Truman Capote

Artist Carl Van Vechten (American, 1880 - 1964)

DateMarch 30, 1948

MediumGelatin silver print

DimensionsImage and sheet: 9 5/8 × 7 15/16 inches (24.45 × 20.16 cm)

Credit LineGift of Hallmark Cards, Inc.

Object number2005.27.4436

SignedBlindstamp on image recto, lower right: "PHOTOGRAPH BY / CARL VAN VECHTEN"

InscribedArtist's Stamp Blindstamp "Photograph by / Carl Van Vechten" Front of Print

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DescriptionImage of young man, Truman Capote, with short hair that is parted on the side. He is wearing a striped collared shirt that is partially unzipped. A strip of floral fabric fills the right half of the background.Gallery Label

Gallery Label

Turning 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 Truman Capote. In these portraits, Van Vechten combines a sense of simplicity and theatricality, celebrity and intimacy.

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