All Images © Irving Penn
Irving Penn: Small Trades recently opened at The Getty Center. From The Getty Center website:
Working in Paris, London, and New York in the early 1950s, photographer Irving Penn (American, born 1917) created masterful representations of skilled tradespeople dressed in work clothes and carrying the tools of their occupations. A neutral backdrop and natural light provided the stage on which his subjects could present themselves with dignity and pride. Penn revisited his Small Trades series over many decades, producing evermore-exacting prints, including platinum/palladium enlargements. In 2008 the J. Paul Getty Museum acquired the most comprehensive group of these images, carefully selected by the photographer—155 gelatin silver prints and 97 platinum/palladium prints—that will be exhibited in their entirety for the first time.
The exhibition begins with an overview of the Small Trades photographs Penn created in Paris, London, and New York in 1950 and 1951. The first gallery includes original gelatin silver prints, as well as French, British and American editions of Vogue magazine that published selections of the photographs from each city. Several galleries are devoted to the platinum/palladium prints that Penn began to make after several years of experimentation in the mid-1960s. One gallery presents Penn's photographs of one trade as found in each of the three cities. Another focuses on Penn's process, comparing gelatin silver prints and platinum/palladium prints side-by-side. Other groupings demonstrate Penn's use of tools to create elegant, balanced compositions; his fascination with the crisp uniforms associated with the Parisian restaurant trades; and his dynamic treatment of technological occupations in New York.
To me, studio portraits are some of the most challenging shoots. I've never been a huge fan of elaborate sets, too much furniture, or props that make no sense. When I shoot in the studio, my preference is to keep it simple. Good styling, good light, a good face, and (hopefully) a good moment equals success. The goal is to make something interesting out of nothing and to engage the subject. I'm excited to see this body of work.
