Weegee

Weegee "At Eddie Condon's in Greenwich Village"

1945

Arthur Felling, better known as Weegee (1899-1968) is America's premiere photojournalist and one of the last century's most influential photographers. He would become famous, beyond...

Weegee (1899-1968) was equally fascinated and inspired by cinema and all of its tangents, from Hollywood movie stars to ordinary civilians going to the movies. While Weegee is typically associated with crime/disaster images, the broad theme of "entertainment" is a major component of his oeuvre. An interesting and provocative sub-genre of his cinema-related work are his images of couples (often heavy-petting) in movie theatres. Recent scholarship has established that many of Weegee's supposed clandestine images were actually staged or arranged with friends or co-operative strangers. Nevertheless, Weegee created these photographs in the dark with an array of clever techniques including infrared film, filtered flashbulb and triangular prism lens. Employed in shots such as this one, the prism lens would allow the artist to “see around corners,” useful at times when his subjects were in compromising locations. These images of kissing couples, Weegee wrote in 1959, were “his best seller, year in and year out.” "Sailor and GIrl at the Movies...

Innovative, provocative, inimitable - these are just a few of the words to describe America's boldest photographer. Arthur Fellig, better known as Weegee (1899-1968) was a ground-breaking, successful (and notorious) photojournalist. His images shot on the streets of New York City are iconic and influential. In the 1930s he became the first New York City press photographer to obtain permission to install a police radio in his car. This allowed him to follow the city's first responders and to document their duties; responding to fire, crime, debauchery and of course, murder. By the early 1940s Weegee was experiencing fatigue with crime reportage. Ironically, this was also the point when he finally began experiencing professional validation and acclaim, to the point of being a minor celebrity. Notably in 1941 he was included in The MoMA's seminal "50 Photographs by 50 Photographers" (curated by Edward Steichen). The museum would also acquire five Weegee photographs...

Robert Mapplethorpe earned his place in the canon from his incredible output of images that ranged from beautiful to brutal. Mapplethorpe was one of the key artists who helped elevate photography from image-making to fine art. Mapplethorpe (1946-1989) fearlessly depicted the body (his own, friends' and lovers') in a way that positioned his work in line with masters such as Reubens, Courbet and Eadweard Muybridge to mention a few. Despite the sometimes shocking content of his work, Mapplethorpe's photographs possess a formalist quality with their undeniable beauty and strict compositions. From 1978-1981, Mapplethorpe created thirty-nine black and white photographs that make up his acclaimed XYZ Portfolios. While each portfolio is a distinct exploration of Mapplethorpe's signature subject matter, when combined, XYZ Portfolios serves as a definitive and in-depth representation of his mature and most sought-after, period. (Of the portfolios, X explores homosexuality and sadomasochism; Y features floral still life; while Z showcases portraits of Black men) Click here to see a portrait from the Z portfolio. In 2012, the XYZ Portfolios were shown in an exhibition at LACMA and presented in three rows (X on top, followed by Y in the middle, and Z below) as Mapplethorpe had envisioned them in 1989. "Gardenia" is one of thirteen images from the Y Portfolio, featuring a fragrant and graphic flower. Shot overhead, this tranquil image captures a delicate flower subtly floating in a dark, contrasting bowl. Aside from the flower's shadow below, the still water is nearly inconspicuous, contributing to the air of grace and elegance that this piece evokes. While the depiction is straightforward, Mapplethorpe's contrasts lead to a more ambiguous image; is this actually a flower or some alien specimen being examined? This powerful black and white image is a prime example of Mapplethorpe's work, highlighting his studio-centric practice as well as his refined and meticulous printing. This is a rare opportunity to acquire an iconic work by one of the most influential photographers of the 20th Century. Caviar20 is proud to be offering this monumental and important piece. "Gardenia" USA, 1978 Gelatin silver print Signed in ink by Michael Ward Stout and credited and dated on photographer's estate stamp, mount verso. 13.25"H 12.75"W (image) 16.75"H 16"W (framed) Very good condition Provenance: Xavier Hufkens...

While many first associate Weegee (aka Arthur Fellig) with New York City crime scenes, perhaps a broader and more consistent theme is that of spectacle and/or urban entertainment. The origins of his nick-name and reputation date back to the 1930s when he became the first New York City press photographer to obtain permission to install a police radio in his car. Following the city's first responders and documenting their duties, Weegee had unprecedented access to New York’s fires, crimes, debaucheries and of course, murders. During the first decade of his career these unflinching urban tragedy or crime images paid Weegee's bills, but as he became more financially independent he was more inspired to pursue photographs on his own agenda. While his oeuvre is vast, Weegee was especially drawn to entertainment: nightlife, circuses, the theatre, showgirls, city thrills, the cinema etc. Some of Weegee's most dynamic and tender (and under-appreciated!) images are related to simply having fun (in a crowd). He was not confined to one neighbourhood or demographic. He captured action, faces and events from Coney Island to the Bowery and Greenwich Village, to Times Square and Harlem. In “A Trip To Mars,” Weegee depicts a multi-generational group crowding around a large telescope...

Diane Arbus (1923-1971) is one of the most influential and daring photographers of the 20th century. Arbus is best known for her unique form of documentary portraiture. She explored the uncanny, the marginalized, and the idiosyncratic characters who defied mid-century conformity. Her work has influenced some of the most renowned photographers of our time including Nan Goldin. While her career launched in the fashion world, it was years after quitting commercial photography (circa 1956) that she found her voice as an artist. With camera in hand, she followed her fascination with the eccentric individuals and oddities of New York City. Ultimately rejecting her affluent, sheltered upbringing and the mainstream fashion industry to create her own definitions of beauty. Arbus’ portraits were considered incredibly provocative for their bold representations of sexuality, chaos, and grit. She fully immersed herself within the queer and alternative communities she documented, engaged with a curious balance of mystery and homage. Shot in 1966, "Groom Kissing His Bride" is a prime example of her uncanny ability to capture even the most traditional moments (a wedding) through a lens of surrealism. Love and tension confront each other as the groom kisses the bride with an attacking passion. Her likeness disappears behind his embrace and their newlywed bodies merge together. This work also contains Arbus’ visual trademarks – a black and white palette, a square crop, and a hard flash that flattens the aesthetic wonderland of New York. Today, Arbus' work is celebrated in many major museum collections including the Art Gallery of Ontario, Art Institute of Chicago, National Museum of Modern Art (Tokyo), and Centre Pompidou (Paris). "Groom Kissing his Bride, NYC" USA, 1966 Gelatin-silver print Printed by Neil Selkirk Stamped 'A Diane Arbus photograph...

Bruce Cratsley, American (1944-1998) Vintage gelatin silver print Lifting Hand (Scot) Chez Moi A surrealist image of a hand with a light study Hand signed, titled and dated 1986-1988 verso image (each): 15 1/4 x 15 1/4 inches, matted to 24 X 20 inches Provenance: From the collection of AGFA Graphics Corporation David Bruce Cratsley (1944 - 1998) was an American photographer specialized in still lifes, portraits of friends, and life in New York City. He had a reputation of master of light and shadow. Bruce Cratsley attended Swarthmore College, graduating in 1966, and then, in the early 1970s, The New School for Social Research, studying under Lisette Model. Cratsley worked for many years as a gallerist at Marlborough Gallery before quitting in 1986 to become a full-time photographer. As "Bruce Cratsley", he exhibited in various New York galleries, like: Laurence Miller Gallery, Howard Greenberg Gallery and Witkin Gallery. Cratsley was represented by Yancey Richardson Gallery, a dealer of fine art photography based in SoHo. He was photographed by Elsa Dorfman...

Silver Photographic print of a bedside table and lamp by D. Smalen. Signed lower Right on mat "D. Smalen." Circa 1980-90. Size 10"H x 8"W , Sight, 9"H x 7.25"W, Mat, 16"H x 20"W.

This collage of gelatin silver prints was created by American photographer Christopher Makos. Makos is well known for his relationships with icons like Andy Warhol, Tennessee William...

Unique Vintage gelatin silver print 7 1/4 x 6 1/8 in. Titled, dated, and artist stamp. Born in Munkacs, Hungary, John Albok learned photography as a boy. He came to the U.S. in 1921...

New York Architect Robert Nichols 11/30/1959 Photographer is Fred McDarrah Over a 50-year span, McDarrah documented the rise of the Beat Generation, the city’s postmodern art movement, its off-off-Broadway actors, troubadours, politicians, agitators and social protests. Fred captured Jack Kerouac frolicking with women at a New Year’s bash in 1958, Andy Warhol adjusting a movie-camera lens in his silver-covered factory, and Bob Dylan offering a salute of recognition outside Sheridan Square near the Voice’s old office. Not just a social chronicler, McDarrah was a great photo-journalist. For years, McDarrah was the Voice's only photographer and, for decades, he ran the Voice’s photo department, where he helped train dozens of young photographers, including James Hamilton, Sylvia Plachy, Robin Holland and Marc Asnin. His mailbox was simply marked "McPhoto." An exhibit of McDarrah’s vintage photos of artists presented by the Steven Kasher Gallery in Chelsea was hailed by The New York Times as “a visual encyclopedia of the era’s cultural scene.” artists in their studios, (Alice Neel, Philip Guston, Stuart Davis, Robert Smithson, Jasper Johns, Franz Kline), actors (Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro on the set of “Taxi Driver”), musicians (Janis Joplin, Alice Cooper, Bob Dylan) and documentary images of early happenings and performances (Yayoi Kusama, Charlotte Moorman, Al Hansen, Jim Dine, Nam June Paik). The many images of Andy Warhol include the well-known one with his Brillo boxes at the Stable Gallery in 1964. Woody Allen, Diane Arbus, W. H. Auden, Francis Bacon, Joan Baez, Louise Bourgeois, David Bowie, Jimmy Breslin, William Burroughs, John Cage, Leo Castelli, Christo, Leonard Cohen, Merce Cunningham, William de Kooning, Jim Dine, Mark di Suvero, Marcel Duchamp, Bob Dylan, Federico Fellini, Allen Ginsberg, Robert Indiana, Mick Jagger, Jasper Johns, Kusama, John Lennon, Sol Lewitt, Roy Lichtenstein, Nam June Paik, Elvis Presley, Claes Oldenburg, Yoko Ono, Robert Rauschenberg, Lou Reed, James Rosenquist, Mark Rothko, Ed Ruscha, Robert Smithson, Susan Sontag, Andy Warhol, and others. McDarrah’s prints have been collected in depth by the J. Paul Getty Museum and the National Portrait Gallery, Washington. His work is in numerous public and private collections. Robert Nichols (1919–2010) worked as a landscape architect and was involved in a nonprofit construction project for the teenagers of New York's Lower East Side. He was active in the antiwar movement and in the antinuclear movement. Nichols left home at an early age, and some of his travel experiences are recounted in his first book of poems, Slow Newsreel of Man Riding Train (1962). Among his many other works are a four-part series of novels set in Nghsi-Altai, a fictional utopia, the short story collection In the Air (1991), and a number of plays, some of which have been performed by the New York Public Theatre, for the New City, and the Bread and Puppet Theatre. Robert Brayton Nichols (1919-October 14, 2010) was an American poet, novelist, playwright, and landscape architect. Nichols was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. He served as an officer in the United States Navy in World War II and graduated from Harvard University. His poetry includes the volumes Slow Newsreel of Man Riding Train (1962), number 15 in the City Lights Pocket Poets Series, and Red Shift (1977). His wrote the novels From the Steam Room...

Bob Grant - Radio Personality at WOR NYC march 10, 1994 Photographer Fred McDarrah Over a 50-year span, McDarrah documented the rise of the Beat Generation, the city’s postmodern art movement, its off-off-Broadway actors, troubadours, politicians, agitators and social protests. Fred captured Jack Kerouac frolicking with women at a New Year’s bash in 1958, Andy Warhol adjusting a movie-camera lens in his silver-covered factory, and Bob Dylan offering a salute of recognition outside Sheridan Square near the Voice’s old office. Not just a social chronicler, McDarrah was a great photo-journalist. For years, McDarrah was the Voice's only photographer and, for decades, he ran the Voice’s photo department, where he helped train dozens of young photographers, including James Hamilton, Sylvia Plachy, Robin Holland and Marc Asnin. His mailbox was simply marked "McPhoto." An exhibit of McDarrah’s photos of artists presented by the Steven Kasher Gallery in Chelsea was hailed by The New York Times as “a visual encyclopedia of the era’s cultural scene.” artists in their studios, (Alice Neel, Philip Guston, Stuart Davis, Robert Smithson, Jasper Johns, Franz Kline), actors (Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro on the set of “Taxi Driver”), musicians (Janis Joplin, Alice Cooper, Bob Dylan) and documentary images of early happenings and performances (Yayoi Kusama, Charlotte Moorman, Al Hansen, Jim Dine, Nam June Paik). The many images of Andy Warhol include the well-known one with his Brillo boxes at the Stable Gallery in 1964. Woody Allen, Diane Arbus, W. H. Auden, Francis Bacon, Joan Baez, Louise Bourgeois, David Bowie, Jimmy Breslin, William Burroughs, John Cage, Leo Castelli, Christo, Leonard Cohen, Merce Cunningham, William de Kooning, Jim Dine, Mark di Suvero, Marcel Duchamp, Bob Dylan, Federico Fellini, Allen Ginsberg, Robert Indiana, Mick Jagger, Jasper Johns, Kusama, John Lennon, Sol Lewitt, Roy Lichtenstein, Nam June Paik, Elvis Presley, Claes Oldenburg, Yoko Ono, Robert Rauschenberg, Lou Reed, James Rosenquist, Mark Rothko, Ed Ruscha, Robert Smithson, Susan Sontag, Andy Warhol, and others. McDarrah’s prints have been collected in depth by the J. Paul Getty Museum and the National Portrait Gallery, Washington. His work is in numerous public and private collections. Robert Ciro Gigante, known as Bob Grant (March 14, 1929 – December 31, 2013), was an American radio host. A veteran of broadcasting in New York City, Grant is considered a pioneer of the conservative talk radio...