Diane Arbus, who was she?

She was a leading cultfigure of the 'new' social critical documentary photography in the second half of the 20th century. She was famous for making people who were on the edge of social acceptance into the leading subjects of her photos(almost like she was giving them the right to exist, a right that most people back then would not give them), although she could just as easily do the same with 'good' and well off middle class citizens. She married Allen Arbus in 1941 and both started showing a keen interest in photography not long afterwards. The first photos were jointly made for the clothes shop of her father in New York. In the following years the couple worked for Harper's Bazaar, Show, Esquire and many others. From 1955 Arbus was studying with Lisette Model, who encouraged her to concentrate on personal images. From that moment onwards her subjects became people on the street and in shelters, refugees seeking asylum, midgets, giants, twins, transvestites, nudists, the mentally ill, etc. Arbus also got to know all of her models personally and with their permission photographed them in certain poses. Her photos of social outsiders combined the ominous atmosphere and the confusion of her models with a calm and rather business like approach, which gives the viewer the liberty to keep a certain distance from what's being depicted in the photos. She never wanted to spout her ideas of philosophy in her photos, she simply wanted to capture the world in its many aspects. In doing so, no pure documentary photos were made, but photos that could tell a psychological story, a story more about a personal reality rather than a social one. Still during her life she had a big influence and impact on the world of photography and she was much talked about.
In 1971 she killed herself, for unknown reasons. She had just had a major exposition in the Museum of Modern Art in New York and was teaching at the Rhode Island School of Design also in New York. After her death 3 more major expositions showed her work; one in Venice, Italy, a huge travelling exposition in the USA and Canada and another one coming from Japan and heading into West-Europe.
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Why do I like her?

One year I got this blue book for Christmas which showed the photography collection of the Ludwig museum in Cologne, Germany. As I looked through it, a certain photo took my attention. It was a photo of a female nudist wearing swan shaped sunglasses. After thinking that the woman still looked good for her age and that I was relieved that swan shaped sunglasses were no longer available in any shops, I read the small biography that accompanied the photo and was intrigued. The photographer was Diane Arbus, a name I had heard before as I had seen other photos taken by her, but now I also knew her lifestory. I was hooked(if you can call it that way), but also rather sad because of the fact that she was no longer alive. I don't pretend to know why she killed herself, she must have had her own good reasons, but what I do know is that we lost an incredibly talented photographer. This fanlisting is a small tribute to her and her work, may she never be forgotten.

Want to see more?

Then please have a look at the following books, all are available at amazon.com.
Diane Arbus : An Aperture Monograph-- Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition


Diane Arbus: Family Albums


Diane Arbus: A Biography


Diane Arbus Revelations


Diane Arbus: Magazine Work



This fanlisting is in no way supported by or affiliated with Diane Arbus. I am just a fan. No copyright infringement intended.