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APERTURE
Louise Dahl-Wolfe
Text by Oliva María Rubio, John P. Jacob, Celina Lunsford, Louise Dahl-Wolfe.
Louise Dahl-Wolfe opens a window onto the work of one of the most influential fashion photographers of the 20th century. After being discovered by Edward Steichen and having her work exhibited at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1937, Dahl-Wolfe went on to revitalize the Hollywood portrait and invigorate the fashion photography of the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s. During her tenure at Harper’s Bazaar—which lasted over two decades, and during which time she worked with Diana Vreeland—Dahl-Wolfe pioneered the use of natural lighting in fashion photography, shooting on location and outdoors. Her modernist outlook changed American visual culture, influencing a school of artists—namely Richard Avedon, Horst P. Horst and Irving Penn. Spanning over 30 years, this survey takes into account Dahl-Wolfe’s work not just in fashion, but also in portraiture and nude photography. Today, she stands among some of the most prestigious photographers of her time, including Steichen, George Hoyningen-Huene, Erwin Blumenfeld and Martin Munkácsi, with a mastery of the genre that still resonates with fashion and portraiture lovers alike. Louise Dahl-Wolfe (1895–1989) began her career making pictures in 1923. After studying at the San Francisco Institute of Art, she moved to New York and opened a photography studio, which she maintained until 1960. In 1936 she was hired as a staff photographer at Harper’s Bazaar, and over the next 30 years revolutionized fashion photography through her editorial and personal work. Her work has been exhibited at the Grey Gallery at New York University; International Museum of Photography, Rochester, New York; Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson; and Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, among others.
Photo above: Suzy Parker by the Seine, costume by Balenciaga, Paris, 1953. Reproduced from Louise Dahl-Wolfe
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
T: The New York Times Style Magazine
Erica Schwiegershausen
Provides a comprehensive look at the influential photographer’s work.
This 1942 portrait of Diana Vreeland in Phoenix, Arizona, is reproduced from Aperture's remarkable new monograph on the pioneering fashion photographer Louise Dahl-Wolfe. Together with Vreeland, Carmel Snow and Alexey Brodovitch, Dahl-Wolfe helped revitalize Harper's Bazaar, ushering in its golden age. Over 22 years there, she experimented with black-and-white, early color, natural light in outdoor settings and stories set in exotic locations—virtually creating the genre of modern fashion photography. Bazaar published more than 600 of her color photographs, 86 covers, and thousands of black-and-white photos. Her work influenced all of the great photographers of her day, including Richard Avedon, Horst P. Horst and Irving Penn. And yet, until now, her work has been virtually forgotten. We highly recommend a second look. continue to blog
"Under Carmel (Snow)'s sponsorship, the great new young writers of the era, like Carson McCullers and Eudora Welty, were published, and I had the opportunity to do their portraits. Carmel had the most darling sense of humor. I sparred with her but she was imaginative and protective. She was responsible for making the Bazaar in those days much more interesting, and less conservative, than Vogue. People say I was demanding, and I guess I did drive my models hard. I was teased by my models for saying, 'Hold it! Hold it!" all the time. I suppose I stormed a lot, but in the end, we'd all have a drink together." –Louise Dahl-Wolfe, 1984. Dahl-Wolfe's cover for the November, 1949 issue of Harper's Bazaar is reproduced from the exciting new monograph from Aperture. continue to blog
FORMAT: Hbk, 8.25 x 11.25 in. / 256 pgs / 25 color / 112 bw. LIST PRICE: U.S. $60.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $78 ISBN: 9781597113588 PUBLISHER: Aperture AVAILABLE: 4/26/2016 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: No longer our product AVAILABILITY: Not Available
Published by Aperture. Text by Oliva María Rubio, John P. Jacob, Celina Lunsford, Louise Dahl-Wolfe.
Louise Dahl-Wolfe opens a window onto the work of one of the most influential fashion photographers of the 20th century. After being discovered by Edward Steichen and having her work exhibited at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1937, Dahl-Wolfe went on to revitalize the Hollywood portrait and invigorate the fashion photography of the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s. During her tenure at Harper’s Bazaar—which lasted over two decades, and during which time she worked with Diana Vreeland—Dahl-Wolfe pioneered the use of natural lighting in fashion photography, shooting on location and outdoors. Her modernist outlook changed American visual culture, influencing a school of artists—namely Richard Avedon, Horst P. Horst and Irving Penn. Spanning over 30 years, this survey takes into account Dahl-Wolfe’s work not just in fashion, but also in portraiture and nude photography. Today, she stands among some of the most prestigious photographers of her time, including Steichen, George Hoyningen-Huene, Erwin Blumenfeld and Martin Munkácsi, with a mastery of the genre that still resonates with fashion and portraiture lovers alike.
Louise Dahl-Wolfe (1895–1989) began her career making pictures in 1923. After studying at the San Francisco Institute of Art, she moved to New York and opened a photography studio, which she maintained until 1960. In 1936 she was hired as a staff photographer at Harper’s Bazaar, and over the next 30 years revolutionized fashion photography through her editorial and personal work. Her work has been exhibited at the Grey Gallery at New York University; International Museum of Photography, Rochester, New York; Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson; and Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, among others.
