Arnold Newman (1918 – 2006)
Arnold Abner Newman was an American photographer, noted for his environmental portraits of artists and politicians. He was also known for his carefully composed abstract still life images. Arnold Newman found his vision in the empathy he felt for artists and their work. Although he photographed many personalities, Marlene Dietrich, John F. Kennedy, Harry S. Truman, Piet Mondrian, Pablo Picasso, Arthur Miller, Marilyn Monroe, Ronald Reagan, Mickey Mantle, and Audrey Hepburn he maintained that even if the subject is not known, or is already forgotten, the photograph itself must still excite and interest the viewer.
Arnold Abner Newman was an American photographer, noted for his environmental portraits of artists and politicians. He was also known for his carefully composed abstract still life images. Arnold Newman found his vision in the empathy he felt for artists and their work. Although he photographed many personalities, Marlene Dietrich, John F. Kennedy, Harry S. Truman, Piet Mondrian, Pablo Picasso, Arthur Miller, Marilyn Monroe, Ronald Reagan, Mickey Mantle, and Audrey Hepburn he maintained that even if the subject is not known, or is already forgotten, the photograph itself must still excite and interest the viewer.
Newman is often credited with being the first photographer to
use so-called environmental portraiture, in which the photographer places the
subject in a carefully controlled setting to capture the essence of the
individual’s life and work. Newman normally captured his subjects in their most
familiar surroundings with representative visual elements showing their
professions and personalities. A musician for instance might be photographed in
their recording studio or on stage, a Senator or other politician in their
office or a representative building. Using a large-format camera and tripod, he
worked to record every detail of a scene.
“I didn’t just want to make a photograph with some things in
the background,” Newman told American Photo magazine in an interview. “The
surroundings had to add to the composition and the understanding of the person.
No matter who the subject was, it had to be an interesting photograph. Just to
simply do a portrait of a famous person doesn’t mean a thing.”
Newman’s best-known images were in black and white, although
he often photographed in color. His black and white portrait of Igor Stravinsky
seated at a grand piano became his signature image, even though it was rejected
by the magazine that gave the assignment to Newman. He was one of the few
photographers allowed to make a portrait of the famously camera-shy Henri
Cartier-Bresson.
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Arnold Newman è stato un fotografo statunitense, famoso per i
ritratti di artisti e politici. Nato a Manhattan, è cresciuto tra Atlantic
City, il New Jersey e la Florida. Dopo aver studiato arte all’Università di
Miami, ha lavorato come assistente del fotografo ritrattista Leon Perskie. È
morto nel 2006 a New York.
Considerato un maestro del ritratto ambientale, un tipo di ritratto che contestualizza il soggetto nell’ambiente che lo circonda, Newman ha immortalato tra gli altri Marilyn Monroe, Igor Stravinsky e John F. Kennedy. Le sue foto saranno in mostra fino al 13 gennaio al The Hague museum of photography dell’Aja, nei Paesi Bassi.
Considerato un maestro del ritratto ambientale, un tipo di ritratto che contestualizza il soggetto nell’ambiente che lo circonda, Newman ha immortalato tra gli altri Marilyn Monroe, Igor Stravinsky e John F. Kennedy. Le sue foto saranno in mostra fino al 13 gennaio al The Hague museum of photography dell’Aja, nei Paesi Bassi.
All images ©Arnold Newman /Getty Images
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