Photographers
Herbert Ritts Jr. was an American fashion photographer and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on black and white photography and portraits, often in the style of classical Greek sculpture, which emphasized the human shape.
Berenice Alice Abbott was an American photographer best known for her portraits of between-the-wars 20th century cultural figures, New York City photographs of architecture and urban design of the 1930s, and science interpretation in the 1940s to 1960s.
Julius Anton Adam was a German genre painter and animalist who specialised in the depiction of cats and was a member of an influential family of Munich painters.
Julius Anton Adam was a pupil of Professor Michael Echter and later Wilhelm von Dietz at the Munich Academy of Art. He later became a professor himself.
Robert Adams is an acclaimed American photographer known for his profound exploration of the American West's changing landscapes. His work, which gained prominence in the mid-1970s, delves into the tension between the natural beauty of the land and the marks of human encroachment. Adams's photography is a reflection on humanity's relationship with the environment, offering both a critique and a celebration of the landscape.
Robert Adams's notable series, such as "Turning Back" and "The New West," showcase his unique perspective on environmental and urban development issues. His work extends beyond just capturing images; it is a thoughtful commentary on the balance between nature and industrialization. His photographs, often devoid of people, focus on the land itself, telling a story of alteration and resilience.
Exhibitions of Adams's work, such as "American Silence: The Photographs of Robert Adams" at the National Gallery of Art, provide insight into his 50-year career and his ability to capture the silent yet profound narratives of the American landscape. His pieces are part of major collections and have been featured in numerous retrospectives, underlining his influence and significance in the world of photography.
For art collectors and enthusiasts, Robert Adams's work offers a poignant perspective on the American West, blending aesthetic beauty with critical environmental commentary. Engaging with his work invites reflection on our interaction with the landscape and our role in shaping the environment.
If you're interested in staying updated on Robert Adams's work and exhibitions, consider subscribing to newsletters from galleries and museums that feature his art. This way, you'll be informed about new displays of his work and opportunities to engage with his insightful perspectives on the American West.
Ansel Easton Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist, celebrated for his black-and-white images of the American West, particularly Yosemite National Park. His profound connection with nature was not only the subject of his art but also the essence of his environmental advocacy, earning him a revered place in both the art and conservation worlds.
Ansel Adams' early exposure to the beauty of nature and a supportive family environment nurtured his dual interests in music and photography. His photographic journey began with a simple Kodak Box Brownie camera, which he used during his early visits to Yosemite, a place that would become the central theme of his life's work. Ansel Adams' dedication to photography and the environment was interwoven, as he utilized his art to advocate for the conservation of America's natural landscapes.
In the 1930s, Adams co-founded Group f/64, advocating for photographic purity and sharpness of focus, principles that would define his work. His role in establishing the photography department at the Museum of Modern Art in New York underscored his commitment to elevating photography as a respected art form. Ansel Adams' work has been exhibited in prestigious institutions such as the Smithsonian American Art Museum and MoMA, showcasing his contributions to American art and environmentalism.
For collectors and art experts, Ansel Adams' legacy transcends his iconic images; it lies in his ability to merge aesthetic excellence with a passionate message of environmental stewardship. His photographs not only capture the grandeur of landscapes but also serve as a timeless call to preserve the natural world.
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Terry Roger Adkins was an American artist. He was Professor of Fine Arts in the School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania.
Adkins was an interdisciplinary artist whose practice included sculpture, performance, video, and photography. His artworks were often inspired by, dedicated to, or referred to musicians or musical instruments; specific installations and exhibitions were sometimes labeled "recitals." Sometimes, these arrangements of sculptures were "activated" in performances by Adkins' collaborative performance group, the Lone Wolf Recital Corps.
Jack W. Aeby is an American environmental physicist and photographer.
Aeby attended the University of Nebraska and was one of the first civilian employees of the Manhattan Project beginning in 1942. He worked on the project in many areas, starting with human transportation, then he was assigned as the chemical warehouse superintendent.
On July 16, 1945, while at base camp with all the official photographic equipment, Aeby took the only well-exposed color photograph of the first detonation of a nuclear weapon at the Trinity Nuclear Test Site in New Mexico, for which he became famous. The rest of the film was destroyed by the explosion. At the time of the photograph, Aeby was a civilian working in the health physics group with Emilio Segre.
Jack Aeby continued to work at Los Alamos during the Crossroads tests and eventually witnessed nearly 100 nuclear explosions. He then returned to work at Los Alamos National Laboratory in the Department of Health Physics.
Urs Aeschbach is a Swiss media artist working in various techniques. Nature is always a pictorial theme in Urs Aeschbach's paintings. Her main characters are mushrooms, woody plants, animals, jellyfish, as well as dogs and horses. The artist's paintings are inspired by photographs and illustrations. In addition to paintings, Eschbach creates art and construction projects, video works, as well as constructions and installations.
Laure Albin-Guillot was a French artist and photographer. She is best known for her pioneering work in photography and for her contributions to the development of the medium in France during the early 20th century.
Albin-Guillot's early photographic work was focused on portraiture, and she became known for her elegant and striking images of celebrities and other notable figures. She later expanded her practice to include still life and landscape photography, and she was also a skilled photojournalist.
In addition to her photography, Albin-Guillot was an important figure in the Parisian art world, and she was involved in the development of modernist movements such as Cubism and Surrealism. She was a member of the Société des Artistes Décorateurs and was also involved in the organization of several major international exhibitions, including the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris in 1925.
Albin-Guillot was also a prolific writer and educator, and she wrote several books on photography and art history. She taught photography at the École Estienne in Paris, and she also founded her own photography studio, which became known for its innovative use of lighting and composition.
Today, Albin-Guillot's work is recognized as an important contribution to the development of modern photography, and her photographs are held in the collections of major museums around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Darren James Almond is an English artist, based in London. He was nominated for the 2005 Turner Prize. He works in a variety of media including photography and film, which he uses to explore the effects of time on the individual.[3] He uses "sculpture, film and photography to produce work that harnesses the symbolic and emotional potential of objects, places and situations, producing works which have universal as well as personal resonances"
Ike Altgens, born James William Altgens, was an American photojournalist, photo editor and reporter for the Associated Press (AP).
After graduating from North Dallas High School, James joined the Associated Press, first as a reporter and in 1940 he was assigned to the photojournalism staff. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II and returned to the Associated Press in 1945 as a photographer, working as an editor and part-time actor and model.
On November 22, 1963, Altgens was assigned to photograph President John F. Kennedy during his visit to Dallas. And as fate would have it, he was able to take historic photos of the Kennedy assassination, which appeared in newspapers around the world the next day.
Altgens left the Associated Press in 1979, then worked on advertising for Ford Motor Company. On December 12, 1995, James Altgens and his wife were found dead in different rooms of their home in Dallas. According to the investigation, the cause of their deaths was carbon monoxide poisoning due to a faulty furnace.
Manuel Álvarez Bravo was an Mexican visionary photographer whose work vividly illustrates the cultural heritage of Latin America. His unique perspective on life and superb photographic skills have inspired generations of photographers around the world.
Alvarez Bravo was known for his experiments with light and shadows, composition and form. His surreal photographs were often full of mystery and enigma, while also reflecting the difficulties and contradictions of Mexican society in the first half of the 20th century.
Alvarez Bravo's work marvellously combined aesthetic beauty with profound social context. His work is not only inspiring in its beauty but also a reminder of the importance of preserving peoples' cultural heritage and history.
Diane Arbus was an American photographer. Arbus's imagery helped to normalize marginalized groups and highlight the importance of proper representation of all people. She photographed a wide range of subjects including strippers, carnival performers, nudists, people with dwarfism, children, mothers, couples, elderly people, and middle-class families.
Ellen Auerbach, born Ellen Rosenberg, is an American photographer of German-Jewish descent and a master of avant-garde photography.
Ellen studied at the Baden State School of Art and continued her studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Stuttgart before meeting photographer Greta Stern (1904-1999) in Berlin. Together they opened Ringl+pit, a photography and design studio specializing in advertising, fashion and portrait photography. The photographer is most remembered for her groundbreaking work at this particular studio. Ellen, who also experimented with film, made two short black-and-white films.
In 1933, Ellen emigrated to Palestine and opened a children's portrait studio there. A few years later she moved with her husband Walter Auerbach to the United States, where she worked in a private art collection, taught photography, made films and photographs to study children's behavior, and worked as an educational therapist.
The Ringl+pit works and photographic oeuvre of Ellen Auerbach and Greta Stern were rediscovered in the 1980s, and a series of solo and group exhibitions in the United States and Germany followed.
Richard Avedon was an American photographer and artist known for his iconic portraits and fashion photography.
Avedon began his career as a photographer in the late 1940s, working as a freelance photographer for magazines such as Harper's Bazaar and Vogue. He soon became known for his distinctive style, which was characterized by his use of simple, uncluttered backgrounds and his ability to capture the essence of his subjects.
Throughout his career, Avedon photographed some of the most famous people of his time, including Marilyn Monroe, Andy Warhol, and The Beatles. He was also known for his fashion photography, and his work appeared in many fashion magazines, including Harper's Bazaar and Vogue.
Avedon's work was often controversial, as he challenged traditional notions of beauty and fashion. He was known for his willingness to push boundaries, and his work was often seen as a reflection of the social and political issues of his time.
Today, Avedon is regarded as one of the most important photographers of the 20th century, and his work continues to inspire artists and photographers around the world.
John Baeder is an American painter closely associated with the photorealist movement. He is best known for his detailed paintings of American roadside diners and eateries. His interest in small towns across America began when he was young by photographing old cars and other relics. He started working as an art director in Atlanta for a branch of a New York advertising agency in 1960, and subsequently moved to New York City in 1964. He went on to have a successful career in advertising through the early 1970s, while continuing to paint, draw and photograph on his own time. Baeder left the advertising field in 1972 to pursue his artistic career full-time. The same year, OK Harris Gallery in New York began exhibiting his artworks. Since then, he has had more than thirty solo exhibitions at art galleries. His work includes oil paintings, watercolors and photographs. Baeder’s work aims to chronicle the disappearing aspects of American culture. Baeder is the recipient of the Tennessee Governor's Distinguished Artist Award in 2009.
Roger Ballen is an American and South African photographer who lives and works in Johannesburg.
Roger Ballen studied psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, and this specialty helps him to better comprehend and study the world around him. Travels around the world brought him to South Africa, which has become his new home.
Ballen is one of the latest photographers to shoot exclusively in black and white, approaching forms of minimalism.
Lewis "Duke" Baltz was an American visual artist, photographer, and educator. He was an important figure in the New Topographics movement of the late 1970s. His best known work was monochrome photography of suburban landscapes and industrial parks which highlighted his commentary of void within the "American Dream". His work is focused on searching for beauty in desolation and destruction. Baltz's images describe the architecture of the human landscape: offices, factories and parking lots. His pictures are the reflection of control, power, and influenced by and over human beings. His books and exhibitions, his "topographic work", such as The New Industrial Parks, Nevada, San Quentin Point, Candlestick Point, expose the crisis of technology and define both objectivity and the role of the artist in photographs. He wrote for many journals, and contributed regularly to L'Architecture d'Aujourd'hui. Baltz's work is held in the collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tate Modern, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art etc.
Frank Balve is a German conceptual artist.
He creates paintings, photographs, sculptures, performances and films, and his work is often inspired by literary works, from Dante to the Marquis de Sade. Balve designs his images with paint, builds them from stone or paper, stages them in front of the camera, and puts them into language. In special installations he combines his works to create spaces of experience for the viewer to work on.
Lillian Bassman was an American photographer and artist.
A magazine art director and fashion photographer, she became famous in the 1940s and '50s for her high-contrast, dreamy portraits of sylph-like models. Bassman's unique graphic style of photography illustrates the feminine mystique and glamour, as well as the boldness of an artist who blurs the lines between fashion photography and fine art. Working as art director for Bazaar magazine in 1945, she helped launch the careers of many of the century's most famous photographers.
Alexandra Baumgartner is a German artist working in various fields of art: collage, installation, painting and object art. Her work is most often based on found photographs, as well as on furniture and everyday objects. Historical portraits and images are cut out, partially painted over and combined, putting mostly anonymous source material into new contexts.
Peter Hill Beard was an American artist, photographer, diarist, and writer who lived and worked in New York City, Montauk and Kenya. His photographs of Africa, African animals and the journals that often integrated his photographs, have been widely shown and published since the 1960s.
Bernhard (Bernd) Becher and Hilla Becher were German conceptual artists and photographers working as a collaborative duo. They are best known for their extensive series of photographic images, or typologies, of industrial buildings and structures, often organised in grids. As the founders of what has come to be known as the 'Becher school' or the 'Düsseldorf School' they influenced generations of documentary photographers and artists. They have been awarded the Erasmus Prize and the Hasselblad Award.
Hilla Becher (née Wobeser) was a German conceptual photographer. Becher was well known for her industrial photographs, or typologies, with longtime collaborator and husband, Bernd Becher. Her career spanned more than 50 years and included photographs from the United States, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Italy.
Becher, alongside her husband, received the Erasmus Prize and the Hasselblad Award. The Bechers founded the Düsseldorf School of Photography in the mid-1970s.
Berndt Becher was a German conceptual photographer. Becher is well known for his industrial photography.
Together with his wife and collaborator Hilla Becher won the Erasmus Prize and the Hasselblad Prize. In the mid-1970s the Bechers founded the Düsseldorf School of Photography.
Zdzisław Beksiński was a Polish painter, photographer, and sculptor, specializing in the field of dystopian surrealism.
Beksiński made his paintings and drawings in what he called either a Baroque or a Gothic manner. His creations were made mainly in two periods. The first period of work is generally considered to contain expressionistic color, with a strong style of «utopian realism» and surreal architecture, like a doomsday scenario. The second period contained more abstract style, with the main features of formalism.
Valérie Belin is a French art photographer. She lives and works in Paris.
Her work takes the form of photographic series. In the 2000s she started using digital post-production tools which gave her greater freedom to change and control the chromatic values of the prints. She now produced her first series in colour. In 2009 Belin began to use other kinds of digital manipulation, heightening the hybrid, graphic and artificial dimension of her work. These include solarisation and overprinting. Since then, she has also worked with other abstract vectorial forms, like digital "readymades" found on the internet, which she reworks on the computer, melding them with her images.
Hans Bellmer was a German graphic artist, sculptor, photographic artist, illustrator, and writer who spent most of his life in France.
In the 1930s Bellmer began working on the eroticized image of the deformed doll, contrasting it with the aesthetics of the "classical" body in Hitler's Germany. His graphic and literary explorations focus on the dismemberment and liberation of bodies. Bellmer's surrealist works are violent and provocative: they include puppet sculptures composed of the bodies of nude models, photographs, and prints.
In 1934, 18 photographs of dolls were published in the Parisian surrealist magazine Minotaur, and the Nazi regime declared Bellmer's art degenerate. In 1938, Bellmer emigrated to France.
After the end of the war, the artist continued his work, adding poetry to painting. He also authored illustrations for many works, particularly on erotic themes.
Walead Beshty is an American conceptual artist, photographer, sculptor and writer who lives and works in Los Angeles.
Born in London, Great Britain, he studied at Bard College and received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Yale University in 2002, and holds academic positions at universities across the United States.
Beschty is best known for his work in photography, but his creative interest spans a wide range, including sculpture, painting, installation and video. For example, in one of his popular works, the artist mails a series of glass windows of various sizes in cardboard boxes, and then displays the cracked and broken windows, damaged in transit, over the boxes in which they were packed.
Joseph Heinrich Beuys was a German artist, renowned for his significant contributions to the realms of sculpture, painting, and installation art, which have left a lasting impact on the culture and art world. His work transcended traditional boundaries, merging art with social theory and politics, thus redefining the role of the artist in society. Beuys's unique approach to materials, incorporating substances like fat and felt, symbolized healing and insulation, reflecting his broader philosophical and ecological concerns.
Beuys's art was deeply influenced by his experiences during World War II and his academic background in natural sciences and sculpture. His concept of "social sculpture" proposed that art could transform society, emphasizing creativity as a fundamental component of human existence. This vision led him to use his performances, or "actions," as a medium to communicate his ideas, making him a pivotal figure in the Fluxus movement. Notable works such as "How to Explain Pictures to a Dead Hare" and "7000 Oaks" exemplify his innovative use of performance and environmental art to engage and challenge the public.
His legacy is preserved in major museums and galleries worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Tate Modern in London. These institutions house key pieces that exemplify Beuys's diverse artistic output, from his early drawings and sculptures to his later installations and public interventions. His influence extends beyond the art world, impacting environmental activism and educational reform, underscoring his belief in the transformative power of art.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Joseph Heinrich Beuys remains a figure of immense interest, not only for his groundbreaking artworks but also for his profound impact on contemporary art theory and practice. To stay informed about new product sales and auction events related to Beuys, we invite you to sign up for updates. This subscription ensures you are always in the loop regarding opportunities to engage with the enduring legacy of one of the most influential artists of the 20th century.
Werner Bischof was a Swiss photographer and photojournalist. He became a full member of Magnum Photos in 1949, the first new photographer to join its original founders. Bischof's book Japan (1954) was awarded the Prix Nadar in 1955.
Peter Thomas Blake is an English pop artist. He co-created the sleeve design for the Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. His other works include the covers for two of The Who's albums, the cover of the Band Aid single "Do They Know It's Christmas?", and the Live Aid concert poster. Blake also designed the 2012 Brit Award statuette.
Blake is a prominent figure in the pop art movement. Central to his paintings are his interest in images from popular culture which have infused his collages. In 2002 he was knighted at Buckingham Palace for his services to art.
Karl Blossfeldt was a German photographer, sculptor and teacher who worked in Berlin. He was one of the representatives of the New Vision in photography. Blossfeldt worked with a camera of his own invention that allowed him to reach a 30x magnification.
He photographed mainly flowers, plants and plant fragments. Under this magnification plants resemble abstract shapes rather than the plant itself. Blossfeldt's photographs can be equally classified as scientific photography and as works of art.
Dieter Blum is a contemporary German photographer who has worked for well-known and influential publications (German magazines Spiegel and Stern, American Time, Vanity Fair). At the beginning of his career he took pictures of American cowboys, now he prefers to work with musicians and ballet dancers.
Bernhard Johannes Blume is a German art photographer.
Bernhard Blume and his wife Anna Blume created many staged black and white photographs in which they themselves took part. They are considered among the pioneers of staged photography.
Erwin Blumenfeld was a German-born photographer and artist who is best known for his fashion photography and experimental work in the mid-20th century. He was began his career as an artist, working in painting, drawing, and collage.
In the 1930s, Blumenfeld fled Germany and settled in Paris, where he became a successful fashion photographer. He worked for Vogue and other high-profile magazines, creating iconic images of models and celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, and Grace Kelly.
Blumenfeld was also known for his experimental and avant-garde work, which often involved techniques such as photomontage, solarization, and multiple exposures. He saw photography as a means of artistic expression and used it to explore ideas about identity, beauty, and the nature of reality.
Blumenfeld's legacy as an artist and photographer continues to influence contemporary fashion and art. His innovative techniques and distinctive style continue to inspire new generations of artists, and his work is recognized as a significant contribution to the history of photography.
Oliver Boberg is a German artist, working with photography and video, whose work has been exhibited internationally. Mainly reflecting on the process of creating and recalling memories, Boberg's works are in the collections of institutions such as the Victoria & Albert Museum ( London, England) and the Museum of Modern Art (New York, NY).
Jósef Borsos is a Hungarian portrait painter and photographer.
Borsos studied art at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. He painted portraits of historical figures, but became best known for his genre paintings in the Biedermeier style.
Édouard Boubat was a French photojournalist and art photographer.
In 1943, he was subjected to service du travail obligatoire, forced labour of French people in Nazi Germany, and witnessed some of the horrors of World War II. He took his first photograph after the war in 1946 and was awarded the Kodak Prize the following year. He travelled internationally for the French magazine Réalités, where his colleague was Jean-Philippe Charbonnier, and later worked as a freelance photographer. French poet Jacques Prévert called him a "peace correspondent" as he was humanist, apolitical and photographed uplifting subjects.
Guy Bourdin was a French photographer and artist who is best known for his innovative and provocative fashion photography in the mid-20th century. He was began his career as a painter before turning to photography.
Bourdin's photographic style was characterized by his use of bold colors, surreal imagery, and provocative themes. He often incorporated elements of eroticism and violence into his work, challenging traditional ideas about beauty and femininity.
Bourdin's photographs were widely published in fashion magazines such as Vogue, and he became known for his collaborations with fashion designers such as Charles Jourdan and Issey Miyake. His work was highly influential, and he is considered one of the most important fashion photographers of the 20th century.
Bourdin's legacy as an artist and photographer continues to inspire new generations of artists. His innovative techniques and bold aesthetic continue to push the boundaries of fashion photography and have had a significant impact on contemporary art and culture.
Margaret Bourke-White was an American photographer and photojournalist. She studied photography at the Clarence H. White School of Photography. White, where she developed her trademark style using dramatic angles and strong contrasts of light and shadow.
Burke-White was one of the first women photographers to work for Life magazine, and her images became synonymous with the magazine's coverage of major world events such as World War II and the Korean War. She was also the first woman photographer to work in war zones during World War II, where she captured powerful images of warfare and its impact on civilians.
In addition to war photography, Bourke-White also documented the Great Depression in the United States and was one of the few photographers to gain access to the Soviet Union in the 1930s where she documented Soviet industrialization and the lives of ordinary people.
Bourke-White's work was known for its powerful impact and stark realism. She often risked her safety to get the perfect shot and her images continue to inspire photographers today. She published several books of her work, including 'Eyes on Russia' and 'Dear Fatherland, Rest in Peace'.
Bourke-White left behind a legacy as one of the greatest photojournalists of the 20th century.
Derek Paul Boyle is a contemporary American visual artist whose work often deals with the anthropomorphism of everyday objects and absurdist interventions.
Boyle received his BFA from Emerson College in Boston and his MFA in Digital and Media Studies from Rhode Island School of Design.
Boyle has exhibited his work nationally and internationally, including exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in Cleveland, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Saatchi Gallery in London. His work is included in the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Cleveland Museum of Art and others.
In addition to his studio practice, Boyle also teaches art and works as a visiting artist at various institutions, including the Rhode Island School of Design, the School of Visual Arts and the University of Michigan.
Mark Boyle is a Scottish media artist from the British underground.
Since 1985 he and his wife Joan Hills and their children Sebastian and Georgia formed a collaborative art group called The Boyle Family. The Boyle family experimented with different techniques and styles. This included performances and events, films and projections, sound recordings, photography, electronic micro-photography, drawing, assemblage, painting, sculpture and installation.
However, their most famous long-term project remains Journey to the Earth's Surface, which they began in 1964 and which is a continuum of strange and interesting works. These paintings-very precise drawn casts, something in between painting and sculpture-are careful recreations of randomly selected sections of the earth's surface using resin and fiberglass, as well as real materials collected from the site under investigation.
Miguel Rio Branco, full name Miguel da Silva Paranhos do Rio Branco, is a Brazilian photographer, artist, director and creator of multimedia installations.
His father was a diplomat and as a child Miguel lived in Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and the USA, now living and working in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. After earning a degree in photography from the New York Institute of Photography, Miguel first worked as a cameraman and then worked with the Magnum agency. Miguel is known for exploring and crossing two different art forms: painting and photography. He has also shot 14 short films and eight long films, he is recognized in the world as one of the best color photojournalists.
Miguel Rio Branco's photographs are part of the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Constantin Brâncuși was a Romanian sculptor, painter, and photographer who made his career mainly in France, becoming one of the pivotal figures of modern sculpture and a pioneer of modernism. Born in 1876 in Hobița, Romania, Brâncuși displayed a talent for carving from a young age, a skill honed during his early life as a shepherd in the Carpathian Mountains. His work evolved from traditional forms to groundbreaking abstract sculptures that sought to capture the essence rather than the literal representation of his subjects.
After moving to Paris in 1904, Brâncuși's unique style began to take shape. He worked briefly in the studio of Auguste Rodin, but soon left to pursue his own vision, stating that "Nothing can grow under big trees." This decision marked the beginning of his pursuit to distill forms to their simplest essence, a philosophy that would define his career. Brâncuși's sculptures, such as "The Kiss" and "Bird in Space," are celebrated for their smooth, simplified forms that evoke the core of the subject matter with minimal detail. His work in wood, bronze, and marble often carried a serene, timeless quality, blending modernist aesthetics with a touch of his Romanian heritage.
Brâncuși's contributions to art were not limited to sculpture. He was also an accomplished photographer, using his camera to capture the spatial relationships and compositions of his studio and sculptures, an extension of his artistic vision. His works are held in high regard worldwide and are featured in prominent collections, such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Tate in the United Kingdom.
The legal battle over "Bird in Space" in 1927 highlighted the challenges Brâncuși faced in having his work recognized as art by traditional standards. This case, which eventually ruled in his favor, established a precedent for modern art's recognition beyond traditional forms and representations.
For art collectors and experts, Brâncuși's oeuvre represents a bridge between the tactile craftsmanship of earlier periods and the conceptual, form-driven concerns of modern art. His legacy is a testament to the power of innovation, vision, and the enduring appeal of simplicity in form.
For those interested in the evolution of sculpture and the role of art in transcending cultural and temporal boundaries, Constantin Brâncuși's work offers profound insights. We invite you to sign up for updates on new product sales and auction events related to Brâncuși's work, ensuring you stay informed about opportunities to engage with the legacy of this pioneering artist.
Peter Brandes is a Danish painter, sculptor, ceramic artist and photographer.
Brandes' art is abstract and often in brown colours. He had his breakthrough as artist in the beginning of the 1980s. He has, inter alia, done artwork on Roskilde Domkirke and mosaic (colored glass) windows in a church at Nordkap and the church Village of Hope, south of Los Angeles. In 1998, he created the enormous Roskilde Jars which stand outside the main Roskilde Railway Station.
Brandes is self-taught and his art circles around themes from Christianity. Ancient Greek mythology has also inspired his art. Brandes has illustrated a number of books, for example Homer’s Iliad. A great part of Brandes' ceramic works are inspired by ancient Greek art and mythology.
Nick Brandt is a British photographer. He is known for his black and white photographs of wildlife and landscapes in Africa.
Brandt began his career in photography working as a music video director in the 1990s before transitioning to fine art photography. His work often depicts the animals of Africa in a powerful and emotive way, highlighting the beauty and fragility of these creatures and their natural habitats.
Brandt's photographs have been widely exhibited and are included in the collections of many major museums, including the National Portrait Gallery in London, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, and the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington, D.C. He has also published several books of his photography, including "On This Earth," "A Shadow Falls," and "Across The Ravaged Land."
In addition to his photography, Brandt is also the founder of the Big Life Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of wildlife and ecosystems in East Africa. He has received numerous awards and honors for his photography and conservation work, including the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year award.
Marianne Brandt was a German painter, sculptor, photographer, metalsmith, and designer who studied at the Bauhaus art school in Weimar and later became head of the Bauhaus Metall-Werkstatt (Metal Workshop) in Dessau in 1928. Today, Brandt's designs for household objects such as lamps and ashtrays are considered timeless examples of modern industrial design. She also created photomontages.
Brassaï, whose real name was Gyula Halász, was a Hungarian-French artist and photographer best known for his work documenting the streets of Paris during the 1920s and 1930s. He was one of the key figures of the Surrealist movement and his work continues to influence photographers and artists to this day.
Brassaï moved to Paris in the 1920s to pursue a career in art. He initially worked as a journalist and began taking photographs to accompany his articles. However, it was his nocturnal photographs of the city that would bring him international fame.
Brassaï's photographs of the streets of Paris at night captured the city's seedier side, including its prostitutes, bars, and cabarets. His work is known for its use of dramatic lighting and strong contrast, which helped to create a moody, evocative atmosphere.
In addition to his photography, Brassaï was also a talented painter and sculptor. He was a close friend of many of the leading artists and writers of the time, including Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, and Henry Miller.
Brassaï's work has been exhibited in major museums and galleries around the world, and his photographs have been published in numerous books and magazines. He was one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century, and his legacy continues to inspire artists and photographers today.
Mona Breede is a German photographer.
Mona Breede studied photography at the Bavarian School of Photography in Munich and at the Higher Art School in Karlsruhe. From 2001-2002 she taught photography and design at the Merkur Akademie in Karlsruhe. After working for some time in Chicago, in 2007 Mona Breede traveled to Asia and Russia and brought back a series of photographs from Shanghai, Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Today, it is places and people that interest the photographer the most. As a photographer, Mona Breede has a receptive and sensitive eye. Her work interprets reality, imprints on it and has a great power of expression.
