Tony Vaccaro: The photographer of soldiers, celebrities and style icons on his career renaissance — at 95

Hubert de Givenchy taking a photograph of Tony Vaccaro © Tony Vaccaro

"The story of Tony Vaccaro could be a Hollywood movie," says Sidney Monroe. "[He was] a fledgling amateur photographer, drafted into the army, who, through perseverance, documented his experience. Then, postwar, he made a very conscious decision to never again show that ugly side of humanity. He was instead driven to beauty. Tony's so charming, I can only think how conscious that would be for an artist to say, "I'm going to be gracious and kind and I'm going to show beauty.'" Sidney Monroe, who, along with his wife Michelle, runs the Monroe Gallery of Photography in Santa Fe. The couple, who have represented Vaccaro since 2016, are determined to make his archive more widely known.  --The Financial Times, July 11, 2018

Related: Tony Vaccaro at 95 - World-Wide exhibitions

New book from Steve Schapiro: ALI

Via PDN News

In June, 1963, on assignment for Sports Illustrated, photographer Steve Schapiro traveled to Louisville, Kentucky to spend time with the young Olympic champion boxer Cassius Clay, and accompany him on a road trip to New York City. At 21 years old, Clay was yet to adopt the mantle of Muhammad Ali, but his boastful persona, intelligence, black pride, and sharp tongue were already fully formed.

Over the course of their five days together, Schapiro revealed both sides of the young Ali: the one side posing and preening for the camera, ever conscious of his image; the other, unguarded and unselfconscious, in candid images of the young fighter at home with his family and immersed in his community and neighborhood.

Ali collects the best of Schapiro’s images of the late fighter; many in print for the very first time. They offer a glimpse of a star on the rise. “It is an indelible portrait of the early life of one of the most talented, graceful, controversial, athletic, and influential American figures of the 20th century,” writes the publisher, powerHouse Books, in the press release.

Steve Schapiro is a distinguished photographer whose pictures have graced the covers of Vanity Fair, Time, Sports Illustrated, Life, Look, Paris Match, and People, and are found in many museum collections. He has published seven books of his work: American Edge, Schapiro’s Heroes, The Godfather Family Album, Taxi Driver, Then and Now, Bliss, Bowie, and The Fire Next Time

TONY VACCARO AT 95 - WORLD-WIDE EXHIBITIONS

Isabella Albonico flashes a knowing smile in "Guggenheim Hat", one of the new fashion images in the Plaxall Gallery show. ©Tony Vaccaro

Photographer Tony Vaccaro opens a seven week show at the massive Plaxall Gallery in Long Island City on Thursday, July 5 with a 7:00 pm opening reception. After more than 275 international shows in 50 years, it is the first time he will exhibit near his home. "The Maestro" retired to Long Island City in 1982. All sales inquires are handled through the Monroe Gallery of Photography.

The Plaxall Gallery, a jewel of converted industrial space, is organized and administered by the not-for-profit art advocacy group, Long Island City Artists (LIC-A). LIC-A promotes fine art, theater, dance, PTA, Girl Scouts, children's workshops, ESL classes at LaGuardia College, and more. Special thanks for making this show possible go to president Carol Crawford, Edgo Wheeler, Norma Hombergeir dedicated staff.

The Plaxall Gallery
525 46th Avenue
Long Island City, NY 11101

The Plaxall Gallery is open Thursdays, 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm, and weekends, 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Currently Mr. Vaccaro is exhibited in Pescara, Italy, and has images at Los Angeles' Annenberg Space for Photography in their Library of Congress show, "Not an Ostrich". Mr. Vaccaro's other solo shows this year include an exhibit of 140 prints at Berlin's Villa Schoningen August 9 - September 9, a 56 print exhibition at the Getty Images Gallery in the heart of London August 6 - September 21, and an exhibition at the Monroe Gallery of Photography November 23 - January 20, 2019 in Santa Fe, NM. During the Monroe Gallery exhibition Tony will turn 96 in December.

The Berlin show is Mr. Vaccaro's largest since his 70th anniversary of D-Day show at Normandy's Memorial de Caen

The Plaxall Show will be the first curated by Tony Vaccaro's daughter-in-law, Maria Vaccaro, and will highlight many of the fashion images discovered by the Tony Vaccaro Studio. Maria has run the Tony Vaccaro Studio since 2016, and has been Tony's darkroom assistant since 1994. The Tony Vaccaro Studio opened in 2015 when Tony, aged 92, allowed his family to access his approximately 500,000 negatives, transparencies, and chromes. View the full Tony Vaccaro collection here.

Plaxall Gallery Hours
Saturday: 11AM – 6PM
Sunday: 11AM – 6PM
Thursday: 6 – 10PM
Closed: Mon, Tues, Wed, Fri

Phone: (917) 287-3093

Tony Vacaro's photographs are on view at Monroe Gallery of Photography, 112 Don Gaspar Avenue, Santa Fe, NM. The Gallery is open daily 10 - 5.

JULY 4, 2018

If you are near Santa Fe, participate in the 43rd Pancakes On The Plaza,  one of Santa Fe's favorite yearly events. Get all the details here.

Monroe Gallery will be open July 4 from 9 - 2, be sure to visit the exhibition Bill Eppridge: An American Master, on view through September 15, 2018.

©Bill Eppridge: White Barn, New Preston, Connecticut, 2017