Tags
chiaroscuro effect, Edward Steichen, impressionist, Mary Katrantzou, modernist photographers, monochrome, photographer, Photography, photography - images in light/shadow, pioneering photographers
The ouevre of pioneering photographer
Edward Steichen
(image from servatius.blogspot.co.uk):
Edward Steichen, behind the lens
served as inspiration for the a/w 2013 collection of Mary Katrantzou.
Ms. Katrantzou departed from her known aesthetic
of bold colour and intricate print,
adopting elements of Steichen’s arresting imagery:
monochromic
light and shadow
haze tints
cityscape, flora
impressionist
…
Edward Steichen 1879 – 1973
born in Luxembourg, raised in the United states
studied painting in Paris
but re-directed his focus to photography.
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Steichen was a man of exhaustive and impressive achievements.
In 1945, he won the Academy Award in Best Documentary
for his naval war film, Fighting Lady.
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He was the first director of photography at
MOMA (Museum of Modern Art, New York).
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He collaborated with the legendary
proponent of the photographic arts, Alfred Steiglitz.
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Steichen is famed for his use of a chiaroscuro approach
of capturing images. An interplay of light, dark, shadow
to create arresting pictorials of dramatic and painterly effect.
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To bring added dimension to his art,
Steichen experimented with novel techniques.
He sprinkled water on the lenses to create desired details.
He layered pigments over monochromatic images to incorporate a mist of colour.
Some were of an imagined, dream-like quality.
Without doubt, Steinchen revolutionised the field of photography in
how images were produced, presented and interpreted.
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‘In dream-like state’
(images from metmuseum.org):
Balzac, The Silhouette – 4 a.m., 1908
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Roudin – The Thinker, 1902
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The Flatiron, 1904
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(images from time.com):
The Brooklyn Bridge, 1903
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In Memorian, 1904
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Amy May Wong, 1903
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1906
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Hailed by many as the first ‘modern’ fashion photographer,
Steichen was chief photographer to Conde Nast Publications.
His images appeared in Vogue and Vanity Fair magazines.
His fashion photos for Vogue presented models in bold, commanding pose;
offering the clothing and wearer in contrasts of light and obscure.
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The Vogue and Vanity Fair Years
(images from flickr.com)
July 1928
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1925
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January 1936
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Model wearing Chanel, 1926
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1926
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1934
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Vogue covers
The first ‘ever’ photographic cover, January, 1932
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March 1934
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December 1933
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(images from smithsonianmag.com):
The model Dinarzade in a dress by Poiret, 1924
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(images from condenaststore.com):
November 1935
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1934
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1927
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November, 1927
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(images from corbisimages.com)
1924
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December, 1924
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August, 1935
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1930
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1934
Evening shoes by Vida Moore, June 1927
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Photographic portraits
Steichen’s images of the famed and celebrated,
seemed to capture glimpses of their inner selves.
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(smithsonianmag.com):
Gloria Swanson
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Mary Heberden, actress
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Gary Cooper, actor
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Joan Crawford, actress, 1932
dress by Schiaparelli
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Paul Robeson, singer/actor, 1933
as Emperor Jones
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(images from corbisimages.com):
Amelia Earhart, aviator, 1931
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Carl Sandburg, poet, 1919
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(image from time.com):
Fred Astaire, entertainer, 1927
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(images from thecityreview.com)
Noel Coward, playwright, 1932
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Isadora Duncan, dancer, 1921
at the portal of the Pantheon, Athens
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