Arnold Newman “Masterclass” Presented by BMW
Nijo Castle
Image: Arnold Newman "Igor Stravinsky, composer and conductor" New York (1946) Arnold Newman / Getty Images
This event has ended.
This showing is the first posthumous retrospective in Japan of acclaimed American photographer Arnold Newman (1918–2006), known for his portraits of accomplished artists and major celebrities like Marilyn Monroe, Gore Vidal, Pablo Picasso, Frank Lloyd Wright and John F. Kennedy.
Up until the 1940s in New York, largely for technical reasons, portraits were customarily taken inside studios. Newman broke with this tradition, going out with his camera to photograph subjects at home or work surrounded by their own personal effects—an evocative atmospheric style that established him as the “father of environmentalportraiture.” But he himself disliked this name, as it negated the powerful symbolic and psychological aspects of his approach.
Newman is also famous for his sense of composition and precise cropping, which convey the individual character of his subjects. Take, for instance, his famous portrait of Igor Stravinsky: the picture is dominated by the near-abstract curve of a grand piano while relegating the composer to the lower left-hand corner. The original photograph as shot was framed much more widely, but the master’s eye devised this distinctive trimming.
Newman’s portraits are well-loved for the respectful gaze he brought to each of his subjects, with characteristic elan and modern aesthetic clarity. He will be remembered as a leading figure who helped define twentieth century photography, while making a great contribution to American culture.
* This exhibition is part of the Kyotographie International Photography Festival.
Media
Schedule
from 4月 15, 2017 at 9:30 to 5月 14, 2017 at 17:00
Last entry into Nijo Castle 16:00. Closes at 21:00 from Apr.15 (Sat) and Apr.15 (Sun).
Artist(s)
Reviews
”写真は人生との愛の戯れ”。5月14日まで、京都各所にて開催。