Paul Strand

Paul Strand

Infobox Artist
bgcolour = #6495ED
name = Paul Strand


imagesize =
caption = "Wall Street", 1915
birthname =
birthdate = birth date |1890|10|16|
location = New York City
deathdate = death date and age |1976|3|31|1890|10|16|
deathplace =
nationality = American
field = Photography
training =
movement =
works =
patrons =
influenced by =
influenced =
awards =

Paul Strand (October 16, 1890 – March 31, 1976) was an American photographer and filmmaker who, along with fellow modernist photographers like Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Weston, helped establish photography as an art form in the 20th century. His diverse body of work, spanning six decades, covers numerous genres and subjects throughout the Americas, Europe and Africa.

Early modernist work

Born in New York City to Bohemian parents, in his late teens Strand was a student of renowned documentary photographer Lewis Hine at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School. It was while on a fieldtrip in this class that Strand first visited the 291 art gallery – operated by Stieglitz and Edward Steichen – where exhibitions of work by forward-thinking modernist photographers and painters would move Strand to take his photographic hobby more seriously. Stieglitz would later promote Strand's work in the 291 gallery itself, in his photography publication "Camera Work", and in his artwork in the Hieninglatzing studio. Some of this early work, like the well-known "Wall Street," experimented with formal abstractions (influencing, among others, Edward Hopper and his idiosyncratic urban vision). [ Wells, Walter, "", London/New York: Phaidon, 2007 ] Other of Strand's works reflect his interest in using the camera as a tool for social reform. He was one of the founders of the Photo League, an association of photographers who advocated using their art to promote social and political causes.

Film-making

Over the next few decades, Strand worked in motion pictures as well as still photography. His first film was "Manhatta" (1921), also known as "New York the Magnificent", a silent film showing the day-to-day life of New York City made with painter/photographer Charles Sheeler. "Manhatta" includes a shot similar to Strand's famous "Wall Street" (1915) photograph. Other films he was involved with included "Redes" (1936) (released in the US as "The Wave"), a film commissioned by the Mexican government, the documentary "The Plow That Broke the Plains" (1936) and the pro-union, anti-fascist "Native Land" (1942).

France

In June 1949, Strand left the United States to present "Native Land" at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in Czechoslovakia. It was a departure that marked the beginning of Strand’s long exile from the prevailing climate of McCarthyism in the United States. The remaining 27 years of his life were spent in Orgeval, France where, despite never learning the language, he maintained an impressive creative life, assisted by his third wife, fellow photographer Hazel Kingsbury Strand.

Although Strand is best known for his early abstractions, his return to still photography in this later period produced some of his most significant work in the form of six book ‘portraits’ of place: "Time in New England" (1950), "La France de Profil" (1952), "Un Paese" (featuring photographs of Luzzara and the Po River Valley in Italy, 1955), "Tir a'Mhurain / Outer Hebrides" [http://web.archive.org/web/20051027001637/http://www.nmpft.org.uk/paulstrand/home.asp] (1962), "Living Egypt" (1969) and "Ghana: an African portrait" (1976).

Family

Strand married the painter Rebecca Salsbury in 1921. He photographed Rebecca Salsbury Strand frequently, sometimes with uncommonly close compositions. Strand married Hazel Kingsbury in 1951.

trand’s politics

The timing of Strand’s departure to France is coincident with the first libel trial of his friend Alger Hiss, with whom he maintained a correspondence until his death. Although he was never officially a member of the Communist Party, many of Strand’s collaborators were either Party members (James Aldridge; Cesare Zavattini) or were prominent socialist writers and activists (Basil Davidson). Many of his friends were also Communists or were suspected of being so (MP DN Pritt; film director Joseph Losey; Scottish poet Hugh MacDiarmid; actor Alex McCrindle). Strand was also closely involved with Frontier Films, one of more than twenty organizations that were branded as ‘subversive’ and ‘un-American’ by the US Attorney General.

Strand also insisted that his books should be printed in Leipzig, East Germany, even if this meant that they were initially prohibited from the American market on account of their Communist provenance. De-classified intelligence files, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act and now lodged at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona, reveal that Strand’s movements around Europe were closely monitored by the security services.

References

*"Paul Strand: Aperture Masters of Photography." Hong Kong: Aperture. ISBN 0-89381-077-0.
* Rosenblum, Naomi. "A World History of Photography" (3rd ed.). New York: Abbeville Press. ISBN 0-7892-0028-7.
* Maren Stange, "Paul Strand: essays on his life and work", New York: Aperture 1991.
* Mike Weaver, ‘Paul Strand: Native Land’, "The Archive" 27 (Tucson, Arizona: Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, 1990) 5-15.
* Fraser MacDonald, 'Paul Strand and the Atlanticist Cold War' "History of Photography" 28.4 (2004) 356-373 [http://www.sages.unimelb.edu.au/staff/macdonald.html available for download as pdf.]
* Gualtieri, Elena "Paul Strand Cesare Zavattini: Lettere e immagini", Bologna, Bora, 2005, ISBN 88-88600-37-X.

External links

* [http://www.aperture.org/ Aperture Foundation, managers of Strand's estate]
* [http://www.masters-of-photography.com/S/strand/strand.html Masters of Photography: Paul Strand]
*
* [http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/03087298.asp "History of Photography" journal]
* [http://lynx.csusm.edu/circlesedge/ Circle’s Edge]
* [http://www.getty.edu/art/gettyguide/artMakerDetails?maker=1899 Paul Strand (Getty Museum)]

Persondata
NAME=Strand, Paul
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=American photographer
DATE OF BIRTH=October 16, 1890
PLACE OF BIRTH=New York City, New York
DATE OF DEATH=March 31, 1976
PLACE OF DEATH=Orgeval, France


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Paul Strand — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Fotografía New York, de Paul Strand. Paul Strand (Nueva York, 16 de octubre de 1890 31 de marzo de 1976), de familia inmigrante de Bohemia, (República Checa) …   Wikipedia Español

  • Paul Strand — (* 16. Oktober 1890 in New York; † 31. März 1976 in Orgeval) war einer der einflussreichsten amerikanischen Fotografen des 20. Jahrhunderts. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Leben und Werk 2 Rezeption 3 Au …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Paul Strand — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Strand. Paul Strand (1890 1976) est un photographe américain. Sommaire 1 Biographie 2 Prix et récompenses …   Wikipédia en Français

  • STRAND (P.) — STRAND PAUL (1890 1976) Les multiples activités de Paul Strand et les thèmes très divers de son œuvre pourraient faire de lui un «touche à tout» de l’image photographique. Né à New York en 1890, il s’adonne à la photographie dès son adolescence.… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Strand (Begriffsklärung) — Strand bezeichnet: Strand, einen flachen Küstenstreifen aus Sand oder Geröll Strand (Insel), eine versunkene Insel im Wattenmeer Strand, einen Ortsteil von Struppen im Landkreis Sächsische Schweiz Osterzgebirge in Sachsen Strand (London), eine… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Strand, Paul — born Oct. 16, 1890, New York, N.Y., U.S. died March 31, 1976, Oregeval, France U.S. photographer. He studied photography with Lewis Hine. At Hine s urging, he frequented Alfred Stieglitz s 291 gallery; the avant garde paintings by Pablo Picasso,… …   Universalium

  • Strand — A beach or strand is a geological formation consisting of loose rock particles along the shoreline of a body of water.Strand or The Strand may also refer to:Geography*Auckland railway station, the former main railway station of Auckland, New… …   Wikipedia

  • Strand — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Strand, brin en anglais, ou plage en néerlandais, norvégien et suédois, peut faire référence à un nom de lieu ou à un nom de personne. Toponyme Brøndby… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Paul — /pawl/ for 1 3, 5; /powl/ for 4, n. 1. Saint, died A.D. c67, a missionary and apostle to the gentiles: author of several of the Epistles. Cf. Saul (def. 2). 2. Alice, 1885 1977, U.S. women s rights activist. 3. Elliot (Harold), 1891 1958, U.S …   Universalium

  • paúl — I (Del lat. vulgar padule < lat. palus, paludis , pantano.) ► sustantivo masculino Terreno pantanoso cubierto de hierba. SINÓNIMO paular II (De san Vicente de Paúl.) ► adjetivo/ sustantivo masculino RELIGIÓN Se aplica al clérigo que es miembro …   Enciclopedia Universal

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”