Paul Strand - Photographs New York Wednesday, April 6, 2022 | Phillips

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  • Provenance

    LIGHT, New York
    Collection of John Glasse, Poughkeepsie, New York, 1976
    By descent to the present owner

  • Literature

    Camera Work, Number 48, October 1916, p. 1
    Hambourg, Paul Strand: Circa 1916, front cover and p. 159
    Aperture, Paul Strand: A Retrospective Monograph Volume I: The Years 1915-1946, p. 16
    Greenough, Paul Strand, pl. 12
    Galerie Zur Stockeregg, Paul Strand, pl. 10
    Galerie Zur Stockeregg, Paul Strand, Volume II, pl. 6
    Margolis, Camera Work: A Pictorial Guide, p. 134

  • Catalogue Essay

    This photogravure comes from the collection of John Glasse (1922-2014), a pioneering collector from the early days of the photography market and a Professor of Religion Department at Vassar College from 1956 to 1990. In 1977, Glasse curated an ambitious exhibition of Strand’s work at the Vassar College Art Gallery. Events surrounding this exhibition included a panel discussion with Peter Bunnell, Alan Trachtenberg, and Naomi Rosenblum; a discussion on Strand’s books by his widow, Hazel Strand; and a screening of Strand’s film work.

    Glasse’s interest in Strand arose from his lifelong interest in photography. As a teenager in Alaska in the 1930s, he photographed candid scenes of Juneau’s residents and the Alaskan wilderness and worked as a freelance photographer. During his adult years, he continued photographing and experimenting with different formats and techniques. Glasse began collecting as a young adult and continued to build and rotate his collection through the 1980s, focusing on major Twentieth Century photographers. The work of Paul Strand was a particular interest and Glasse curated an exhibition of Strand’s photographs at the Vassar College Art Gallery in 1977. He enjoyed corresponding with the artists in his collection to learn the background story of specific images and to share his appreciation of their work. In several instances he purchased directly from the photographers, in addition to patronizing the first generation of photography galleries in New York City, including Witkin Gallery and LIGHT.

    While Vassar College offered no formal training in photography during Glasse’s tenure, he served as an advisor to students pursuing independent study projects in the medium. In 1977 he said, "Photography is one of the ways I find myself exploring the world. And by making my own photographs and seeing the work of others, I am exploring the medium itself. In terms of photography qua academic, as a philosopher of religion, I am engaged by the relation between aesthetics and religion. The theology of culture and the philosophy of religion have not been applied to photography. I would like to make a contribution to filling that gap."

234

Wall Street

1915
Photogravure from Camera Work, printed 1916.
5 1/8 x 6 3/5 in. (13 x 16.8 cm)
Signed, titled and dated in ink on a LIGHT label on the reverse of the mat.

Estimate
$7,000 - 9,000 

Sold for $13,860

Contact Specialist

Sarah Krueger
Head of Department, Photographs
skrueger@phillips.com


Vanessa Hallett
Worldwide Head of Photographs and Chairwoman, Americas
vhallett@phillips.com

Photographs

New York Auction 6 April 2022