Yousuf Karsh’s portrait of Winston Churchill used on the British ￡5 note is the most famous of his many definitive photographs of the men and women who shaped the 20th century.
Born in 1908 in the Ottoman Empire, Karsh escaped the Armenian genocide in 1922 by fleeing on foot to Syria. His father then sent him to Canada, where Karsh’s uncle worked as a photographer in Sherbrooke, Quebec. There Karsh learned photography and later took an apprenticeship with Boston painter and portrait photographer John H. Garo. Karsh opened his photography studio in 1931 and began working for the Ottawa Little Theatre. He had his journalism breakthrough in 1936 when he documented a meeting between U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King.
In 1941, his portrait of Winston Churchill with an expression of serious, steady resolve was used as the cover of LIFE magazine. The issue was credited with increasing American public support for WWII. His prolific portraiture would go on to include Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Fidel Castro, Albert Einstein, Frank Lloyd Wright, Alfred Hitchcock and more.
He was an honorary fellow of the Royal Photographic Society of London, a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and an officer of the Order of Canada. In 2002, he passed away at the age of 93.
His work is in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, the National Portrait Gallery in London and many others. His honors included the Canada Council Medal, the United States Presidential Citation, a Gold Medal from the Canadian Association of Photographic Art and the Achievement and Life Award from Encyclopedia Britannica.
On 1stDibs, find a collection of original Yousef Karsh photography.
Georgia O'Keeffe
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Printed later circa 1980-90s. Excellent condition. The piece does NOT include the frame. Frame shown just for reference. From the esta...
Silver Gelatin
Albert Einstein
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Karsh is a master 20th Century photographer. Karsh is known for his portraits of authors, scientists, artists, statesmen, musicians, and other dis...
Silver Gelatin
Pablo Casals
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative and signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Yousuf Karsh was a Canadian photographe...
Silver Gelatin
Jacques Cousteau
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Signed on mount recto. Stamped, signed and dated on mount verso. Edition 31/100 - from the Karsh Portfolio (no longer available from the Estate as a single original print). Please co...
Silver Gelatin
$1,800
Sculptor Jacques Lipchitz Photograph Portrait Yousuf Karsh Photo Vintage Print
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Surfside, FL
YOUSUF KARSH Vintage Photograph of Sculptor Jacques Lipchitz, Dimensions: sight 13 x 10-1/2 overall size is 16.5 X 14 inches mat This bears a studio stamp verso inscribed Copyright...
Photographic Paper
Black and White Silver Gelatin Photograph of Igor Stravinsky
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Houston, TX
Black and white silver gelatin portrait photograph of Igor Stravinsky by well-renowned 20th Century photographer Yousuf Karsh. Matted and framed in sil...
Silver Gelatin
Robert Oppenheimer
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Karsh is a master 20th Century photographer. Karsh is known for his portraits of authors, scientists, artists, statesmen, musicians, and other dis...
Silver Gelatin
Marx Brothers
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Karsh is a master 20th Century photographer. Karsh is known for his portraits of authors, scientists, artists, statesmen, musicians, and other dis...
Silver Gelatin
Henry Moore
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Karsh is a master 20th Century photographer. Karsh is known for his portraits of authors, scientists, artists, statesmen, musicians, and other dis...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Winston Churchill, 1941
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
11 x 14 inches (paper size) 16 x 20 inches (paper size) Signed on mount Silver gelatin print, mounted on card, printed by the artist or under his direct supervision circa 1980s Prove...
Silver Gelatin
Pablo Picasso, 1954 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography)
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
Pablo Picasso, 1954 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography) Signed on mount Silver gelatin print, mounted on card, printed by the artist or under his direct supervision 38 3/4 x 29 1/2 inches Provenance: Estate of Yousuf Karsh, Museum of Fine Arts Boston Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002) was one of the most significant portrait photographers of the twentieth century. His portraits are easily recognisable for their bold use of studio lighting and closely cropped composition. Karsh’s photographs...
Silver Gelatin
Georgia O'Keeffe, 1956 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography)
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
Georgia O'Keeffe, 1956 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography) Signed on mount Silver gelatin print 20 x 16 inches Provenance: Estate of Yousuf Karsh, ...
Photographic Paper
Martin Luther King, 1960 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography)
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
Martin Luther King, 1960 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography) Signed on mount Silver gelatin print mounted on card, printed by the artist of under his direct supervision 19 1/2 x 15 3/4 inches Provenance: Estate of Yousuf Karsh, Museum of Fine Arts Boston Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002) was one of the most significant portrait photographers of the twentieth century. His portraits are easily recognisable for their bold use of studio lighting and closely cropped composition. Karsh’s photographs...
Silver Gelatin
Martha Graham, 1948 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography)
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
John F. Kennedy, 1960 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography) Signed on mount Silver gelatin print mounted on card, printed by the artist of under his direct supervision 19 3/4 x 15 3/4 inches Provenance: Estate of Yousuf Karsh, Museum of Fine Arts Boston Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002) was one of the most significant portrait photographers of the twentieth century. His portraits are easily recognisable for their bold use of studio lighting and closely cropped composition. Karsh’s photographs...
Silver Gelatin
John F. Kennedy, 1960 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography)
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
John F. Kennedy, 1960 - Yousuf Karsh (Portrait Photography) Signed on mount Silver gelatin print mounted on card, printed by the artist of under his direct supervision 13 x 101/4 inches Provenance: Estate of Yousuf Karsh, Museum of Fine Arts Boston Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002) was one of the most significant portrait photographers of the twentieth century. His portraits are easily recognisable for their bold use of studio lighting and closely cropped composition. Karsh’s photographs...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Ernest Hemingway
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in New York, NY
16 x 20
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Albert Einstein
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in New York, NY
Signed by the photographer in ink on the mount
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Pablo Picasso
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in New York, NY
16 x 20
Price Upon Request
Pablo Picasso 1954
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative and signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Yousuf Karsh was a Canadian photograph...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Elixir
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative and signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Includes overmat - 28 x 22 inches. Yous...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Andy Warhol, 1979
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative and signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Yousuf Karsh was a Canadian photographe...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Humphrey Bogart, 1946
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative. We have a few different sizes available, unsigned and authenticated by the estate so conta...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
George Bernard Shaw
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative and signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Yousuf Karsh was a Canadian photographe...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Georgia OKeeffe
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career from the original negative and signed by the artist on the front of the mount. Yousuf Karsh was a Canadian photographer (1908 - 2002) and is considered one of the most renowned portrait photographer of our time. He has perceptively photographed the statesmen, artists, and literary and scientific figures that have shaped our lives in the 20th century. Known for his ability to transform “the human face into legend,” many of the portraits that he created have become virtually the image of the great man or woman they portray, whether Winston Churchill, Ernest Hemingway, Albert Einstein or Helen Keller...
Silver Gelatin
$7,000
H 20 in W 16 in
David Bowie by Terry O'Neill - signed lifetime edition print
By Terry O'Neill
Located in Austin, TX
Profile image of David Bowie from the ‘Yellow Mustard Suit’ series, in Los Angeles, 1974, taken by Terry O'Neill Signed limited edition, hand printed silver gelatin print. Paper s...
Silver Gelatin
Mr. Shine, 3rd Ward, Houston, Texas
By Earlie Hudnall Jr.
Located in Denton, TX
Gelatin silver print Paper size: 20 x 16 in., Image size: 19 x 12 3/4 in. Signed, titled, and dated in pencil on print verso by Earlie Hudnall, Jr. Earlie Hudnall, who is one of the...
Silver Gelatin
$751
H 9.06 in W 6.62 in D 0.02 in
Woman, street photography, Black and White, Paris, 1950s, 23 x 16, 8 cm
By Erich Andres
Located in Cologne, DE
Silver Gelatine Print by Erich Andres, ca 1950. Andres was born 1905 in Germany and passed away 1992. He started his career as a photographer in 1920. He was one of the first photogr...
Silver Gelatin, Black and White
$1,733
H 10.01 in W 8.12 in D 0.02 in
Ruth Ford - American actress and model - Original Photography by Cecil Beaton
By Cecil Beaton
Located in Cologne, DE
Ruth Ford - American actress and model - Original Photography by Cecil Beaton Photo taken in 1940s Sir Cecil Beaton (1904-1980) is considered one of the mo...
Silver Gelatin
Just Like Me
By Earlie Hudnall Jr.
Located in Denton, TX
Signed and titled. Paper size: 20 x 16 in. Image size: 19 x 13 3/4 in. Earlie Hudnall, who is one of the most notable African American photographers living today, has extensively...
Silver Gelatin
$1,016
H 14.18 in W 10.24 in D 0.08 in
Arabic Girl Photograph, Silver Salt Print, Early 20th Century, Signed
Located in Roma, IT
Arabic girl is a silver salt print realized in the early 20th century. Hand signed lower right in red pencil, not readable. Includes frame
Photographic Paper
High Desert, Spanish Ranch
By Adam Jahiel
Located in Sante Fe, NM
For years, Jahiel has been photographing the cowboys of the Great Basin–perhaps one of the most inhospitable regions of the already rugged West. These people represent one of the l...
Silver Gelatin
$751
H 11.74 in W 7.92 in D 0.02 in
Jackie Onassis, new girl in town; Black and White; Paris, 1970s, 29, 8 x 20, 1 cm
Located in Cologne, DE
Jacqueline Lee "Jackie" Kennedy Onassis (July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, and photographer who became First Lady of the United States as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. Her popularity as First Lady was due to her devotion to historical preservation of the White House, her fashion sense, and her devotion to her children, which endeared her to the American public. During her lifetime, Jackie was regarded as an international fashion icon. Her ensemble of a pink Chanel suit and matching pillbox hat that she wore in Dallas, Texas, when the president was assassinated on November 22, 1963, has become a symbol of her husband's death. (wikipedia) Description: Jacky Onassis, new...
Silver Gelatin, Black and White
$1,695
H 29.25 in W 25.5 in
Francesco Scavullo Celebrity Photography Print, 1969, Framed, Janis Joplin
By Francesco Scavullo
Located in Washington, DC
Artist: Francesco Scavullo (after) Title: Janis Joplin, 1969 Portfolio: A Photographic Retrospective, Volume I: Song Medium: Gelatin Silver Print Year: 2004 Edition: 106/150 Signed: ...
Silver Gelatin
Jackie Kennedy, Christina and Tony Radziwill
Located in Cologne, DE
Jacqueline Lee "Jackie" Kennedy Onassis (July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, and photographer who became First Lady of the United States as the wife of P...
Black and White, Silver Gelatin
$1,750
H 20 in W 16 in
Steven Tyler of Aerosmith vintage 16x20" photo signed by Norman Seeff
By Norman Seeff
Located in Austin, TX
Original darkroom print, made at the time of the photoshoot. In excellent condition, stored flat in a climate controlled atmosphere. Print in excellent vintage condition, signed by N...
Silver Gelatin
$577
H 7.09 in W 5.08 in D 0.02 in
Woman, Street Photography, Black and White, Paris, 1950s, 18 x 12, 9 cm
By Erich Andres
Located in Cologne, DE
Silver Gelatine Print by Erich Andres, ca 1950. Andres was born 1905 in Germany and passed away 1992. He started his career as a photographer in 1920. He was one of the first photogr...
Silver Gelatin, Black and White
Muhammed Ali
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
From a private collector, also an artist, who worked with Yousuf Karsh in the 1970's through inheritance to Weston Gallery. Muhammad Ali 1970 “I photographed (Ali) in 1970, as par...
Silver Gelatin
Winston Churchill
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Written by Yousuf Karsh: 1941 “My portrait of Winston Churchill changed my life. I knew after I had taken it that it was an important picture, but I could hardly have dreamed that it...
Silver Gelatin
Albert Einstein Smiling
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel, CA
Signed in ink with early markings Ottawa. Vintage Photograph. An amazing example of one of the greatest portrait photographers of our generation. Great condition.
Silver Gelatin
Ernest Hemingway
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original Opal V gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career. It was made from the original negative and signed by the artist. In Karsh's words from the 1957 sitting: “I ex...
Silver Gelatin
Sold
H 9.25 in W 6.25 in D 0.03 in
Portrait of Nikita Khrushchev in Profile, Mid Century Black & White Photograph
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Soquel, CA
Exquisite black and white photograph of Nikita Khrushchev, a portrait in profile of the former Premier of the Soviet Union, by Yousuf Karsh from his ...
Silver Gelatin, Photographic Paper
Ernest Hemingway, 1957
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Original gelatin silver print made later in the artist's career on one of his favorite papers, the Kodak Opal V which is warm in tone. It was made from the original negative and sign...
Silver Gelatin
Sold
H 11.97 in W 9.38 in
The beautiful Actress Dina Merrill captured by Karsh of Ottawa
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Cologne, DE
The beautiful Actress Dina Merrill captured by Karsh of Ottawa - Surrounded by a flurry of soft chiffon, looking serene and lovely. Dina Merrill, actual...
Silver Gelatin
Winston Churchill
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Denton, TX
Signed in black ink on mount margin. 30 x 25 x 1 3/3 in. black frame included.
Silver Gelatin
Winston Churchill, 1941
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in London, GB
Signed on mount Silver gelatin print, mounted on card, printed by the artist or under his direct supervision circa 1980s 39 1/4 x 29 1/2 inches Provenance: Estate of Yousuf Karsh, Mu...
Muhammad Ali
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002) is one of the masters of 20th century photography. His body of work includes portraits of statesmen, artists, musicians, authors, scientists, and men and wo...
Silver Gelatin
Robert Frost
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Denton, TX
Signed and numbered. Paper size: 24 x 20 in. Image size: 23 1/2 x 19 3/4 in.
Silver Gelatin
Audrey Hepburn
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Signed on the front of the mount. Rare - no photographs left in the Yousuf Karsh Estate. Printed later and signed by the artist.
Silver Gelatin