218
Irving Penn
Leontyne Price, New York, November 6
- Estimate
- $8,000 - 12,000
$13,750
Lot Details
Gelatin silver print.
1961
10 3/8 x 10 3/8 in (26.4 x 26.4 cm)
Signed, titled, dated, initialed, annotated 'Print made 1961' in ink, credit and Condé Nast copyright credit reproduction limitation stamps on the reverse of the mount. One from an edition of 4.
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
Leontyne Price is an American soprano and one of the greatest voices of the twentieth century. Born in Mississippi in 1927, she rose to prominence in the 1950s and 1960s by tackling the most demanding roles in the operatic repertoire. She was the first African American to sing a leading role at La Scala, Italy’s most important opera house, with a performance of Aida in May 1960. The next year, her debut at New York’s Metropolitan Opera House in Il trovatore was so searing and powerful that it was followed by a 40 minute standing ovation. In the present lot, Irving Penn’s meticulous and steady approach to portraiture captures Price at the height of her career and in a moment of contemplation.
Provenance
Irving Penn
American | B. 1917 D. 2009Irving Penn was one of the 20th century’s most significant photographers, known for his arresting images, technical mastery, and quiet intensity. Though he gained widespread acclaim as a leading Vogue photographer for over sixty years, Penn remained a private figure devoted to his craft. Trained under legendary art director Alexey Brodovitch in Philadelphia, he began his career assisting at Harper’s Bazaar before joining Vogue in 1943, where editor and artist Alexander Liberman recognized Penn’s distinctive eye and encouraged him to pursue photography. Penn’s incomparably elegant fashion studies reset the standard for the magazine world, and his portraits, still lifes, and nude studies broke new ground. His 1960 book Moments Preserved redefined the photographic monograph with its dynamic layout and high-quality reproductions. In 1964, Penn began printing in platinum and palladium, reviving this 19th-century process to serve his own distinct vision. An innovator in every sense, Penn’s approach to photography was endlessly adventurous. Few photographers of his generation experimented as widely with both conventional and historic print processes, and none achieved Penn’s level of excellence in all.
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