James Baldwin
Artist
Carl Van Vechten
(American, 1880 - 1964)
DateSeptember 13, 1955
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage and sheet: 9 15/16 × 6 15/16 inches (25.24 × 17.62 cm)
Credit LineGift of Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Object number2005.27.4421
SignedBlindstamp on image recto, lower left: "PHOTOGRAPH BY / CARL VAN VECHTEN"
Inscribednone
Markingsnone
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionImage of man seated in three-quarter profile in front of a fabric backdrop, He's wearing a short-sleeved collared shirt and his arms are loosely crossed.Gallery LabelTurning from his previous work as a critic and novelist, in 1932 Carl Van Vechten started using a new, high-precision camera: the small 35mm Leica. Between 1932 and 1964 he made more than fifteen thousand photographs, largely portraits of the writers, artists, and performers in his social circle including James Baldwin. In these portraits, Van Vechten combines a sense of simplicity and theatricality, celebrity and intimacy.
Copyright© Carl Van Vechten Trust
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