The Power of Photography Series

Jerusalem has been, and is, the spiritual home to three major religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. To say it is a magical place is a great understatement.

I have seen and collected many images of The Holy Land but this recent acquisition is I think the greatest I have ever seen taken at this special place. I believe it to be a unique print. It is as if Irving Penn had been transported back in time.

Of course, “The Steerage” is one of the most celebrated images in the history of photography.
For good reason as its genius graphic construction and human empathy is utterly timeless.

Wynn Bullock, to my mind, is one the greatest 20th Century photographers. Often eclipsed by his more well known contemporaries, Edward Weston and Ansel Adams.

This is a haunting portrait of his mother’s hands taken in his modest house in Carmel in 1956. The beauty of the print just knocks me out and is the definition of the word “primal”.

This is my favorite Arnold Newman image. Such a great environmental portrait with a true sense of destiny as JFK looks to the future.

Where is our leader now?

I was visiting our great friend and artist, Pentti Sammallahti, in Helsinki and I casually said to him, “Perhaps there is another great photographer in Finland I should meet?”

He made a telephone call and the next day he drove me for over 3 hours in the freezing cold through what seemed like at the time endless forests to meet his most favored student and protege, Kristopher.

We spent a delightful few hours all together and as we were talking and eating out of the corner of my eye I saw this gem of an image hanging on a discrete wall. I had to get up to look at it more closely. Then like a powerful Ali punch I was knocked out by it’s power and physical beauty.
A tender and loving portrait of his wife.

It remains, to this day, one of my all time favorite images.

We are pleased to continue our new online series called the Power of Photography highlighting hope, peace and love in the world. We invite you to enjoy and reflect on these works during this time.

Taking up photography at the age of 40 years old, urged on by her children as an antidote to her husband leaving to run the family plantations in India, Julia Margaret Cameron became the first great female photographer.

It is so hard to find her prints in such perfect condition as this one. I had collected several in the past in not so great a condition but it was always a dream to find a 10. My dream came true with this one and it just transports me to a special pace each time I look at it.

Ansel Adams is justly celebrated for his epic depictions of majestic landscapes, but this rare, little discussed, haunting image of displaced children shows his profound empathy for humanity. Certainly on a par with, his close colleague Dorothea Lange’s, “Migrant Mother” but certainly no less powerful.

Many years ago we mounted a Civil Rights Exhibition in the gallery, it was a subject that completely enveloped me.I knew we needed to have a great MLK image to anchor the exhibition and I subsequently spent months hunting and viewing hundreds of images. When I came across Dan Budnik’s understated work and met him I knew this was the one.

Bruce is one of the great Magnum photographers best known for his gritty urban work. This is a rare gem in his archive.

Full of wonderment, humanity and hope.

It was always Cartier-Bresson’s intention to become a painter as a young man. He studied intensely with the celebrated teacher and Cubist painter Andre Lhote.

Fortunately, for the history of photography and for us, he discovered photography to become in my opinion, the greatest 20th Century photographer and maybe the greatest photographer ever. His work was the inspiration for me to open a fine art photography gallery so my debt to him is huge.

One can see the painterly influence on this key early image, “On The Banks of the Marne”. It is as if Seurat picked up a camera by mistake instead of his paint brushes. It’s simple joy and humanity and always puts a smile on my face.

Of course the Beatles have been much photographed but this has always been my favourite. Taken by the great David Bailey, a fellow East Ender. It’s more than about Paul Mccartney and John Lennon. It is so much more universal than that.

It is about friendship and creativity and shared history.

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”
~ Emma Lazarus

When I first met Ernesto I knew instinctively that here was a new talent, bursting with energy and fresh ideas. How many times had I seen images of this American Icon but it radiated a special transcendence which bowled me over. Now more than ever do these words ring true.

August Sander’s epic projects are so revealing and intense. Totally masterful and encyclopedic. Absolutely one of the great Masters of Portraiture. Here is a moment of lightness and joy. I suspect this boy echoes this feeling.

I met Flor Garduno over 30 years ago when she was given an exhibition by Foto Fest. She did not speak any English and my Spanish was limited at best. I saw her exhibition “Witnesses of Time” which brought me to tears. It was so powerful and haunting.

I went up to her and just put my hand on my heart and wiped the tears from my eyes. I hugged her and after that we started to work together.

“The Blessing” is part of a wedding ceremony she witnessed. It comforts me and give me hope every time I look at it.

Being an incurable romantic of course I gravitated to Robert Doineau’s imagery pretty early on in my collecting.

But this is rare gem in his body of work and not one he printed many of. First love? Who can ever forget it?

I have never been to Japan but Paul Caponigro immediately transports me there and offers up the solace and peace I am searching for right now.

One of my favorite human beings, his talent and dedication have been a source of inspiration for over 30 years now.

I had the great pleasure of working closely with Edouard in the 1990’s whilst he was alive.
He was exactly what his photos are still - sensitive, gentle and tender.

Here is a rare gem I asked him to make for me.

No one made more beautiful prints than Mr Penn.

I feel I have to be very formal even when I think about and write about him. He commands reverence. He is certainly in a class of his own. The dedication and craft it takes to execute an image like this cannot be underestimated.

I owned a print of this 30 years ago but had to sell it to start up my gallery. It broke my heart to part with it, but a print of it came back to me recently after all these years of absence. It is truly inspirational and reminds me that nothing in life worth having comes easy.

I’ve always been interested in politics and government and power and how it all does or doesn’t work. No more so than now… So for me this image has a special resonance.

Every politician cannot afford to ignore the giant shadow that Abraham Lincoln casts and hopefully his exceptional qualities washes over them during this special time in world history.

When I was growing up in London when I was about 16 years old I picked up a copy of Roman Vishniac’s book “A Vanished World”. It was the first photo book I had ever bought. The power of it totally took me over, especially this image. 

Flash forward 5 years, I had scraped enough money together to go visit New York which was always a dream. I don’t know what possessed me but I looked through the telephone directory (do any of you remember these?) and saw that he was listed. I took a deep breath and mustered up the courage to call. Mr Vishniac answered and I nervously fumbled my way to say I was so moved by his book and this was my first day in America and could I come meet him? He said, "Come round tomorrow. I’m busy but I will give you 10 minutes."

I went to his apartment on Upper Broadway and stayed 5 hours. I must have looked like a waif and his wife kept feeding me continuously. He was so intelligent, so erudite, so inspiring with his stories of how he captured these images of this community who were doomed to perish. I asked him more about “Sara”. He told me she had never seen flowers in person and that her father had painted them for her to try to give her hope that there was a world outside.

It is still one of the greatest photos I have ever seen.

Visiting our great friend, Pentti Sammallahti, in Helsinki we had just finished lunch when we passed a bookstore and in the front window was a book of photographs with this image on the front cover. It stopped me in my tracks and I asked Pentti who was the photographer.

Caj was elderly, he is 91 years old now, and had closed down his darkroom.

We met and Pentti offered to graciously help him print a few prints of this image for me in his darkroom. I love images of mystery and having lived with this image for many years I have never quite unraveled its story. But that doesn’t matter. I am still hypnotized by it and always will be.

I have known my friend, Michael Kenna, for over 40 years now. I think we both came over on the same banana boat steerage from the UK. 

I have watched his career progress from being Master Printer for our mutual friend, Ruth Bernhard, to a major artist in his own right. He has never lost his humility, grace and curiosity and his technical prowess and talent just gets stronger.

This brand new image just seems so appropriate for our current times. May the gentle mists roll over us and bring us peace.

Thurston was such a joy to be around. Typically English in his demeanor, very modest and humble about his incredible achievements, but with such a life force.

This image is pure, pure joy and I see it every day.

There is something so seductive about Lilo Raymond’s work.

Her on-the-surface simple, domestic interiors evoke a deep range of emotions. A longing for calm and respite from a chaotic world not far from here.

Is it the light or the white or both that makes us want to inhabit her rooms and never leave?

Elliott Erwitt - another all time favorite human being and photographer. Intelligent, insightful, gracious and human.

On temporary leave from army service, Elliott was sleeping on the couch at his friend, Robert Frank, and his wife’s apartment and captures this wonderful joyful moment.

Many years ago, I was visiting a small exhibition of people’s favorite photos in Los Angeles and came across this image of a young boy who lived in a special school for blind children. I had never heard of Charles Harbutt so I tracked him down. He was so modest and humble in spite of being the President of Magnum Photos.

Here the blind child is searching for the light he cannot see. Isn’t this what we, who are blessed with sight, are always trying to do?

I grew up loving Sinatra. Probably like a lot of kids I used to sing in front of a mirror with a pretend microphone.

He was so cool and I ended up meeting him in 1981. In my former life I produced a film with Luciano Pavarotti. Pavarotti idolized Sinatra. Sinatra idolized Pavarotti. Sinatra graciously hosted the opening night party for us in NY and I got to meet him in these dreamlike circumstances.

Flash forward many years. We hosted an exhibition of all the great Sinatra images at the gallery in collaboration with the Sinatra family who were just great to be with. They thought the exhibition was just so classy.

This was Frank Sinatra, Jr’s favorite photo of his dad. He said that was him.

John Dominis was one of the great Life Magazine Photographers.

He was commissioned to shoot one of the great male dancers of the era, Jacques d'Amboise.
Not only a portrait of a dancer at his physical peak but a portrait of fatherhood.

Martine Franck was one of the most gracious people I have ever met.

She went out of her way to introduce me to so many great photographers like Willy Ronis, Edouard Boubat, Sebastiao Salgado because she thought it would be good for me and for them.

She was a great photographer in her own right but completely self-effacing. If you look very closely at this image, you will see a solitary woman walking in the far distance in the snow.

Snowy imagery and black and white analogue printing, a marriage made in photographic heaven.

A chance viewing on Instagram by one of our fashion clients who urged us to seek out this young, emerging Hungarian female photographer from just this one image.

Such is the power of photography. That this image has changed both her life and ours. We have been given the gift of a great new photographer to collaborate with and she has been given the gift of being able now to support herself as a full time artist due to the enormous global support of her rare and original talent.

Imogen Cunningham, soon to be the subject of a major Getty Museum exhibition, captured this intimate portrait of her fellow photographers Edward Weston and Margrethe Mather with such exquisite tenderness and insight. One of the great love stories in the history of photography, also stimulated equally great work at this time from the sitters.

Bruce Davidson’s Sunday morning “Stickball” is like an elegant ballet. The cars have just been given their weekly wash and there is that wonderful leisurely feeling after a frantic week no doubt. 

It’s a classic image capturing a community and spirit that we can only now look back on wistfully. 
So much has changed now.

I enjoyed such a wonderful 20 year collaboration with Willy Ronis. Whenever I was in Paris I would take him to dinner.

One day I said I want to take you to the restaurant where you shot “Rue Muller”. We went there and the street hadn’t changed in over 60 years. I had booked the restaurant to give him his 100th birthday party but sadly he passed away at 99 and a half years, after a long and fulfilling life. 

One of the greats for sure.

I really love exceptional portraits of artists. I can only dream of owning a Modigliani, Seurat, Picasso, O’Keeffe, Cassat, Agnes Martin, etc., but a great artist portrait is the next best thing.

Martha Holmes was an important Life Magazine photographer and this image of Jackson Pollock deservedly made the front cover when it was first published.

The history of Photography is full of examples of the Muse as Inspiration, think Alfred Steiglitz and Georgia O’Keeffe, Edward Weston and Charis Wilson, Harry Callahan and his wife Eleanor throughout their 63 year old marriage. But none is as powerful or poignant as René Groebli telling of his honeymoon in a simple,  small Paris hotel as his “Eye of Love” series.

To my mind,  it is the greatest love story ever told in still images. Now in his 93rd year, René is a source of constant inspiration.  A true life force.

When I am with Sabine as I was in November, I cannot believe I am sitting with a woman who is 96 years old. She is full of vigor and enthusiasm. She is the last living photographer from one of my favorite eras in the history of photography - The French Humanist Post War period - which gave us Boubat, Doisneau and Ronis.

I remember witnessing an incredible sight. She was only 91 years old at the time and was being honored with a big exhibition in Paris and there was a special book signing event which I think was originally scheduled for one hour at noon. There were literally crowds around the block with hundreds waiting to have their books signed and personalized. It went on for five hours and Sabine was patient, courteous and focused on everyone who was lucky to be in her presence.

That is what makes a great photographer.

Alfred Eisenstaedt was probably the most celebrated and beloved of all the great Life Magazine photographers. He was there from the start and spent over 40 years working there. I remember meeting him in Martha's Vineyard a few years before he passed away at age 96 years old in 1995. He was so full of life and childlike enthusiasm which is really the key to longevity as a great photographer. 

This is one of my favorite images of his. The bon vivants of the world used to stay at the celebrated Grand Hotel les Bains in St Moritz, I’m sure just to sit on its ice terrace and be served by its famous skating staff. The head waiter, Renee Bregut, immortalized here by Eisie’s lens.

I think John Szarkowski had one of the greatest minds I have ever encountered. Beyond articulate and intelligent, his early writings, especially his classic book “Looking at Photographs," nurtured my interest in photography.

Revered as one of the greatest curators of photography ever he was also an incredible photographer and printmaker in his own right. Every Monday morning he would bring in apples from his cherished trees which you see here to his staff at Museum of Modern Art New York.

I had the great honour of hosting the last public exhibition of his work. The week he was with us in California still fills me with such beautiful memories of great meals and conversations. Sadly, he passed away a few weeks after the exhibition opened. 

I owe him a lot.

One day whilst visiting Henri in Paris in his apartment, I brought with me one of my favorite books of his - the long out-of-print, “The People of Moscow“ which I thought was full of unknown 'gems'. 
I pointed to this image of the gymnasts and asked, “Henri, I love this photograph...why have you never made a signed collector print of this image? I think it is very strong.” “Well Peter” he replied, “No one has ever asked." 

I asked him would he be willing to make three prints for me. “If you insist, I will oblige." And so it went on over many years. 

My favourite images of his have always been the ones I had never seen prints of before.

This is the most autobiographical photograph I have ever collected. I was born in the East End of London into a very modest background to say the least. My parents had both left school at 13 years old. I always dreamed that outside our tiny apartment there was a bigger world to explore. Every Saturday morning I used to take myself on the tube “Up West” to Central London and Charing Cross Road depicted here where there were rows and rows of second hand bookstores where, for literally pennies, I could find second hand books to feed my curiosity plus a second hand jazz record store called Dobells where I could listen to jazz records for hours that I could not afford to buy. This was my weekly ritual and Charing Cross Road became my cultural nirvana. 

Flash forward, I see this image about thirty years ago and wham that was it and I met its creator - Wolf Suschitzky. On every trip back to London I would visit Wolf in his little appartment. He was a gentleman from the “old Middle European School." We had our own special ritual. He would brew me the greatest Viennese coffee and there would always be the most delicious apple strudel to accompany it. And then we would talk for hours and look through his archives. I always discovered something new and special there. I thought he was such a truly great and under-appreciated photographer and promoting his work became my “Mission,” to secure him the recognition I felt he deserved. It still is...He passed away at 104 years old and to be honest there is not a day I don’t think about him as I live surrounded by his work.

Eve Arnold was one of the great Magnum Photographers.

She lived on one of my favourite streets in London, Mount Street, near the Royal butcher.

She was so intelligent and feisty. I asked her to make me this little known image of Paul Newman in the Actors Studio. I love movies and especially the great Newman movies like “Hud," “The Hustler," “Butch Cassidy," “The Sting," “The Verdict” and so many more.

You can tell from his presence in this class that he would certainly be destined for something great.

Sometimes one yearns for some vibrant color in one's life. There is something so primal in this image. I’m not sure what it is about, but it doesn’t concern me as I try not to over analyze images. 

This one just got to me and I wanted to live with it. It energized and moved me and I hope it does you too.

Weegee is generally know for his gritty, violent urban crime scene work rushing to get there before the police arrived, but there is a real tender side to him as evidenced by my favorite image of his... Easter Sunday in Harlem.

A moment of joy, community, relief, happiness and hope. Exactly what we are all wishing for now.

As I said in a previous post, I have always felt all collecting is autobiographical. We are attracted to images that tell part of our story.

I was born in the East End and this could have been my mother. Here again a portrait of great empathy with the magic element of the highlighted wedding ring which helps tell her story.

If I were to be cast away on a Desert Island with only 10 photos this would surely be one of them as it goes straight to the heart like a piercing arrow. Its beautiful composition and the soul of the image have haunted me for over 40 years since I first saw it.

It is timeless, eternal. What is she daydreaming about? What are we daydreaming about now in our isolation?

Maestro Don Manuel - thank you.

I think this is talented Latin photographer Mario Algaze’s greatest image.

I am immediately transported into this woman’s life. It is shot with such tenderness and heart...I am walking just behind her.

A couple of years before he passed away, I was in Atlanta and had the great pleasure of taking Harry Callahan to dinner. He was so quiet and humble and self-effacing. I had to pinch myself that I was in the presence of one of the great 20th Century photographers. 

Here is my favorite photograph of his. A beautiful portrait of his wife and muse, Eleanor, and their daughter, Barbara.

I owe Cornell Capa a great debt. He was one of my true mentors and I had the honor of hosting an exhibition of his own images before he passed away.

He never promoted his own work as he felt it was ethically not right being the head of the museum, International Center of Photography, which he founded. But I always thought he was a great photographer, in a way, greater than his more famous brother Robert.

His Savoy Ballroom is a masterful composition, full of life and energy.

In an age of social distancing this is one of the great non-social distancing images in the History of Photography.

One can only imagine what the two friends are chatting about. First published in “Picture Post”, the UK equivalent to “Life Magazine,” the woman in the polka dot dress and her friend became instantly famous. She passed away recently after a rich and fulfilling life and requested in her will that she be buried with this dress.

One of the all-time great Jazz Photos by the highly underrated Chuck Stewart...this is a rare gem.

Sure it is about the soul of Jazz, but it is about so much more than that in my opinion. It is about the soul of a creative relationship.

The violin is one of my most favorite sounds to listen to. It is so emotional and heart-wrenching.

I don’t have to turn on any Mozart, Bach or Beethoven to hear it. I just look at Arnold’s image and hear them all. Justly celebrated as one of the great 20th Century portrait photographers, this is a rare gem in his body of work.

I was reading today about the booming sales of personal grooming kits and it reminded me of this photo...I just love William Klein, now in his 93rd year. 

His energy, his emotional quirkiness, his “I don’t care what you think" attitude. He is one of the last survivors of that generation of photographers that shaped the art of 20th Century Photography. 

Long may he thrive.

Sheila Metzner has created some of the most beautiful photographs I have ever seen especially in her collaborations with the revered Fresson family on their unique carbon process invented by Theodore-Henri Fresson in 1899, whose legacy is now carried on by his family the Atelier Fresson based outside of Paris. In her long and distinguished career she exudes an unrivaled sense of style and beauty. Surrounded now with her powerful, haunting color images has certainly lifted my mood to embrace the not-too-distant future when we can all experience the light again.

George has dedicated his life in pursuit of the art and craft of photography. Spending time with him is beyond inspiring. His focus and hard work have resulted in such a powerful body of work. As an Englishman, he has helped me understand America in a deeply profound way, its nuances and sub text. There is a Hopper like beauty to his imagery which is universal. I bet many people’s first car was a VW Bug. I know it certainly was mine. We have been on a wonderful journey with George which I hope continues for many more years. 

Thank you George for the ride.

Brooklyn made Louis who he was, but Paris made him into the poet he became. He lived a controlled schizophrenia between the love of the two cities that he spent most of his life in. 

He was a true original. Real tough and combative on the outside, but a real gentle soul on the inside. I loved being with him when I came to visit him in Paris. We would intellectually arm wrestle on so many topics. He was a Moses-like figure, something out of a novel no one could ever write. I just loved his work and still do.

His widow told me recently that, "He met his match with you." I took it as a compliment and a tribute to the enormous respect I had for him, working creatively till the day he died.

In another sad week for America on so many levels our dear friend Martine said it all. Through her art and her words. And her life.

Peace.

I was thinking today of all the wonderful times I have had in Paris with all the wonderful photographers based there. I sincerely wish I could just jump on a plane tomorrow, but alas no. 

Marc spent a very rich and long life as a photographer traveling the world, photographing people with such great empathy and a huge sense of justice. As his good friend and fellow traveller, Elliott Erwitt, said of him, “He was serious about not being serious." Of his own work, Marc also said “Surprises of every kind lie in wait for the photographer - they open the eyes and quicken the heartbeat of those with a passion for looking.” 

Thank you Marc for conjuring up all these uplifting memories again of your beautiful city.

This is probably one of the greatest 20th Century portraits ever taken. The true magic of photography where subject matter and artistic talent collaborate unexpectedly to create a moment in history that endures forever and inspires each new generation.

Sometimes the magic of photography happens unexpectedly, when all the stars align in a serendipitous moment.

Judy Dater, a very skilled and talented photographer, was conducting a photo workshop on shooting the Nude, organized by Ansel Adams in Yosemite. Imogen Cunningham, the celebrated then 90 year old photographer (soon to have a major retrospective herself at the Getty Museum) was visiting to give a lecture. Twinka Thiebaud, the daughter of the great painter Wayne Thiebaud, was the contracted model. Et voila! it happened.

A few years ago an attractive woman walked into my gallery whilst this photo was on display. “That’s me,” Twinka advised.

Small world, eh? It still puts a smile on my face after all these years.

I have always felt this is one of the greatest political photos ever taken. JFK and Jackie at the beginning of their campaign. Having spent the night in a small motel and after attending Sunday morning Mass they have a simple breakfast in a nearby quintessential American diner. Such a shot would be inconceivable now. 

I felt close to that period of history through my friendship with Jacques at the beginning of my gallery career. We always used to have lunch or dinner at his favorite restaurant “Odeon” near his Tribeca loft whenever I was in New York. Always new stories, always new insights. The irony is that shortly after he passed away his archive was reduced to ashes in the Twin Towers bombing.

Great memories from our own diner encounters. Thank you Jacques.