Not on display

New Orleans, Louisiana

Photograph
1968 (made)
Artist/Maker
Friedlander, Lee (photographer)
Place of origin
New Orleans (photographed)

Lee Friedlander was one of the new documentary photographers of the 1960s. Like a jazz musician, he anchored his improvisations to a repeated theme. His street photographs are often deliberately unreadable, refracted or reflected in mirrors or windows. This image is one of a series of self-portraits in which his camera becomes part of his silhouette. He has implicated the viewer in the picture by placing us in the position of the photographer, standing where the artist once stood. The image collapses the distance between interior and exterior, reflection and surface. In this way Friedlander broke the conventional rules of photography to revitalise the medium.

Object details

Category
Photographs
Object type
Photograph
TitleNew Orleans, Louisiana (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Gelatin silver print
Photographic Paper
Gelatin Silver Process
Brief description
Photograph by Lee Friedlander, 'New Orleans, Louisiana', 1968, gelatin silver print
Physical description
Photograph
Dimensions
  • Height: 18.8cm
  • Width: 28.1cm
Styles
Art Photography
20th Century Second Half
Gallery label
(23/7/2016-5/3/2017)
Lee Friedlander (born 1934)
New Orleans, Louisiana, 1968
Buffalo, New York, 1962

Friedlander has been making self-portraits for
over 50 years. In each of these examples, he
appears as a reflection in the centre of a carefully
framed depiction of an American cityscape. His
camera merges with his body, which in turn is
surrounded by a complex arrangement of urban
forms and textures.

Gelatin silver prints
Given by the Gordon Fraser Charitable Trust
Museum nos. PH.775-1980, 773-1980
(07 03 2014)
Gallery 100, ‘History of photography’, 2011-2012, label text :

Lee Friedlander (born 1934)
‘New Orleans’
1968

Friedlander’s street photographs are often
deliberately unreadable, refracted or reflected in
mirrors or windows. This image is one of a series
of self-portraits in which his camera becomes part
of his silhouette. The image collapses the distance
between interior and exterior, surface and reflection.
In this way Friedlander broke the conventional rules
of photography to revitalise the medium.

Gelatin silver print
Museum no. Ph.775-1980
Credit line
Given by the Fraser Charitable Trust. Copyright Lee Friedlander, Courtesy Fraenkel Gallery San Francisco
Subjects depicted
Storefront
Reflection
Shop
Friedlander, Lee
Place depicted
New Orleans
Summary
Lee Friedlander was one of the new documentary photographers of the 1960s. Like a jazz musician, he anchored his improvisations to a repeated theme. His street photographs are often deliberately unreadable, refracted or reflected in mirrors or windows. This image is one of a series of self-portraits in which his camera becomes part of his silhouette. He has implicated the viewer in the picture by placing us in the position of the photographer, standing where the artist once stood. The image collapses the distance between interior and exterior, reflection and surface. In this way Friedlander broke the conventional rules of photography to revitalise the medium.
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
PH.775-1980

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJuly 25, 2003
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O82703/new-orleans-louisiana-photograph-friedlander-lee/
Download as: JSON