Skip to main content

Ben Shahn Photography

American, 1898-1969
Ben Shahn (1898 – 1969) was a Lithuanian-born American artist. He is best known for his works of social realism, his left-wing political views, and his series of lectures published as The Shape of Content. Shahn began his path to becoming an artist in New York, where he was first trained as a lithographer. Shahn's early experiences with lithography and graphic design is apparent in his later prints and paintings which often include the combination of text and image. Shahn's primary medium was egg tempera, popular among social realists. Shahn mixed different genres of art. His body of art is distinctive for its lack of traditional landscapes, still lifes, and portraits. Shahn used both expressive and precise visual languages, which he coalesced through the consistency of his authoritative line. Shahn is also noted for his use of unique symbolism, which is often compared to the imagery in Paul Klee's drawings. His art is striking but also introspective. He often captured figures engrossed in their own worlds. Although he used many mediums, his pieces are consistently thoughtful and playful.
to
5
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
5
5
1
1
5
5
4
3
3
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
5
55
11,429
2,864
2,493
1,460
5
Artist: Ben Shahn
Sideshow, county fair, central Ohio

Sideshow, county fair, central Ohio

By Ben Shahn

Located in New York, NY

Sideshow, county fair, central Ohio 1938/printed later Stamped “Reproduced for the Library of Congress,” verso Gelatin silver print 8 x 10 inches (20.3 x 25.4 cm)

Category

1930s Contemporary Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Wife and child of sharecropper, Arkansas

Wife and child of sharecropper, Arkansas

By Ben Shahn

Located in New York, NY

Wife and child of sharecropper, Arkansas October, 1935 Stamped “Reproduced for the Library of Congress,” verso Gelatin silver print 8 x 10 inches (20.3 x 25.4 cm) Contact gallery...

Category

1930s Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

A destitute family, Ozark Mountains area

A destitute family, Ozark Mountains area

By Ben Shahn

Located in New York, NY

A destitute family, Ozark Mountains area 1935 Stamped “Reproduced for the Library of Congress,” verso Gelatin silver print 8 x 10 inches (20.3 x 25.4 cm) Contact gallery for pric...

Category

1930s Modern Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Sideshow, county fair, central Ohio

Sideshow, county fair, central Ohio

By Ben Shahn

Located in New York, NY

Sideshow, county fair, central Ohio 1938 Stamped, “Reproduced for the Library of Congress,” verso Gelatin silver print 8 x 10 inches (20.3 x 25.4 cm) C...

Category

1930s Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Untitled (The Noyes School of Rhythm)
Untitled (The Noyes School of Rhythm)

Untitled (The Noyes School of Rhythm)

By Ben Shahn

Located in New York, NY

Vintage gelatin silver print 6 x 9 inches This photograph is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City.

Category

1930s Other Art Style Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Related Items
Untitled Portrait
Untitled Portrait

Untitled Portrait

By Seydou Keïta

Located in New York, NY

Listing includes framing with UV Plexi ($900 value), free shipping, and a 14-day return policy. Seydou Keïta Untitled Portrait, 1952 - 1955 (02158) 23...

Category

1950s Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Ted Higby at Skyline Rodeo, 1928
Ted Higby at Skyline Rodeo, 1928

Ted Higby at Skyline Rodeo, 1928

By Lora Webb Nichols

Located in New York, NY

Listing includes framing with UV plexiglas, free shipping and a 14 day return policy. Ted Higby at Skyline Rodeo, 1928 15 x 12 inch gelatin silver print Image Size: 14 x 8.5 inches Frame size: 22.5 x 17.5 x 2 inches Edition of 15 Lora Webb Nichols was born in 1883 and grew up in the small mining town of Encampment, Wyoming. At the age of 16 Lora received her first camera and from that moment and for the next few decades she produced work that is both stunning in its singular voice and revealing in the world it opens up for us. At first Nichols photographed her family, friends, and the landscape around Encampment, but when the town experienced a copper mining boom Nichols expanded her scope to become a photographer for hire shooting portraits and industrial photographs. When the boom collapsed, Nichols took the risk of opening her own business in Encampment - The Rocky Mountain Studio - which opened in 1925. The studio ran for ten years, accumulating 24,000 negatives that illustrate the lives and environment of the people living in and around the town while creating a distinctive and surprising body of work. If one was to attempt an analogy – Nichols’ pictures fit somewhere between Lartigue and Lange - joyful and generous while objectively intimate. In particular what seems to distinguish Nichols’ work is the way she sees the world from a female perspective. As Vince Aletti...

Category

1920s Other Art Style Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

“Untitled (Twins Seated I), c. 2008” Bruce Weber Unique Silver Print Signed
“Untitled (Twins Seated I), c. 2008” Bruce Weber Unique Silver Print Signed

“Untitled (Twins Seated I), c. 2008” Bruce Weber Unique Silver Print Signed

By Bruce Weber

Located in Yardley, PA

About this work: “Untitled (Twins Seated I), c. 2008” by Bruce Weber (American, b. 1946). In this composition, two long-haired young men pose side by side, shirtless but with subtly...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Nude Paris Willy Ronis 20th Century French Humanist photography black and white
Nude Paris Willy Ronis 20th Century French Humanist photography black and white

Nude Paris Willy Ronis 20th Century French Humanist photography black and white

By Willy Ronis

Located in Paris, FR

Willy Ronis is one of the most famous members of the French Humanist photography. Silver print on photographic paper Hand-signed by the artist lower right Stamp of the artist's stud...

Category

1990s Contemporary Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Catherine Zeta-Jones (Limited Edition of 25) - Celebrity Photography
Catherine Zeta-Jones (Limited Edition of 25) - Celebrity Photography

Catherine Zeta-Jones (Limited Edition of 25) - Celebrity Photography

By John Stoddart 1

Located in New York, NY

This 1991 fine art print features Catherine Zeta-Jones when she was a TV actress in Britain and aspiring to be a Hollywood Star. Her success in The Darling Buds of May (English comed...

Category

1990s Contemporary Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Liz Hurley - Celebrity Photography Print (Limited Edition of 25) -- 20 x 24 In.
Liz Hurley - Celebrity Photography Print (Limited Edition of 25) -- 20 x 24 In.

Liz Hurley - Celebrity Photography Print (Limited Edition of 25) -- 20 x 24 In.

By John Stoddart 1

Located in New York, NY

Elizabeth Hurley photographed by British celebrity and fashion photographer John Stoddart. This risqué iconic black and white photograph expresses her incredible figure, capturing th...

Category

1990s Young British Artists (YBA) Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

"Marilyn Monroe, 1962" Photography 16 x 24 in Edition 57/75 by Lawrence Schiller
"Marilyn Monroe, 1962" Photography 16 x 24 in Edition 57/75 by Lawrence Schiller

"Marilyn Monroe, 1962" Photography 16 x 24 in Edition 57/75 by Lawrence Schiller

By Lawrence Schiller

Located in Culver City, CA

"Marilyn Monroe, 1962" Photography 16 x 24 in Edition 57/75 by Lawrence Schiller Silver Gelatin print Edition 57/75 Signed and numbered by the artist Printed later On Wednesday, May 23, 1962, Marilyn Monroe stepped onto the set of Something’s Got to Give to film what would become one of the most iconic and talked-about moments of her career: the now-legendary nude swimming pool scene. This extraordinary day—captured in a series of rare photographs by renowned photographer Lawrence Schiller—has since become a cornerstone of Hollywood history. Key moments that make this session truly historic: A Bold Cinematic First: Monroe spent nearly four hours in the pool on the 20th Century Fox lot, filming a sequence in which her character, Ellen Arden, appears to swim nude...

Category

20th Century Modern Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

The Hair Willy Ronis Humanist black and white photography woman naked nude
The Hair Willy Ronis Humanist black and white photography woman naked nude

The Hair Willy Ronis Humanist black and white photography woman naked nude

By Willy Ronis

Located in Paris, FR

Willy Ronis is one of the most famous members of the French Humanist photography. Silver print on photographic paper Hand-signed by the artist lower right Stamp of the artist's stud...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Actress Gina Bellman (Limited Edition of 25) -  30x40 In - Celebrity Photography
Actress Gina Bellman (Limited Edition of 25) -  30x40 In - Celebrity Photography

Actress Gina Bellman (Limited Edition of 25) - 30x40 In - Celebrity Photography

By John Stoddart 1

Located in New York, NY

This iconic 1989 photograph features actress Gina Bellman posing on top of a column, accompanied by two monkeys. It was shot by celebrity and fashion phot...

Category

1980s Young British Artists (YBA) Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Joan Didion, Hollywood, 1968 (Frame 33a.)

Joan Didion, Hollywood, 1968 (Frame 33a.)

By Julian Wasser

Located in New York, NY

This is a limited edition 16 x 20 inch print of Joan Didion by photographer Julian Wasser shot for her iconic interview with TIME in 1968. Listing includes free shipping to the continental US and a 14-day return policy. Please inquire for framing options or international shipments. We offer framing services through our New York location. Joan Didion by Julian Wasser Gelatin Silver Print Paper Size: 16 x 20 inches Image Size: 11.5 x 17.5 inches Edition 9 of 15 Signed and on the back by Julian Wasser and editioned on adhesive certificate History Behind the Photograph - Julian Wasser started his career in photography in the Washington DC bureau of the Associated Press where he met and accompanied the famous news photographer Weegee – who would become a lasting influence on him. In the mid-60s Wasser moved to Los Angeles as a contract photographer for TIME, LIFE, and FORTUNE magazines and becoming internationally known as the go to guy for getting candid but memorably composed photographs. (His iconic images of Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston; Marcel Duchamp and Eve Babitz...

Category

1960s Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Liz Hurley (Limited Edition of 25) - Celebrity Photography - 30x40 Print
Liz Hurley (Limited Edition of 25) - Celebrity Photography - 30x40 Print

Liz Hurley (Limited Edition of 25) - Celebrity Photography - 30x40 Print

By John Stoddart 1

Located in New York, NY

Elizabeth Hurley photographed by British celebrity and fashion photographer John Stoddart. This risqué iconic black and white photograph expresses her incredible figure, capturing the actress completely naked, against the head of a large Grecian bust...

Category

1990s Young British Artists (YBA) Ben Shahn Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Ben Shahn photography for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Ben Shahn photography available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Ben Shahn in silver gelatin print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1930s and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Ben Shahn photography, so small editions measuring 9 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Robert Capa, Murray Garrett, and Richard Avedon. Ben Shahn photography prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $100 and tops out at $100, while the average work can sell for $100.
Questions About Ben Shahn Photography
  • 1stDibs ExpertFebruary 7, 2024
    The style of art of Ben Shahn is social realism. Artists working in this movement sought to highlight social issues by depicting scenes that showed the struggles of modern-day life. For example, Shahn produced four paintings and more than 100 drawings inspired by a 1947 mining accident that killed 111 people in Centralia, Illinois. Arguably the most famous of these works is Miner's Wives, which shows the widows of the miners in mourning. On 1stDibs, shop a variety of Ben Shahn art.