Diane Arbus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Diane Arbus | |
 Screen test of Diane Arbus, photo by Allan Arbus c. 1949 |
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| Birth name | Diane Nemerov |
| Born | March 14, 1923. New York City, New York, United States |
| Died | July 26, 1971 (aged 48) Greenwich Village, New York, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Field | Photography |
| Works | Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park (1962) Identical Twins, Roselle, New Jersey, 1967 (1967) |
Diane Arbus (14 March 1923 – 26 July 1971) was one of the most original and influential American photographers of the 20th century. In 2003 she and her work were the subject of a major exhibition: Diane Arbus Revelations that was organized by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and traveled to other locations including The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 2005. In 2006 her life story was the subject of a motion picture starring Nicole Kidman as Diane Arbus.
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[edit] Personal life
Diane Arbus (née Nemerov) was born in New York City into a wealthy, Jewish family, [1] the younger sister of Howard Nemerov, who served as United States Poet Laureate on two separate occasions. She attended the Fieldston School for Ethical Culture.
She married her childhood sweetheart Allan Arbus in 1941. During the 1940s she and her husband began a commercial photography business. In the 1940s Diane Arbus took classes with Berenice Abbott. Their daughter, Doon, was born in 1945 and their second daughter, Amy was born in 1954. In 1955 she studied with Alexey Brodovitch and she studied with Lisette Model in 1956-58. Diane and Allan Arbus separated in 1959, and they were divorced in 1969.[2][3]
In 1963 and 1966 Diane Arbus was awarded Guggenheim Fellowships for her project American Rites, Manners and Customs. During the 1960s, Diane Arbus taught photography at the Parsons School of Design, and The Cooper Union in New York City and the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island.[2]
On July 26, 1971, while living at Westbeth Artists Community, and suffering from depression, Diane Arbus took her own life, by ingesting pills and slashing herself with a razor. She was 48 years old.[4]
[edit] Career highlights
- Edward Steichen's noted photo exhibit, The Family of Man, included a photograph credited to Diane Arbus and her husband.[5]
- One of Arbus' studies included such people as Gloria Vanderbilt's then-infant son, future CNN anchorman Anderson Cooper, for Harper's Bazaar.[6]
- In 2006, the film Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus was released, starring Nicole Kidman as Arbus. It used Patricia Bosworth's book Diane Arbus: A Biography as a source.
[edit] Famous photographs
- Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park,[7] New York City (1962) — A scrawny boy, with the left strap of his jumper awkwardly hanging off his shoulder, tensely holds his long, thin arms by his side. Clenching a toy grenade in his right hand and holding his left hand in a claw-like gesture, his facial expression is maniacal. Arbus captured this photograph by having the boy stand while moving around him, claiming she was trying to find the right angle. The boy became impatient and told her to "Take the picture already!" This photo was also used, without permission, on the cover of punk band SNFU's first studio album, And No One Else Wanted to Play.
- Identical Twins, Roselle, New Jersey, 1967 — Young twin sisters are seen standing side by side in corduroy dresses. One slightly smiles and the other slightly frowns. This photo is echoed in Stanley Kubrick's film The Shining, which features twins in an identical pose.
- Jewish Giant at Home with His Parents in The Bronx, NY[8] (1970) — Eddie Carmel, the "Jewish Giant", stands in his family's apartment with his much shorter mother and father.
- Masked Woman in a Wheelchair PA, 1970
[edit] Notes
- ^ Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus - Movie - Review - New York Times
- ^ a b "Diane Arbus Revelations". Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/special/Arbus/arbus_more.htm#2. Retrieved on 2009-07-11.
- ^ Bissell, Gerhard. "GerbisNet - Diane Arbus". http://gerbis.net/publications/arbus.html. Retrieved on 2009-07-11.
- ^ Diane Arbus at the Jewish Virtual Library
- ^ Marshall, Peter. "Diane Arbus: Key Facts". About.com. http://photography.about.com/od/acphotographers/a/arbuskey.htm. Retrieved on 2006-12-22.
- ^ Bosworth, Patricia, Diane Arbus: A Biography, NYC: W.W. Norton, 1984
- ^ University of Chicago
- ^ University of Southern California
[edit] References
[edit] Biographies
- Bosworth, Patricia. 2005. Diane Arbus: A Biography. W.W. Norton, 2005. ISBN 0393326616, 978-0393326611
- Diane Arbus: Revelations. Random House, 2003. ISBN 0375506209, 978-0375506208
[edit] Photographs
- Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph, Aperture, 2005. ISBN 0893816949, 978-0893816940
- Diane Arbus: Untitled, Aperture, 2005. ISBN 089381623X, 978-0893816230
- Diane Arbus: Magazine Work, Aperture, 2005. ISBN 0893812331, 978-0893812331
[edit] External links
- Washington Post (May 12, 2005): "Double Exposure: A Moment With Diane Arbus Created A Lasting Impression", by David Segal
- Washington Post/Camera Works (undated; circa 2003): "Diane Arbus: Revealed And Rediscovered", by Frank Van Riper
- The Social Affairs Unit (Dec. 16, 2005): "Art as Freak Show: Diane Arbus, Revelations at the V&A", by Christie Davies - Review of retrospective at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, England
- Short critical biography, by Gerhard Bissell
