Vicki Goldberg Dies at 88, an influential photography critic, she wrote essays, newspaper columns and books, including a notable biography of the photojournalist Margaret Bourke-White.

 Via The New York Times

June 18, 2025

Vicki Goldberg, an influential photography critic and the author of a lauded 1986 biography of Margaret Bourke-White, the pioneering and colorful Life magazine photographer, died on May 29 in Manhattan. She was 88.

Bourke-White was America’s first female photographer to be accredited to cover World War II, a swashbuckling personage who worked for Fortune and then Life magazines. She shot Nazi rallies, and, in agonizing images, the liberation of Buchenwald. She flew in a Flying Fortress bomber to get shots of a raid on Tunis. She photographed a smug-looking Stalin. Away from the war, she perched on a gargoyle atop the Chrysler Building in Manhattan to photograph its twin and made perhaps what is the most famous portrait of Gandhi, sitting cross-legged with his spinning wheel.

10 FPS Podcast: Celebrating over two decades in Santa Fe, the Monroes shared their insights into the significance of photojournalism and their preparations for the upcoming APAD show in New York

 Via 10 FPS Podcast

April 23, 2025

  

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Photojournalism uniquely bridges the worlds of art and storytelling, capturing moments that resonate deeply with audiences. The Monroe Gallery, a leader in this field, has dedicated itself to showcasing the transformative power of images. In this episode our hosts explored this fascinating realm with Sydney and Michelle Monroe, founders of the Monroe Gallery. Celebrating over two decades in Santa Fe, the Monroes shared their insights into the significance of photojournalism and their preparations for the upcoming APAD show in New York.

The Birth of Monroe Gallery

The Monroe Gallery’s journey began with a pivotal meeting with Alfred Eisenstadt, a founding photographer of Life Magazine. This encounter sparked Sydney and Michelle Monroe’s passion for photojournalism, leading them to recognize its potential within the gallery system. Their mission became to elevate photojournalistic images from magazine pages to gallery walls, transforming them into enduring pieces of art and historical evidence.
The Impact of Photojournalism

Photojournalism, as the Monroes describe, is about more than capturing moments; it’s about documenting history and inspiring change. The images they curate are visually striking and carry deep social and political relevance. From war scenes to tender moments of love, these photographs tell timeless stories. The Monroes emphasize the importance of context, ensuring viewers understand the historical and emotional backdrop of each image.
Handling Sensitive Subjects

Presenting sensitive subjects is a challenge the Monroe Gallery navigates with care. The Monroes provide context to balance human suffering with stories of heroism and hope, offering a comprehensive view of the human experience. This thoughtful curation is evident in exhibitions like Grey Villet’s work on the Loving family, highlighting photojournalism’s societal impact. It is also seen in their latest special exhibit titled “WWII – Eighty Years”, which will be presented at APAD this year. The exhibit highlights the historic triumphs and devastating losses of the war that were captured by thousands of wartime photographers. It is a reminder that we must learn from our history so that these same actions may never be repeated.

Supporting Modern Photojournalists

In today’s evolving media landscape, the Monroe Gallery supports contemporary photojournalists, many of whom rely on print sales to fund their work. The Monroes represent a diverse range of voices, from legends to emerging talents like Eugene Tapahe, whose “Jingle Dress Project” beautifully combines art and journalism. This dedication ensures the gallery remains a vibrant platform for storytelling.

The Monroe Gallery’s journey underscores the enduring power of photojournalism. Through thoughtful curation and commitment, Sydney and Michelle Monroe have created a space where images challenge perceptions and inspire change. As they prepare for the APAD show, the Monroes continue to champion photojournalism as both art and historical record, inviting all to explore the profound impact of these stories.

#photojournalism #photogallery #exibits #APAD

Previous Episode: Ron Haviv

As the “glamour girl of press photography” Lisa Larsen captured the truth of humanity

 Via Good

March 29, 2025

Lisa Larsen  photographed the 1953 wedding of Senator John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, and one print is featured in the current exhibition "Loving"

“Women can be good photographers much in the same way that they can become good doctors, good cooks or whatever they choose to be good at,” Lisa Larsen said in the mid-1950s. By that point she had become one of LIFE Magazine’s most successful photojournalists, having already won Magazine Photographer of the Year in 1953. In that time, she became known for her interest in the truth of humanity. “I dislike anything superficial and I especially dislike superficial relationships,” she said in 1954.

Lisa Larsen, née Rothschild, arrived in the U.S. as a Jewish emigre from her native Germany–her family left after Kristallnacht. She was just a teenager at the time, but knew the career path that was right for her. By then, a group of German Jewish photographers had elevated photojournalism as an artform in the U.S. and formed the influential photography agency Black Star, one of Magnum’s greatest competitors. Larsen joined them as a file clerk. She then began her career as a freelance photographer for magazines like The New York Times Magazine, Vogue, Seventeen, Glamour, and more, but she worked at LIFE for a decade beginning in 1949.

At first, as a woman, she was relegated to fashion and entertainment photography–she took photos of Marlon Brando and Grace Kelly, for example, though even those somehow situate megawatt stars of the time as mere mortals, a way audiences hardly got to see them then and, arguably, still now.

Over time, Larsen was able to expand her practice and become an intrepid, adventurous world traveler. She became, for example, “the first American photographer to enter Outer Mongolia after a government-enforced 10-year ban,” as LIFE wrote. She also traversed the Himalayas; photographed world leaders at the first Bandung Conference in Indonesia, which sought to solidify African-Asian relations’ and Eastern Europe during the Cold War in 1955, among many others. She was additionally sent to photograph high-ranking political figures from Dwight D. Eisenhower on his campaign for president and First Lady Bess Truman, wife of Harry S. Truman; to Nikita Khrushchev and the 1953 wedding of Senator John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, not to mention Queen Elizabeth II’s first tour as a royal.

Larsen was known to be both charming and hardworking, and knew how to get a great photo. In her time, she dazzled many a world leader. “Appreciative Khrushchev gave Larsen a bouquet of peonies,” scholar Patryk Babiracki wrote in Apparatus Journal. “Ho Chi Minh spotted Larsen…and confessed: ‘If I were a young man, I'd be in love with you,’” Babiracki continued. Truman Vice President Alben Barkley called her “Mona Lisa.” According to the International Center of Photography, “she photographed Iran’s Premier Mohammed Mossadegh from his New York hospital bed during the 1951 Iranian oil dispute with Great Britain,” which “led to a personal invitation from Mossadegh to visit Iran for a two-week vacation.”

Ful article here

Loving Moments

Via The Albuquerque Journal

February 23, 2024

By Logan Royce Beitmen Journal Staff Writer 

Monroe Gallery of Photography presents Grey Villet’s tender images of the couple who legalized interracial love

Sixty years ago, Life Magazine photographer Grey Villet photographed Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial married couple who had been arrested and convicted under Virginia’s anti-miscegenation laws. The Lovings were eventually vindicated in 1967 by the U.S. Supreme Court in Loving v. Virginia, a landmark civil rights decision that legalized interracial marriage and paved the way for same-sex marriage decades later. 

But in 1965, when Villet photographed them, the Lovings were still weary from their yearslong legal battle and publicity-shy due to threats of lynching. 

Villet’s photographs of the couple, on view at the Monroe Gallery of Photography in Santa Fe through April 13, show them engaged in everyday domestic activities. As the late photographer’s wife, Barbara Villet, wrote in a New York Times essay, these photographs humanized the Lovings and showed that they were “a quintessentially ordinary couple extraordinarily in love with each other.” 

“Emotional content always mattered most to Grey in his work and pursuit of images ‘as real as real could get.’ It’s what gives his take on the Loving family its intimacy and strength,” she wrote. “Unlike many other celebrated photographers, he avoided posing his subjects, refused to manipulate the action and simply waited patiently for telling moments to emerge, in the belief that reality would supply more truth than any imposition of his own ego.” Villet was famous for his spending many days with his subjects and shooting only with available light and a hand-held long lens, which allowed him to disappear into the background. Even the Lovings, who were quiet, private people, felt comfortable enough in his presence to reveal their intimate lives.

In addition to challenging racist ideas, Villet’s photographs of the Lovings challenged notions of gender and class, as well.

In some of his photographs, including one where Mildred is mending Richard’s shirt button and one where Richard is reclining with his head in her lap, Mildred is positioned higher in the frame than her husband, whereas in most art directed photographs and films of that era, women were traditionally positioned lower. Villet’s authentic slice-of-life images subverted the prevailing gender hierarchy. 

His tender images also challenge stereotypes about working-class masculinity. As Barbara Villet wrote in the Times essay, her husband’s portraits of Richard Loving, in particular, revealed “the face of a laborer who, despite the macho exterior, is a sensitive man.” 

Monroe Gallery’s “Loving” gives viewers the opportunity to reflect on this unlikely, history-making couple 60 years after Villet first photographed them.

‘LOVING’ By Grey Villet 

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; through April 13 

WHERE: Monroe Gallery of Photography, 112 Don Gaspar Ave., Santa Fe 

HOW MUCH: Free, monroegallery.com

The story behind the 'iconic' Buna shot from WWII

 Via Australian Photography

By Stephen Dando-Collins | 4 December 2024

George Silk’s The Blind Soldier. Later, Silk would say there was something distinctive about the two subjects. The Papuan carrier in particular grabbed his attention: “He was helping him so tenderly,” he said. Image: Australian War Memorial

Early on Christmas Day, 1942, 26-year-old George Silk rose from his cot at battalion HQ at Soputa in northeast Papua and began walking to the Buna battlefront 10km away.

Around his neck hung his two cameras – a Rolleiflex Standard for close-ups, and a 35mm Zeiss Ikon Contax fitted with a telephoto lens for distance shots.

Silk was a New Zealand camera shop assistant who’d turned up in the Canberra office of Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies in January 1940.

He talked Menzies into hiring him as Australia’s second government combat photographer, and after working in North Africa, Silk was reassigned by the Australian Department of Information (DOI) to the New Guinea campaign.

For close to three years Silk had striven to take the ‘great’ war picture, something to emulate or surpass Robert Capa’s famous 1937 shot from the Spanish Civil War, The Falling Soldier.

Now, with the Australians and Americans starting to gain the upper hand in the fight against the Imperial Japanese Army in Papua, Silk was anxious to get his best shot before the Battle of Buna-Gona ended.

So, on December 24 he dragged himself from his hospital bed outside Port Moresby, where he’d been laid low by malaria, and hitched a ride back to the front.

On the track to Old Strip, Silk, rounding a bend in the tall kunai grass, saw two men approaching side-by-side. One was a wounded Australian soldier, Private George ‘Dick’ Whittington.

Barefoot, walking with the aid of a long stick, his eyes were covered by a rough bandage. Guiding Whittington was volunteer Papuan carrier Raphael Oimbari, a farmer in his twenties.

It almost seemed as if Silk would be intruding if he photographed the pair. “I wanted to take the picture, but I didn’t at first,” he later recalled.

But his documentarian’s instincts kicked in. Using his Rolleiflex from the waist with the pair less than two metres away, Silk snapped a single shot without even looking down into the viewfinder.

Seemingly unaware of him, the wounded soldier and carrier passed Silk by. Hurrying after them, he obtained the soldier’s details before the pair continued on.

Later that day, Silk joined Whittington’s 2/10th Battalion. Clicking away in the thick of the fighting that afternoon, he collapsed face-down on the battlefield. Malaria had caught up with him. 

Towards sunset, an Aussie soldier found the photographer lying with the dead all around him. Evacuated to Moresby, Silk ended up in a malaria ward.

You can’t keep a good photographer down. Silk was soon back at the front. At Giropa Point on December 31 and January 1, he took what he considered his two best pictures of the war, close-ups beside Bren-gunners and Vickers-gunners with bullets whistling all around. Again, Silk collapsed with malaria, and again he ended up in hospital.

Meanwhile, another George, American Life photographer George Strock, snapped three dead American soldiers on Buna Beach.

In hospital, George Silk learned the DOI had banned his two Giropa Point photos – one showed a dead Digger, while one of the Bren-gunners had dropped down dead beside him seconds after he took his picture.

At the same time, Silk’s photo of Whittington and the ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Angel’ was also banned for being ‘too graphic’.

Silk was incensed. So, he wined and dined a young female clerk working in the DOI’s Port Moresby office and brought her into a conspiracy.

She had prints of his three banned pictures made at the DOI’s Sydney photographic laboratory and sent to her.

She gave them to Silk, who passed them to a war correspondent friend, who had them approved by the American censor at GHQ in Brisbane. Silk then gave his prints to George Strock, who smuggled them to Life.

Strock knew the Pentagon banned publication of photos of American dead, but was appalled by apathy towards the war at home. He was determined to jolt his fellow Americans into getting behind their troops.

On March 8, 1943, Life published Silk’s The Blind Soldier, full page.

Readers hailed it the best picture of the war. A month later Silk was fired by the DOI. Parliamentary backbenchers called for him to be charged with treason. His friend Damien Parer resigned in protest at his treatment.

Meanwhile, Life management struggled for seven months to gain War Department approval to publish Strock’s Three Dead Americans.

Going all the way to the White House, they discovered that, like George Strock, President Roosevelt was determined to cement Americans behind the war effort by being honest with them. With his approval, Three Dead Americans appeared in Life on September 20, 1943, shocking America.

In 2014, Time magazine would describe it as ‘the photograph that won the war’. Two iconic images, and one amazing story. ❂

The Buna shots: The Amazing Story Behind Two Photographs that Changed the Course of World War Two, by Stephen Dando-Collins, is published by Australian Scholarly Publishing. It’s the never before told story of two arresting photographs, two courageous photographers, and the quest for truth in war. You can order a copy here: https://bit.ly/3ZQ5DpV

Tony Hawk Recreates Bill Eppridge's 'Central Park Mystery Skater' Photo From 1965

 Via Skateboarding

August 19, 2024

"If you can't solve the mystery, become the mystery."

Brian BlakelyAug 19, 2024

Well, this could certainly be classified as a "full circle moment" if you ask me, at least for Mr. Dan James Rodo (and well, of course, Tony Hawk). 

If you were following along earlier this year—around April/May—then you know that The Birdman and Dan sort of forcefully fell down the rabbit hole while attempting to identify the iconic, now legendary "Central Park Mystery Skater" from a 1965 issue of LIFE magazine. 

They went above and beyond and truly put in some pretty impressive work to investigate this mysterious, dapper skateboarder from the mid-60s, but what actually came of it was something none of us probably expected. Take a look:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tony Hawk (@tonyhawk)

"If you can’t solve a mystery, become the mystery...?," Tony wrote as the caption on the post. "Thanks to @danocracy & @joshuapbrown for meeting me in NYC to recreate the photo that has provided so much entertainment. And to Adrienne Aurichio for sharing the moment while giving us a glimpse into the magic of Bill Eppridge (the original photographer)."

He tacked on, "Watch Dan’s latest edit to see the process of putting this together." And if you haven't seen it yet, check it below!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dan James Rodo - The Danocracy (@danocracy)

As someone who was personally pretty invested in the search, this was so insanely cool to see—for multiple reasons. For one (as if we needed one), it's just another reminder as to how rad Tony is as a person. He's always having fun and the fact that he can do stuff like this is so cool to see.

And secondly, I just love that this entire investigation ultimately turned into Tony, Dan and a random photographer (@joshuapbrown) who simply commented on the post to come together and recreate this timeless moment. 

Hats off once again to Dan for spending countless hours trying to track down this mystery skater; a mysterious man who has now become this legend in skateboarding in his own right. And of course to Tony for all the support and interest. Both their efforts are unbelievably admirable. This has been so fun. 

Plus, the fact that they brought out Bill Eppridge's wife (Bill was the original photographer) tied it all together so perfectly, I'm almost at a loss for words. Watching the video literally gave me chills. 

At any rate, I think we all just found the perfect Halloween costume, right?

While the "mystery skater" still technically remains a mystery, everything that has sprouted since the investigation—and really, since 1965 when the original photo was shot—has been so rad. It brought the skateboarding community (and beyond) together in such a cool, unique way. Just another reason to remind ourselves why skateboarding is simply the coolest thing ever. 

And even though it's a big stretch, I'm going to say it anyways: who's going to fork up some dough and turn this into a proper Netflix/HBO/Amazon—whatever!—documentary? Fingers crossed. Until then, I think we can all agree this is as close to some closure as we'll get. As Tony mentioned, "If you can't solve the mystery, become the mystery."

But the mystery remains...

Search Continues for Bill Eppridge's Skateboarder

 

Via SKATEboarding

May 1, 2024

Tony Hawk and Dan Rodo Are One Step Closer to Finding 'Central Park Mystery Skater' From 1965

The search for the dapper skater from LIFE magazine (1965) continues.

Brian Blakely
May 1, 2024



For as long as I can remember, Tony Hawk has periodically hopped on Instagram in hopes of identifying what he calls "the icon of style" in a photo shot by photographer Bill Eppridge in 1965 for LIFE magazine. Maybe you've seen it?

Well, on April 19th, artist (and downright impressive investigative journalist, whether he considers himself one or not), Dan James Rodo joined forces with the Birdman to see if the social media world could help them uncover the story of the mystery man in this iconic photo. They just dropped the fourth installment... and they're getting extremely close! This is getting good. Check it out:

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dan James Rodo - The Danocracy (@danocracy)

If you're just hearing about this, you should definitely stop what you're doing and follow Tony and Dan on Instagram (@tonyhawk / @danocracy) because they've really been digging deep to uncover this mystery, but like thousands and thousands of others, I've become personally invested. Again—Tony has been posting about this mystery skater forever and I'm pretty thrilled that they're not giving up.

They've been in touch with everyone from ex-LIFE magazine editors to Surfer magazine editors; the New York Parks Department to folks who were in Central Park during the shoot that day... as well as the gallery that represents photographer Bill Eppridge's work, his wife and so much more. This is the real deal!

There has been no shortage of comments on the posts either, offering potential leads, support and generally keeping the conversation going. It's so rad. Dan mentions that he plans on having another update posted within a week (honestly, these videos can't be that easy to make... so we salute you, Dan!) and we're all patiently waiting to see if he struck gold or uncovered anymore gems.

We'll be posting any updates here as they're available. In the meantime... keep it up, dudes! We're all rooting for you. Let's find this mystery man!

Bob Gomel Day Proclaimed

 

Bob Gomel Day

WHEREAS, Houstonian Bob Gomel has dedicated eight decades to the advancement of American photojournalism and imagery of world cultures; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel’s love of photography began in his youth in New York City, continued with his graduation from New York University with a journalism degree, through his service abroad as a U.S. Navy Aviator, and into his emergence as a professional photographer; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel captured the triumphs and tragedies of the 1960s as a photographer for LIFE magazine, making iconic and innovative images of world leaders and events, athletes and entertainers, and great moments in contemporary history; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel’s notable LIFE assignments included photographing President John F. Kennedy’s historic “We Choose to Go tothe Moon” speech at Rice University on September 12, 1962; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel moved to Houston in the 1970s and opened a photography studio where he produced images of leading political, business, academic and medical figures, and he helped co-found the Houston chapter of the American Society of Media Photographers; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel’s famous 1997 photograph, “Fireworks Over Houston,” is in the permanent collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel is the subject of the documentary Bob Gomel: Eyewitness directed by David Scarbrough, and Gomel’s work remains of interest to historians, news organizations and collectors around the nation; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel’s contemporary photography emphasizes world cultures and life abroad and includes images from Asia, Europe and The Americas; and

WHEREAS, Bob Gomel’s photographic archives have been donated to the Briscoe Center for American History at The University of Texas at Austin, and a newly published selection of his life’s work is exhibited at the 2024 Fotofest Biennial in Houston; and

 

WHEREAS, The City of Houston commends and recognizes Bob Gomel for his contributions to photojournalism in Houston and beyond;

 THEREFORE, I, John Whitmire, Mayor of the City of Houston, do hereby proclaim April 23 2024, as  Bob Gomel Day In Houston, Texas

 

Bob Gomel's photographs are featured in the current exhibition 1964

Bob Gomel: Artist Talk and Film Screening April 3

 Via The Alta Arts

Bob Gomel: Eyewitness is a documentary film that examines the stories behind the stories of some of the most significant events in the 20th century, especially the turbulent 1960’s.

Join us for An Evening with Bob Gomel – with Q&A to follow. Hear and see history unfold from the perspective of a legendary LIFE Magazine photographer.  Moderated by Don Carleton of the Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas in Austin.

Admission is free – however, reservations are required.  Follow the book online link.

April 3, 2024 - 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

The exhibition Bob Gomel: Eyewitness continue through April 13, 2024 at The Alta Arts.

Bob Gomel: Eyewitness at Alta Arts, Houston

 Via Alta Arts

March 1, 2024

Bob Gomel: Eyewitness Exhibition Opening Reception

March 7, 2024 - 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm

The triumphs and tragedies of the 1960s provided photographer Bob Gomel extraordinary opportunities to help advance American photojournalism. As the images in Eyewitness demonstrate, when history was made, Gomel often was there, making iconic and innovative images of world leaders and events, athletes and entertainers, and great moments in contemporary history — including President John F. Kennedy, the Beatles, Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X, and Marilyn Monroe.

This exhibition, presented by Alta Arts and sponsored by the Briscoe Center for American History at The University of Texas at Austin, and in conjunction with the 2024 Fotofest Biennial, serves as a retrospective of Gomel’s work and includes photographs from his personal collection that are featured for the first time in a public showing.

Born in New York in 1933, Gomel earned a journalism degree from New York University in 1955 and then served as a U.S. Navy aviator. Gomel joined LIFE in 1959 and shot for the immensely popular magazine for a decade. He later freelanced for Sports Illustrated, Newsweek, Fortune and Forbes magazines, and shot national advertising campaigns for Audi, Bulova, GTE, Merrill Lynch, and Shell Oil, among others.

Eyewitness also features selections from the Bob Gomel Photographic Archive, part of the extensive photographic holdings of the Briscoe Center. The center’s photojournalism archives have flourished over the past two decades into a renowned collection of national-level importance. Gomel’s archive at the Briscoe Center ranges from 1959 to 2014 and includes film negatives, contact sheets, and exhibit prints.

Curated by Bob Gomel.

Contact Monroe Gallery of Photography for fine art print information.

Installation team:  J.P. Zenturo Perez and Alexander Uribe of Alta Arts.

Alta Arts

5412 Ashbrook Drive

Houston TX 77081

Greenwich Historical Society Exhibit Features 6 Women Photographers Whose Iconic Images for LIFE Magazine Helped Create Modern Journalism

Via Greenwich Free Press

February 29, 2024


Six pioneering women whose photographs for LIFE magazine skillfully captured events on a quickly evolving world stage will be the subject of Greenwich Historical Society’s new exhibition to debut March 6. These photographers enabled the public “to see life; to see the world; to eyewitness great events,” as described by LIFE magazine founder and editor-in-chief Henry Luce.

Martha Holmes, photograph from “Mr. B.,” LIFE, April 24, 1950 © LIFE Picture Collection, Dotdash Meredith Corp. Martha Holmes began photographing for LIFE in 1944. On view in the exhibition are Holmes’s 1950 photographs of mixed-race singer Billy Eckstine, including one of Eckstine being embraced by a white fan—a provocative image that Holmes felt was one of her best because she felt that it “told just what the world should be like.” Henry Luce supported this opinion.


LIFE: Six Women Photographers features iconic images from these talented women who helped create modern photojournalism through their work as featured in the pages of LIFE magazine.

On view through July 7, 2024, the exhibition presents more than 70 photographs by Margaret Bourke-White (1904-1971), Marie Hansen (1918-1969), Martha Holmes (1923-2006), Lisa Larsen (ca. 1925-1959), Nina Leen (ca. 1909-1995) and Hansel Mieth (1909-1998).

“We are thrilled to showcase the works of these talented photographers who were on the vanguard of a transformative change in how twentieth-century Americans received and understood global cultural and political events,” said Maggie Dimock, curator of exhibitions and collections at Greenwich Historical Society.

“This insightful exhibition offers a glimpse into how each of these remarkable women used their camera to capture topics that dominated American discourse through the last century, including U.S. industrial strength, the role of women and the family in modern American society, race relations, World War II, labor movements and the Cold War.”

A long-time Greenwich resident, Henry Luce (1898 – 1967) was convinced that American political, economic, and cultural power would, and should, dominate the era and that photojournalism, or “photo essays” as he coined them, could effectively shape America as an international power, inspiring its people, in his words, “to live and work and fight with vigor and enthusiasm.”

For decades, Americans saw the world through the lens of the photographers at LIFE, and the magazine’s innovative photo essays became the publication’s trademark.

Of the 101 photographers on staff at LIFE during the magazine’s run as a weekly, only six full-time photographers were women. LIFE: Six Women Photographers highlights the work of these photographers while providing insight into the process through which they worked with editors to create visual stories, through the inclusion of photographs, vintage prints, copy prints and contact sheets. Published and unpublished photographs along with select memos, correspondence and other items from Time Inc. records show the editing process behind the final, published stories.

“The topic will provide fascinating historical context to the enormous changes underway today in media,” said Greenwich Historical Society Executive Director and CEO Debra Mecky. “And it will enable us to further our mission to strengthen the community’s connection to our past, to each other and to our future. Henry Luce was a Greenwich resident during the time he was arguably the most influential media figure in the twentieth century and one of the country’s most prominent citizens.”

LIFE: Six Women Photographers has been organized by the New-York Historical Society. The exhibition is curated by Marilyn Satin Kushner, curator and head, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections; and Sarah Gordon, curatorial scholar in women’s history, Center for Women’s History; with Erin Levitsky, Ryerson University; and William J. Simmons, Andrew Mellon Foundation Pre-Doctoral Fellow, Center for Women’s History. The New-York Historical Society holds the research archive of Time Inc., which was acquired by the Meredith Corporation (now Dotdash Meredith Corp.) in 2018.

A series of lectures, workshops and discussions, film screenings and other activity related to the exhibition will be presented by Greenwich Historical Society throughout the duration of the exhibition, beginning with two in March:

Women of Photos and Letters: Margaret Bourke-White, Clare Booth Luce and Annie Leibovitz
Thursday, March 14 from 6:00 – 7:00 pm


In honor of Women’s History Month, Louisa Iacurci of the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame will explore the inspiring histories of Hall of Fame inductees whose work and lives are intertwined with social advocacy and journalistic activism, including photographers Margaret Bourke-White and Annie Leibovitz and writer, journalist and politician Clare Booth Luce.

LIFE: Six Women Photographers: A Lecture with Curator Marilyn Satin Kushner

Thursday, March 21 from 6:00 – 7:00 pm

In an illustrated lecture, Dr. Marilyn Satin Kushner, Curator and Head of the Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections at New-York Historical Society, will expand on the curatorial process for LIFE: Six Women Photographers.

The full program schedule is available online: https://greenwichhistory.org/life-six-women-photographers/

Guided Gallery Tours:
Tours will be offered on select Sundays through June, from 1:00 – 1:30pm. Free with admission, participants will enjoy an in-depth docent-led discussion of LIFE: Six Women Photographers, that shares insightful interpretation of the photographs on view, and a modern perspective to understanding the complex social backdrop in which they would have originally been seen by magazine readers.

Dates: March 10, 24; April 7, 21; May 5, 19; June 2, 16, 30.

For more information: https://greenwichhistory.org/event/guided-gallery-tour/.

Margaret Bourke-White, photograph from “Franklin Roosevelt’s Wild West,” LIFE, November 23, 1936 © LIFE Picture Collection, Dotdash Meredith Corp. Margaret Bourke-White became one of the first four staff photographers at LIFE in 1936.

This exhibition has been generously supported by Joyce B. Cowin, with additional support from Sara Lee Schupf, Jerry Speyer, Robert A.M. Stern and Northern Trust.

Support for this exhibition at the Greenwich Historical Society has been generously provided by Josie Merck and annual donors to the Greenwich Historic Trust.

 

BYU Museum of Art debuts new exhibit ‘Life: Six Women Photographers’

Via The Daily Universe

Oct. 26, 2023

BYU’s Museum of Art debuted its new exhibit “Life: Six Women Photographers” earlier this month, highlighting six influential women photographers’ work from the 1930s to the 1970s.

The exhibit features the work of photojournalists Margaret Bourke-White, Hansel Mieth, Marie Hansen, Nina Leen, Martha Holmes and Lisa Larsen.

Featured within the new installation are a variety of photos, such as Marie Hansen’s photo essay showcasing the 20th century Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, and Margaret Bourke-White’s photographs depicting the impact of the American economic depression on the people of the 1930s. Photographer Nina Leen highlights the work of women and mothers, while portraits of Hollywood personalities are featured in Martha Holmes’ photos of Billy Eckstine. Hansel Mieth’s photos focus on depicting the reality of labor forces and the experiences of the general public.

BYU students, local community members and visitors now have the opportunity to visit the Museum of Art’s new exhibit and appreciate the talent of these six female photojournalist pioneers.

“I think it’s cool that we’re honoring female photographers,” Sally Bradshaw, a BYU junior, said.

Bradshaw continued to describe the photos in the exhibit as “down to earth.”

“They capture very emotional moments, it seems. It’s pretty inspirational,” BYU student Logan Berry said.

Life Magazine, which ran weekly from 1883 to 1972 and monthly from 1978 to 2000, focused on showing “The Most Iconic Photographs of All Time,” according to Life Magazine‘s website.

The “Life: Six Women Photographers” exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art gives visitors the opportunity to witness for themselves the photographs of the six featured photographers. The exhibit displays photos both published and unpublished by Life.

“It’s like a crazy cool opportunity to be able to see these things that at one point were just in a magazine but are now really important,” BYU student Katy Turner said.

Turner continued to express interest in the past and future BYU Museum of Art photography shows because of the focus on important events.

“A lot of times we try to make it a focus and like a point to remember prominent women in history or maybe women in history who were amazing but we don’t really know about,” Bradshaw said. “I think it’s really cool that BYU wants to give a space to that because we’re all about honoring amazing people.”

“Life: Six Women Photographers” was organized by the New-York Historical Society and will be on display in the BYU Museum of Art until Feb. 3, 2024.

There will be a panel discussion discussing the exhibit and photography, art history and journalism on Thursday, Oct. 26 at the Museum of Art. BYU professors and faculty members Heather Belnap, Melissa Gibbs and Paul Adams will be presenting.

Museum of Art educator Liz Donakey will also host a gallery talk regarding the exhibit on Wednesday, Nov. 29.

Students can schedule a tour of the exhibit on the Museum of Art website.

Related exhibit: The LIFE Photographers

New Exhibit and Gallery Conversation: Bob Gomel - Classics

 BOB GOMEL: CLASSICS

Santa Fe--Monroe Gallery of Photography, 112 Don Gaspar, is pleased to announce a special exhibition of photographs celebrating Bob Gomel’s recent 90th birthday with several never-before-see photographs from three of his most iconic assignments for LIFE magazine: photographs of The Beatles, Muhammad Ali, and President John F. Kennedy.

The exhibition opens with a Gallery conversation with Bob Gomel on Friday, October 6. Talk begins promptly at 5:30, seated is limited and RSVP is essential; contact the Gallery for live Zoom registration. The exhibition continues through November 19, 2023.

The photographs of Bob Gomel put you in a diner with Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X after Ali’s defeat of Sonny Liston, poolside with the Beatles, and in the audience at Rice University as President John F. Kennedy delivered his historic “We choose to go to the Moon” speech. This exhibit explores three classic assignments for LIFE magazine with many never-before-seen photographs of The Beatles, Muhammad Ali, and President John F. Kennedy.

 “I had no idea the 60s would be so iconic. It seemed quite ordinary at the time, but looking back on it now, I realize how fortunate I was.”

From the tumult of battle to the glamour of movie stars, from the wonders of nature to the coronation of kings, queens, and presidents, the work of LIFE photographers is as much a history of American photojournalism as it is a history of the changing face of the latter part of the Twentieth Century. On the pages of LIFE, through the images captured by these masters, the eyes of a nation were opened as never before to a changing world. 

The triumphs and tragedies of the 1960s provided photographer Bob Gomel and his LIFE magazine colleague’s extraordinary opportunities to advance American photojournalism. "LIFE was the world's best forum for photojournalists. We were encouraged to push creative and technical boundaries. There was no better place to work in that extraordinary decade." 

Bob Gomel was born (1933) and raised in New York City. After serving four years in the U.S. Navy, he was promptly offered a job at the Associated Press. But by then, he had changed his mind about what he wanted to do. “I just felt one picture wasn’t sufficient to tell a story,” he explains. “I was interested in exploring something in depth. And, of course, the mecca was Life magazine.”He turned down the offer from AP, and began working for LIFE in 1959, producing many memorable images. When LIFE ceased being a weekly in the early 1970s, he began making photographs for other major magazines. Also in the 1970s, he branched out into advertising photography. Among other accounts, he helped introduce Merrill Lynch’s Bullish on America campaign.

Bob says, “Each time I raised a camera to my eye I wondered how to make a viewer say, “wow.” What followed were the use of double exposures to tell a more complete story; placing remote cameras where no human being could be; adapting equipment to reveal what could not ordinarily be captured on film. My goal with people was to penetrate the veneer, to reveal the true personality or character. The ideal was sometimes mitigated by circumstances, a lack of time or access. But more often than not what the mind conceived could be translated into successful photographic images. Life Magazine in the 60s sold 8,000,000 copies a week. It was a great honor to be a part of that information highway.” 

What Life Magazine Taught Me About Life

 Via The Atlantic

August 14, 2023

As a child, I saw the country in its photos, stories, and advertisements—and learned some hard truths about America.

By Drew Gilpin Faust

(Subscription required)

I grew up in the 1950s, on a farm in Virginia miles away from any town or neighbors. For most of my childhood we didn’t have a television, so my three brothers and I amused ourselves fighting pretend Civil War battles in the fields and woods around our house or vying over card and board games that we spread across the living-room floor.

But for me, the best entertainment was always reading. I read for pleasure, for company, and for escape from my contained Virginia world. I could explore other places and imagine myself into other lives—lives that went beyond the limited choices available to my mother and the women of her circle, who were all ruled by the era’s prescriptions of female domesticity. The written word introduced me to what girls could do: solve mysteries, like Nancy Drew; brave the Nazis, like Anne Frank; demand change, like the protagonist of Susan Anthony: Girl Who Dared. Reading could provide, to borrow Scout’s words in To Kill a Mockingbird, a way to escape “the starched walls of a pink cotton penitentiary closing in on me.” And words could carry me beyond the gentle slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains that rose behind our house. They offered a view of national and global affairs that caught me up in a sense of urgency. I was frightened by the fact that Sputnik had been launched and was passing by overhead every 96 minutes in its orbit of the Earth. I wondered how the Russians had beaten us into space. I was inspired by the courage of Hungarians fighting against communism. I was reassured by portraits of the confident prosperity of postwar America. Yet I felt growing doubt and unease as I read descriptions of the turbulence and conflict emerging to undermine it. (more - subscription required)

Exhibition: The LIFE Photographers

An Evening with Bob Gomel and screening of the film Bob Gomel: Eyewitness

Via MATCH Houston 

When history was made, Bob Gomel was there.

Bob Gomel: Eyewitness is a documentary that examines the stories behind the stories of some of the most significant events in the 20th century. Hear and see the history unfold from the perspective of a legendary LIFE Magazine photographer. Join us for An Evening with Bob Gomel - The theatrical premier of the documentary Bob Gomel: Eyewitness, including 14 additional minutes of previously unseen material. There will be a Q/A session with Bob Gomel and director David Scarbrough following the showing. 

Thursday, July 20 at 7:30 PM

Q & A Immediately following the screening

with Bob Gomel and David Scarbrough 

Tickets: $10

How the documentary came to be:

Bob Gomel and David Scarbrough share a love of storytelling through photography.

During the past decade the two men and their spouses, Sandy Gomel and Mary Scarbrough, became friends. Bob’s shot of The Beatles in poolside lounge chairs hangs in the Scarbroughs’ home. It was Mary’s birthday gift to David for his 60th birthday.

David said, “The history Bob witnessed is important. So are the effort and creativity necessary to make extraordinary images of these historic moments. Many of the images are made even more powerful by Bob’s perspective on how they were created. ”David convinced Bob to reflect on his work for LIFE magazine in the 1960s and his subsequent career.

Over dinner one evening, the Scarbroughs proposed making a documentary of Bob’s career. Bob said, “David offered a compelling idea to consider. After a few days, I said, ‘Let’s do it.’”

The documentary project came together quickly. A small studio was set up in Scarbrough’s retail computer electronics shop in Houston. Sessions were shot on Sundays when the shop was closed and outside noise was minimal. As many filmmakers do now, David chose to record the videos in 4K on two iPhones in a two-shot setup. A MacBook Pro and Adobe Premier Pro were be used to edit the video.

The recordings began with a discussion of the Cassius Clay and Sonny Liston fights. The project quickly gained momentum as David executed his vision for the project, and the stories of more of the epic photos came to life.

“The challenge was to balance Bob’s unique ability to talk about the images and history, and to ensure the viewer remained immersed in the image itself,” David said. “I hope the viewer can briefly live in the moment of the images.”

Bob said, “The decade of the 1960s was historically powerful. We witnessed so much — from the terrific to the terrible. I’m grateful that David remains interested in the history of the 1960s and that his documentary helped share my perspective on the extraordinary events of the decade and on my life as a photographer.”

A headline in a recent Albuquerque Journal article read: “Bob Gomel’s Photographs Compel Even after 40 Years.” The renowned LIFE photographer has documented many of the great moments and personalities of contemporary history. Articles and books have chronicled Bob’s adventures, including Art Buckwald’s “Leaving Home”, Yoko Ono’s “Memories of John Lennon”, “Arnold Palmer: A Personal Journey,” “Malcolm X”, by Thulani Davis, and Dick Stolley’s “Our Century in Pictures”. His work is exhibited at The Monroe Gallery, Santa Fe.

Bob is a founding member of the Houston chapter of ASMP, the American Society of Media Photographers. ASMP is the leading professional organization for photographers and videographers working in the visual marketplace. The core mission of ASMP is to advocate, educate, and provide community for image makers — fostering thriving careers, a strong sense of professional ethics, and an unshakable belief in the power of images.

Forthcoming exhibition and Gallery Talk with Bob Gomel: October 6, 2023. Details soon!

Capturing Humanity: Photography exhibit explores snapshots of New York’s ordinary people

 

Via The Albuquerque Journal

BY KATHALEEN ROBERTS / JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Sunday, April 23, 2023

Two pioneering women photographers who were blacklisted by the Red Scare share wall space at Santa Fe’s Monroe Gallery of Photography.

Both Sonia Handelman Meyer and Ida Wyman were members of the Photo League. The league was a collective of photographers active from 1936-1951, who believed their work could change poor social conditions and champion photography as an art form. It thrived as one of the most progressive, dynamic and creative centers for photography in the country. About one-third of its members were women.

Handelman Meyer and Wyman roamed the streets of New York, capturing the humanity of ordinary people. In some ways, their gender helped them remain invisible to the people they photographed.

“There was a great advantage to being a woman at that time, to be considered as no consequence,” gallery co-owner Michelle Monroe said.

Handelman Meyer learned about socially engaged photography in workshops by one of the Photo League founders Sid Grossman.

She captured three boys affecting tough guy poses after chasing her down the streets of Spanish Harlem demanding that she photograph them. She also shot “Boy Wearing Mask, New York City” (1946-1950), an image less mysterious that it seems.

“He was playing cops and robbers,” Monroe said. “The way he’s looking at her; there’s a lot of ambiguities about that child. Was he playing? Is it mistrust? Was it just an interruption from an adult? He’s just playing.”

Wyman photographed for Life and Business Week magazines, as well as her own enjoyment. Her work went unheralded for decades.

She was 19 and working in Manhattan as a photo printer for the Acme Newspictures agency when she photographed several men in Manhattan’s garment district in April 1945. One held up a copy of The Jewish Daily Forward, the Yiddish-language newspaper, as the others read about President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s death. Wyman’s “Looking East on 41st Street, NYC” (1947) down a canyon of skyscrapers captures the majesty and industry of the city.

“Men of the Garment District Read of President Roosevelt’s Death, NYC, 1945,” Ida Wyman. (Courtesy of Monroe Gallery)

Before Handelman Meyer and Wyman, women were often assigned to shoot department store openings, Monroe said.

In 1947, the Photo League appeared on a long list of organizations identified with the Communist Party. Efforts to counter the allegation included a large exhibition, “This Is the Photo League.” But in 1949, Angela Calomiris, a Photo League member and F.B.I. informant, publicly testified that members of the organization were Communists. The League disbanded in 1951, a casualty of the Red Scare.

The league’s secretary at the time, Handelman Meyer answered the office phone when requests for comment about the accusations poured in from the media. She also received threatening calls.

“It got to be too much,” she told The New York Times. “They were blacklisting people. There were photographers who could not get their passports for overseas jobs. Little by little, it dissolved.”

When the league closed, Handelman Meyer put her photos and negatives in boxes and moved on with her life. They wouldn’t be opened for many years.

In the early 1940s, the list of notable photographers who were active in the league or supported their activities also included Margaret Bourke-White, W. Eugene Smith, Helen Levitt, Farm Security Administration photographer Arthur Rothstein, Beaumont Newhall, Nancy Newhall, Richard Avedon, Weegee, Robert Frank, Harold Feinstein, Ansel Adams, Edward Weston and Minor White.

‘Two Pioneering Women Photographers of the Photo League’

Sonia Handelman Meyer and Ida Wyman

WHEN: Through June 18

WHERE: Monroe Gallery of Photography, 112 Don Gaspar Ave., Santa Fe

CONTACT: 505-992-0800, monroegallery.com