The next several posts on my blog will be used to examine family pictures made by several photographers. Several well-known photographers have made very personal, sometimes surprising, pictures of their families that I am interested in studying, particularly in my current state of mind.
However, I’ll start with a famous exhibition of photographs in which the term “family” was applied in a very broad, all-encompassing sense: The Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition The Family of Man, curated by Edward Steichen in 1955. MoMA put out a call for entries into the show, and the call was answered: over two million pictures were submitted from all over the world. These were whittled down to a final show of 503 photographs from 273 photographers in 68 countries. Several lines from Steichen’s introduction to the book of the show provide a concise description of his intention:
We sought and selected photographs, made in all parts of the world, of the gamut of life from birth to death with emphasis on the daily relationships of man to himself, to his family, to the community and to the world we live in…Photographs of lovers and marriage and child-bearing, of the family unit with its joys, trials and tribulations, its deep-rooted devotions and antagonisms. Photographs of the home in all its warmth and magnificence, its heartaches and exaltations. Photographs of the individual and the family unit in its reactions to the beginnings of life and continuing on through death and burial.
There is a picture in this book which tugged at my heartstrings while looking at it the other night. It’s a picture by Burt Glinn of a small girl on a carousel, taken at the moment her horse went racing past Glinn’s camera. It reminded me of my son’s 3rd birthday this past February, when my dad and I took turns riding on a carousel with him. I took pictures of my son and dad riding it, and although I haven’t printed the negatives yet, you can see my son beaming toward the camera in at least one of them. I could not find Glinn's picture on the Internet, so I thought I’d show two other pictures I find powerful at this time in my life. Dorothea Lange made the picture of the apparent loner in the crowd of men, and Gene Smith made the picture of the little boy and girl. I'm moved by both pictures.
However, I’ll start with a famous exhibition of photographs in which the term “family” was applied in a very broad, all-encompassing sense: The Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition The Family of Man, curated by Edward Steichen in 1955. MoMA put out a call for entries into the show, and the call was answered: over two million pictures were submitted from all over the world. These were whittled down to a final show of 503 photographs from 273 photographers in 68 countries. Several lines from Steichen’s introduction to the book of the show provide a concise description of his intention:
We sought and selected photographs, made in all parts of the world, of the gamut of life from birth to death with emphasis on the daily relationships of man to himself, to his family, to the community and to the world we live in…Photographs of lovers and marriage and child-bearing, of the family unit with its joys, trials and tribulations, its deep-rooted devotions and antagonisms. Photographs of the home in all its warmth and magnificence, its heartaches and exaltations. Photographs of the individual and the family unit in its reactions to the beginnings of life and continuing on through death and burial.
There is a picture in this book which tugged at my heartstrings while looking at it the other night. It’s a picture by Burt Glinn of a small girl on a carousel, taken at the moment her horse went racing past Glinn’s camera. It reminded me of my son’s 3rd birthday this past February, when my dad and I took turns riding on a carousel with him. I took pictures of my son and dad riding it, and although I haven’t printed the negatives yet, you can see my son beaming toward the camera in at least one of them. I could not find Glinn's picture on the Internet, so I thought I’d show two other pictures I find powerful at this time in my life. Dorothea Lange made the picture of the apparent loner in the crowd of men, and Gene Smith made the picture of the little boy and girl. I'm moved by both pictures.
5 comments:
As am I. Especially the loner in the crowd of men pic.
I'm the small girl on the carousel in the photo that touched you!
I'd looked through "The Family of Man" many times, and suddenly, a few years ago, I looked with astonishment to see a picture of me as a girl, and my sister riding a bit ahead, and more. I
magine my delight! My mother loved carousels, so it's not a surprise to see us there. I tried to contact Burt Glinn, a leading Magnum photographer, but never found an avenue for contact. I wanted to buy a print of the photo, but found no way to do that, either.
I've been a photographer since age 9, and had my 50th anniversary as a photographer a few years ago. I was practically born in my dad's camera shop in Houston. So finding a picture of myself in the iconic "Family of Man" is a bit of magic for my life with the camera.
If anyone has a clue about how to contact Burt Glinn or get a print, let me know via the blog!
Dear Jane, I just came across your comment as I was looking for a story number for my husband Burt Glinn's carousel picture. Are you really the girl in the photo? Where was it taken? Burt died on April 9, 2008, I am working with my archivist on the negatives and would love to "meet" you. Best, Elena Glinn
Better email address is:
elenapro1@optonline.net
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