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| Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park- Diane Arbus |
"I really believe there are things nobody would see if I didn't photograph them."- Diane Arbus
I really believe there are things nobody would see if I didn't photograph them.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/diane_arbus.html#oQJXf9SUkLttzZ2M.99
Diane Arbus, born Diane Nemerov to Jewish parents David and Gertrude Nemerov on March 14, 1923 in New York City was a 20th Century American photographer who was well known for her distinctive black and white portraits. It was when she married American actor Allan Arbus that she became involved in photography and developed her artistic talent further. In 1946 she started working with her husband in advertising and fashion photography, with fashion photography being her main focus. From here they began a commercial photography company called 'Diane & Allan Arbus' with many photographs published in well-known fashion magazines such as Vogue.Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/diane_arbus.html#oQJXf9SUkLttzZ2M.99
However, in 1956 Arbus then abandoned fashion photography and decided to focus on her own photography. She found everyday people or “freaks” as they were referred as, to be her source of inspiration for her photography as they told more of a story. To further her knowledge of photography Arbus began to study with Austrian-born photographer Lisette Model during the late 1950s. From here her photography style changed dramatically and with this new method and style she took on, Arbus published many works in magazines such as Esquire. By the 1960s her new style and approach to photography allowed her to become a well-established and distinctive photographer. (Diane Arbus, [Internet], 2014, The Biography.com website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/diane-arbus-9187461 Accessed 18th March 2014)
In 1967 Arbus's work featured in the 'New Documents' exhibition by curator and photographer John Szarkowski which opened at New York's Museum of Modern Art. These everyday people or “freaks” of society she centred her photography on were mainly people she came across on the street during her wanders of New York City. These people were of all different social classes and they were mostly nudists, transgender people, and dwarfs. Her "contemporary anthropology"- her photographs of the freaks- tell the story of post-war America and of how people became confident in being different from others. Although her photography life was thriving, her personal life began to deteriorate when she separated from her husband in 1969. Following the end of her marriage Arbus began to struggle with depression which led her to end her life in New York City on 26 July, 1971. ('Diane Arbus', [Internet], 2005, The Victoria and Albert Museum website. Available from: http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/d/diane-arbus/ Accessed 20th March 2014)
Some of Arbus's most important works include the following portraits; 'Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park', 'A Young Brooklyn Family Going for a Sunday Outing', 'Identical Twins', and 'A Jewish Giant at Home with His Parents in The Bronx'. These four photographs have strong, distinctive themes, some including poverty, disability and family. These themes are what make Arbus's photography different in comparison to many photographers of her time. Her black and white prints are both surreal and unique as she takes a whole new approach to photography, she chooses the subjects that tell a story, subjects people do not expect to see photographs of. It is clear in all of her work that Arbus's subjects trust her, and so they are comfortable to express themselves for the camera. The subjects look directly at the camera, which makes them keen to reveal themselves to both Diane and the camera.
Her photograph 'Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park', which was taken in Central Park in New York City in 1962, is definitely one of Arbus's most notable works. The photograph depicts a young boy with an expression of anger as he clenches a toy hand grenade holding it tightly by his side. The expression on the boys face is quite disturbing due to the fact that he grips the toy grenade. The fact that the child is dressed and posed so innocently expresses the meaning of the photograph, that children must be shielded from violence in order to preserve their innocence. Not only does the toy grenade the boy is holding make him stand out, but also the fact that the background and people in it are completely blurred out, this allows for the boy to stand out and also the fact that he is directly in the centre. Although the atmosphere of the setting is of a normal family outing in the park, the subject is completely different as the child is holding a grenade angrily while families walk down the path behind him. 'Child with Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park' was the first photograph of Arbus’ I had ever seen and it is definitely the one I will never forget as I’ve never seen anything like it. ('Child with toy hand grenade, Diane Arbus, 1962, NY', [Internet], 2012, Annah E Ross blog. Available from: http://annaheross.wordpress.com/2012/04/21/child-with-toy-hand-grenade-diane-arbus-1962-ny/ Accessed 4th April 2014)
'A Young Brooklyn Family Going for a Sunday Outing' is another well known print of Arbus. This photograph is of a young couple Richard and Marilyn Dauria with their two children, their mentally-retarded son Richard Jr. and daughter Dawn. It is clear in this photograph that the lower middle class family trust Arbus to take their photograph. However, there is a strong element of sadness in this photograph which is evident on both parents' faces, as they attempt to look like a normal family or what was considered normal at the time. It is also clear that this family is trying to cover up the difference of them as a family to any other normal one during this period, maybe this is why they look uncomfortable as Arbus is exposing the real side of the family. ('A young Brooklyn family going for a Sunday outing, N.Y.C., 1966- Diane Arbus', [Internet], 2005, Adrianna Mena. Available from: http://archive.today/WXJv9#selection-225.3-225.16 Accessed on 10th April 2014)
'Identical Twins' is another of Arbus's noted prints which shows two seven-year old twin sisters Cathleen and Colleen Wade standing side by side. The pair wear identical clothing, both wearing matching black dresses with white collars and white tights and headbands. The only noticeable difference in the twins is that the child on the left of the photograph is frowning while her sister on the right smiles slightly. This photograph has been significant as it has been a source of inspiration for Stanley Kubrick's 1980 horror film 'The Shining', which features identical twin sisters in the same position with the exact same expressions as the Wade twins. ('Diane Arbus- Identical Twins (1967)', [Internet], 2013, Tammy Jones. Available from: http://tammyjones1.wordpress.com/2013/02/24/diane-arbus-identical-twins-1967/ Accessed on 10th April 2014)
Arbus's 'A Jewish Giant at Home with His Parents in the Bronx' is quite different to the three other works mentioned previously as the setting is in the subject's home instead of in the streets like many of her photographs. The photograph depicts the giant Jewish man standing before his diminutive sized parents as they look proudly at him. There is obviously a dramatic difference in the subject and the scene. The parents and room seem to be of a normal, middle-class scene, however the giant challenges this and makes it different. This subject is really something not many people will ever see, like Arbus herself said “I really believe there are things which nobody would see unless I photographed them”. Again she allows us to see the “freaks” of society, and how they tried to live their lives as normal as possible. ('Diane Arbus', [Internet], 2010, The Museum of Contemporary Art website. Available from: http://moca.org/pc/viewArtWork.php?id=1 Accessed on 15th April 2014)
What I like about Arbus's photography is that she steps away from the norm of society and captures the lives of the real everyday people. This is something many photographers at this time would steer away from, as they would see more meaning in photographing the normal society at the time. Many photographers stuck to capturing middle-class, wealthy families with their well-kept children in their polished homes. Unlike Arbus who chose to unfold the untold world of the freaks, the people many didn't know existed. I admire how she took this risk in her work, knowing some may reject it and criticise it.
In my opinion, she took a whole new, unique approach to photography for the better. She shows the diversity of these hidden people and the different themes of her photographs be it sexuality, physical abnormalities, or social stigma. The thing I like most about her photography is Arbus’s ability to take risks and have no limits to what she captures. It is almost like she forgets about her surroundings and fixates herself solely on her subject. I also admire how she connects with her subjects, and in turn how they have complete trust in her. They trust her enough for her to capture their flaws and to feel comfortable as she does so. I admire how her work is shot in black and white, I see it as a way to expose her subject to the camera, to keep the focus entirely on them.
Arbus's belief that the camera revealed the truth is very inspiring as people do try to conceal the truth, they try to hide the flaws of a person. This is something that she was strongly against, she wanted to show how flaws make a piece of work completely unique to the next. Flaws are what make people take a second look at a photograph, it's what essentially makes a photograph interesting.
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| Identical Twins, Roselle- Diane Arbus |
