Skip to main content

George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

George Platt Lynes was lauded as one the world’s top commercial photographers in the first half of the 20th century, known for his portraits of important cultural figures, surreal fashion shoots and innovative use of lighting and evocative sets. However, in an era when homosexuality was considered a crime, Lynes had to keep secret his best work: erotic nude photographs of men.

Born in 1907 in New Jersey, Lynes attended the Berkshire School in Sheffield, Massachusetts, graduating in 1925. In his youth, Lynes had dreamed of becoming a writer. He published a literary journal and opened a bookstore, both of which were unsuccessful. When he inherited a trove of photographic equipment from a friend, Lynes turned his focus toward a career in photography.

Self-taught, Lynes proved to be a gifted talent behind the camera. His preternatural understanding of the interplay between light, shadow and form garnered critical acclaim. In 1932, Lynes had his first solo exhibition, at Leggett Gallery, followed by a two-artist show with photographer Walker Evans at Julien Levy Gallery. By 1933, Lynes became a central figure in New York photography, whose stylized technique was sought by magazines such as Harper’s Bazaar, Town & Country and Vogue

In 1935, the American Ballet Company (now the New York City Ballet) commissioned Lynes to photograph their principal dancers and performances, leading to Lynes’s appointment as the company’s primary photographer for the next 20 years. 

While Lynes enjoyed immense success as a fashion and commercial photographer from the 1930s to the 1950s, he was secretly photographing male nudes — a subject considered highly taboo at the time. Fearing criminal reprisal, Lynes hid the photos and his sexual orientation from the public, sharing his work with a few select friends. Among them was Dr. Alfred Kinsey, founder of the Kinsey Institute, who, in the late 1940s, was researching human sexuality. Enthralled by Lynes’s figurative, black and white photos of the male form, Kinsey purchased more than 600 prints and several hundred negatives at the risk of prosecution.

After he was diagnosed with lung cancer, in 1955, Lynes destroyed many of his negatives and prints. However, he entrusted a sizeable volume of his male nudes to the Kinsey Institute, which today holds the largest collection of Lynes’s works, second only to the Lynes estate. In 2019, an exhibition of images culled from the Kinsey collection, “Sensual/Sexual/Social: The Photography of George Platt Lynes,” was held at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields

Long after his death, Lynes’s legacy has shaped the evolution of sexual and gender norms. His works are highly sought by galleries and collectors of modern and contemporary photography.

On 1stDibs, discover a range of George Platt Lynes photography.

to
10
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
10
7
3
9
10
10
7
7
6
5
3
3
3
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
10
47
3,875
324
291
250
10
Artist: George Platt Lynes
George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #11 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #11 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #11 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #9 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #9 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #9 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #10 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #10 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #10 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #4 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #4 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photogra...
Category

1950s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #1 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #1 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photogra...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #8 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #8 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #8 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #12 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #12 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver portrait photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #12 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #7 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #7 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #7 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #6 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #6 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #6 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1950s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

A.J. Ynocencio
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Gelatin silver print George Platt Lynes studio stamp in black ink, verso Also titled in pencil, verso Formerly in the collection of Monroe Wheeler. This is one of Lynes' last works, which he printed from a paper negative. This artwork is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. George Platt Lynes (1907-1955) was a renowned American fashion and commercial photographer who enjoyed the prime of his career during the 1930s and 1940s. Although he was very sought after by major fashion publications for his beautiful images and stunning compositions, his real passion was the male nude, which he photographed extensively in the privacy of his studio. His connections with New York City’s cultural influencers granted him access to beautiful models, dancers, and actors whom he photographed without leaving behind his friends, lovers, and even studio assistants. Due to the revolutionary and sexually charged aspects of his work, many of his photographs remained unknown and unpublished for years, some of them coming to the light only after they were left to Dr. Alfred Kinsey’s Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction after the artist’s death in 1955. Platt Lynes is recognized today as a master of 20th-century photography, and remains as one of the most important influencers of male portraiture...
Category

1950s Other Art Style George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Related Items
'Quiet Moment' (Limited Edition)
By Edward Feingersh
Located in London, GB
'Quiet Moment' by Ed Feingersh Actress Marilyn Monroe relaxes on a couch in her hotel room at the Ambassador Hotel on March 24, 1955 in New York City, New York. A beautiful and mor...
Category

1950s Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

'Marlon Brando & Vivien Leigh Smoking On-Set'
Located in London, GB
'Marlon Brando & Vivien Leigh Smoking On-Set' Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh smoking cigarettes on the set of 'A Streetcar Named Desire,' 1951....
Category

1950s Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

National Danish Gymnastics Team: Earth #16
Located in London, GB
Toned silver gelatin print (printed 2003), , signed, dated and numbered (verso), edition '8/25', 33cm x 22cm (image size), (49cm x 37cm framed). (N.B. although this is an edition of ...
Category

1990s Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Jeffrey Cook
By George Dureau
Located in New Orleans, LA
George Valentine Dureau (1930 - 2014) was active/lived in Louisiana. George Dureau is known for Male nude figure, genre, portrait.
Category

Late 20th Century George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

National Danish Gymnastics Team: Earth #4
Located in London, GB
Toned silver gelatin print (printed 2003), signed, dated and numbered (verso), edition '20/25', 33cm x 26cm (image size), (49cm x 41cm framed). (N.B. although this is an edition of 2...
Category

1990s Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Emmitt Johnson
By George Dureau
Located in New Orleans, LA
George Valentine Dureau (1930 - 2014) was active/lived in Louisiana. George Dureau is known for Male nude figure, genre, portrait.
Category

Late 20th Century George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Nude No. 57, 1949–1950
By Irving Penn
Located in Miami, FL
The work is elegantly framed in a high-end modern frame with archival matting. 1 of no more than 12, each print differs somewhat from the others Negative and print made 1949-1950 I....
Category

1940s George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Nude No. 57, 1949–1950
Nude No. 57, 1949–1950
$41,600 Sale Price
25% Off
H 15.6 in W 14.8 in
Jerry, Provincetown
Located in London, GB
Silver print, titled (verso) by Paul Cadmus, 11cm x 13cm, (33cm x 38cm framed). the work is framed behind museum quality non-reflective UV glass. In 1937, the painters, Paul Cadmus...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Jerry, Provincetown
Jerry, Provincetown
$7,713
H 13 in W 14.97 in D 0.79 in
Elliott Gould, Donald Sutherland, Jo Anne Pflug
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A photograph by Lawrence Schiller. “Elliott Gould, Donald Sutherland, Jo Anne Pflug” is a vintage silver gelatin photograph in black and white by Ame...
Category

Mid-20th Century Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

National Danish Gymnastics Team: Sky #18
Located in London, GB
Silver gelatin print (printed 2004), signed, dated and numbered (verso), edition '15/25', 34cm x 23cm (image size), (50cm x 38cm framed). (N.B. although this is an edition of 25, onl...
Category

Early 2000s Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Watching the horse races with binoculars, Deauville, France
By Robert Capa
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Robert Capa (born Endre Ernő Friedmann October 22, 1913 – May 25, 1954) was a Hungarian–American war photographer and photojournalist. He is considered by some to be the greatest com...
Category

1950s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

National Danish Gymnastics Team: Sky #19
Located in London, GB
Silver gelatin print (printed 2004), signed, dated and numbered (verso), edition '19/25', 27cm x 23cm (image size), (46cm x 41cm framed). (N.B. although this is an edition of 25, onl...
Category

Early 2000s Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Previously Available Items
George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #5 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #5 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is Photograph #5 (similar to #4 but the head is tilted to the subject's right) from this rare collection of 12 different poses in the series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949. The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1950s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #3 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #3 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photograph of dancer Francisco Moncion. Stamped on verso - GEORGE PLATT LYNES. Photo is 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches, glossy finish in excellent condition. This photograph is #3 from a collection of 12 different poses in this series taken in Platt Lynes's NYC studio in 1949 (as per the NY Public Library archives). The cloud backdrop is recognizable in other Platt Lynes photographs. Moncion was a personal friend of Platt Lynes and this photograph is from Moncion's personal photographic collection. George Platt Lynes (1907–1955), was a gregarious American portrait, dance, fashion, and male nude photographer whose career spanned the late 1920s through the early 1950s. From age eighteen, Lynes entered the cosmopolitan world of the American expatriate community in Paris when he became acquainted with the salon of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. He began photographing authors like Stein, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Colette and soon established himself as one of the premier fashion photographers in the Condé Nast stable, documenting the ballet companies of George Balanchine/Lincoln Kirstein, and pursuing a private obsession with seductive images of young male nudes rarely published in his lifetime. Platt Lynes photographs are in the collections of every major art museum and university archive including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Yale Art Museum, and the Smithsonian. Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his forty year career, choreographers George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins in the New York City Ballet created 22 major roles for Moncion including the Dark Angel in Orpheus, Death in La Valse, Prince Ivan in Firebird, and the Boy in Afternoon of a Faun. He was also a choreographer and a talented painter who exhibited alongside Miro, Picasso and Carrado Cagli. Moncion was a popular model for many famed mid-century (late 1930s, 1940s - 1950s) figure photographers including Platt Lynes, Carl van Vechten, Maurice Seymour...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

George Platt Lynes Vintage 1949 Photograph #2 of dancer Francisco Moncion
By George Platt Lynes
Located in Glenford, NY
George Platt Lynes Photograph #2 of dancer Francisco Moncion 1949. George Platt Lynes rare original vintage 1949 gelatin silver photogra...
Category

1940s Post-War George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Ted Starkowski
By George Platt Lynes
Located in London, GB
Silver print, 25cm x 20cm, (38cm x 33cm framed). The photographed behind museum quality, UV and non-reflective glass. A titan of American 20th century photography, Platt Lynes took his first photographs as a young artist living in New York and Paris in the 1920s. He maintained an interest in the male figure throughout his career and was part of a close-knit group of artists, including Paul Cadmus, Jared French, Margaret French...
Category

1950s American Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Ted Starkowski
Ted Starkowski
H 14.97 in W 13 in D 1.19 in
Mel Fellini
By George Platt Lynes
Located in London, GB
Silver gelatin print, studio stamp (verso), 20cm x 23cm, (45cm x 46cm framed). The photographed behind museum quality, UV and non-reflective glass. A titan of American 20th century photography, Platt Lynes took his first photographs as a young artist living in New York and Paris in the 1920s. He maintained an interest in the male figure throughout his career and was part of a close-knit group of artists, including Paul Cadmus, Jared French, Margaret French...
Category

1950s American Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Mel Fellini
Mel Fellini
H 17.72 in W 18.12 in D 1.19 in
Edward Lennox Bigelow, Dora Maxwell, Jonathan Tichenor
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Vintage silver print George Platt Lynes studio stamp in black ink, verso Literature: Woody, Jack. George Platt Lynes: Photographs 1931-1955. 3rd ed., Twelvetrees Press, 1981, cover...
Category

1940s Other Art Style George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Black and White

Charles 'Tex' Smutney and Charles 'Buddy' Stanley II
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Vintage silver print George Platt Lynes studio stamp in black ink, verso This artwork is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. George Platt Lynes (1907-1955) was a renown...
Category

1940s Other Art Style George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Black and White

Charles 'Tex' Smutney and Charles 'Buddy' Stanley III
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Vintage silver print George Platt Lynes studio stamp in blue ink, verso Literature: Leddick, David. George Platt Lynes. Edited by Anatole Pohorilenko, Köln, Taschen, 2000, p. 134, ...
Category

1940s Other Art Style George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Black and White

Nude Torso (Robert L. Shafer)
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Silver print Studio stamp in black ink, verso This photograph is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. Price includes framing. George Platt Lynes (1907-1955) was a renowne...
Category

1950s Post-Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Black and White

Orpheus (Lev Christian and Marie Jeanne)
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Vintage gelatin silver print Studio stamp in black ink, verso American Ballet Theatre stamp in black ink, verso This artwork is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. George Platt Lynes (1907-1955) was a renowned American fashion and commercial photographer who enjoyed the prime of his career during the 1930s and 1940s. Although he was very sought after by major fashion publications for his beautiful images and stunning compositions, his real passion was the male nude, which he photographed extensively in the privacy of his studio. His connections with New York City’s cultural influencers granted him access to beautiful models, dancers, and actors whom he photographed without leaving behind his friends, lovers, and even studio assistants. Due to the revolutionary and sexually charged aspects of his work, many of his photographs remained unknown and unpublished for years, some of them coming to the light only after they were left to Dr. Alfred Kinsey’s Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction after the artist’s death in 1955. Platt Lynes is recognized today as a master of 20th-century photography, and remains as one of the most important influencers of male portraiture...
Category

1930s Post-Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Orpheus (Nicolas Magallanes and Francisco Moncion)
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Vintage silver print George Platt Lynes studio stamp in black ink, verso This artwork is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. George Platt Lynes (1907-1955) was a renown...
Category

1940s Post-Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Black and White

Orpheus and Eros
By George Platt Lynes
Located in New York, NY
Vintage silver print George Platt Lynes studio stamp in black ink, verso Literature: Woody, Jack. George Platt Lynes: Photographs 1931-1955. 3rd ed., Twelvetrees Press, 1981, p. 69...
Category

1930s Post-Modern George Platt Lynes Figurative Photography

Materials

Black and White

George Platt Lynes figurative photography for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic George Platt Lynes figurative photography available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by George Platt Lynes in silver gelatin print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large George Platt Lynes figurative photography, so small editions measuring 8 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Barbara Morgan, Robert Funk, and Douglas Kirkland. George Platt Lynes figurative photography prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $4,500 and tops out at $6,353, while the average work can sell for $5,427.

Recently Viewed

View All