many roles, he played the psychiatrist on the TV show MASH.
TT1000 wrote:
I don’t know why you posted this in two forums and while I do think the forum categories are somewhat arbitrary I think it definitely belongs here in “People Photography.” So that’s where I’ll add my review of her show (and the Armory).
I’ve been to a lot of events and exhibitions at the Park Avenue Armory over the years. It has to be 15+ years since it was renovated and converted to (primarily) a public art exhibition space. I had this exhibit on the calendar from when it was announced.
It did not disappoint. Bottom line is I thought her body of work is extraordinary and presenting it at the Park Avenue Armory was special.
For those unfamiliar, the Armory building is massive taking up an entire city block and the Drill Hall where they have the larger events/exhibitions is 55,000 square feet (I looked it up.) with a very tall curved ceiling. It’s just a very impressive room to present anything.
They only use a portion of the Drill Hall for the Arbus exhibit. When you get to the East end of the exhibit you realize there is a temporary mirror like surface hung. The portion they use is split into a smaller space that you enter first which has a timeline of each year of her life on one of the walls. And then you enter into the large space with her prints. She was not only a very talented photographer she was a very talented film developer/printer (is that what you call it?). I have some phone photos from the exhibit but i don’t know how to display them here and anyway they don’t do any justice to her a silver gelatin prints.
I think many readers of this forum will instantly recognize some of her work even if they weren’t aware who the photographer was such as the “Identical twins, Rosell, NJ, 1967.” She was a New Yorker so many of her photos were taken around and of people in the city.
In addition to the photographic exhibit in the Drill Hall in another room there is a movie about her and her process. And there are other rooms worth checking out. The Veterans Room where they set up a small bar is quite an impressive room. There are also paintings along the hallway walls. I particular like “The Departure of the 7th Regiment to the War, April 19, 1861” painted by Thomas Nast outside of The Veterans Room.
If you are local and have any interest whatsoever in “people photography” which you likely have if you’re reading this you should see this exhibit. Ditto if you will be in Manhattan while it’s ongoing.
PS, for a bit of trivia, her ex-husband Allan Arbus who she remained friendly with left the commercial photography business and subsequently had a very successful career in TV and movies. Among many roles, he played the psychiatrist on the TV show MASH....Show more →
So glad you liked the Arbus exhibit too. For those that revere her work, this is probably a once in a lifetime opportunity to see all of her best photos in one place.
Arbus was initially a fashion/studio portrait photographer. When she separated from her husband who she was in business with, she started photographing on the "street" and then pitching magazine assignments. Like many street photographers, she engaged with people that caught her imagination in places like Washington Square Park and Central Park. She kept a journal and made lists of people/events that she wanted to photograph, like beauty contests, circuses, mortuaries, twins conventions, nudist colonies, etc.
I often cross post to both the people forum and the city/street/architecture forums as they overlap. If you post a reply to the people forum that is cross posted, you will see that same reply in the city/street/architecture(csa) forum. There are street photographers that post to the csa forum who never post on the people forum, and vice versa.
Bill Gass wrote:
Nice work Steve.
I just did a few pictures last week and one last month...I Can't imagine displaying 450 pictures.
.
And TT1000...Very nice post.
Thanks Bill. As far as 450 photos on display, don't forget that Arbus was constantly pitching and getting magazine assignments as well as creating projects that she pursued on her own. She was very industrious and prolific.
Though I don't always enjoy Arbus' edgy photos, I love this exhibit's presentation of her work. Gallery walls are opened up, leaving a 3D grid of frames within frames. Diane's work was an effort to see through walls, both personal and societal, and this expresses that. As visitors study each print, they also can be seen and studied by others, face to face, at close range. That's exactly what she was always trying to do, I think.
