Paris (My Window, rue de Vaugirard)
Photograph
1952 (photographed), 1988 (printed)
1952 (photographed), 1988 (printed)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Ilse Bing (1899-1998) was one of several leading women photographers in the inter-war period. Born into a Jewish family in Frankfurt, she initially pursued an academic career before moving to Paris in 1930 to concentrate on photography. She moved to New York during the second world war and later returned to Paris, where this photograph was taken. Bing's earlier influences of the German New Photography, characterised by experimentation, light manipulation, stark angles and geometric shapes are still evident, but have been altered by the sense of isolation she felt when living in New York. 'Photography is a youthful art', Bing remarked, 'As I got older, I was at a greater remove which manifested itself at a greater optical remove'. This view from Bing's window suggests vicarious observation, and uses an abstract composition to frame the detailed view over the road - distanced and partly obscured by the curtain.
Object details
Category | |
Object type | |
Title | Paris (My Window, rue de Vaugirard) (assigned by artist) |
Materials and techniques | Gelatin-silver print |
Brief description | 'Paris (My Window, rue de Vaugirard)', 1952, photograph, by Ilse Bing (1899-1998) |
Physical description | Black and white photograph of an appartment block with woman leaning over balcony, taken through net curtains and framed by a window. |
Dimensions |
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Style | |
Marks and inscriptions |
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Credit line | Bequeathed by Ilse Bing Wolff |
Production | printed later |
Subject depicted | |
Place depicted | |
Summary | Ilse Bing (1899-1998) was one of several leading women photographers in the inter-war period. Born into a Jewish family in Frankfurt, she initially pursued an academic career before moving to Paris in 1930 to concentrate on photography. She moved to New York during the second world war and later returned to Paris, where this photograph was taken. Bing's earlier influences of the German New Photography, characterised by experimentation, light manipulation, stark angles and geometric shapes are still evident, but have been altered by the sense of isolation she felt when living in New York. 'Photography is a youthful art', Bing remarked, 'As I got older, I was at a greater remove which manifested itself at a greater optical remove'. This view from Bing's window suggests vicarious observation, and uses an abstract composition to frame the detailed view over the road - distanced and partly obscured by the curtain. |
Bibliographic reference | Ilse Bing: Paris 1931-1952 by Francoise Reynauld (Musée Carnavalet, Paris, 1987). |
Collection | |
Accession number | E.3061-2004 |
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Record created | October 24, 2005 |
Record URL |
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