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Twelve of the Most Photographed Models of the Period, 1947
Details
IRVING PENN (B. 1917)
Twelve of the Most Photographed Models of the Period, 1947
gelatin silver print
signed, dated by the artist, partial inscription in an unknown hand in ink (on the mount); dated and inscribed 'Affectionate souvenir of our friends among these lovely ladies, and of pleasant evenings, for Dot Simpson, I.P., New York' in ink and 'Penn Condé Nast' copyright credit reproduction limitation stamps (on the reverse of the mount)
13 x 15 7/8in. (33 x 40.3cm.)
Twelve of the Most Photographed Models of the Period, 1947
gelatin silver print
signed, dated by the artist, partial inscription in an unknown hand in ink (on the mount); dated and inscribed 'Affectionate souvenir of our friends among these lovely ladies, and of pleasant evenings, for Dot Simpson, I.P., New York' in ink and 'Penn Condé Nast' copyright credit reproduction limitation stamps (on the reverse of the mount)
13 x 15 7/8in. (33 x 40.3cm.)
Provenance
Private collection;
Phillips de Pury & Luxembourg, New York, October 17, 2003, lot 55.
Phillips de Pury & Luxembourg, New York, October 17, 2003, lot 55.
Literature
American Vogue, May 1 1947;
Penn, Moments Preserved, Simon and Schuster, 1960, pp. 144-145;
Hall-Duncan, The History of Fashion Photography, Alpine Book Company, 1979, pp. 148-149;
Devlin, Vogue Book of Fashion Photography, Thames and Hudson, 1979, pp. 82-3;
Szarkowski, Irving Penn, Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1984, pl. 12;
Penn, Passage: A Work Record, Jonathan Cape, 1991, p. 38;
Fraser, On the Edge: Images from 100 Years of Vogue, Random House, 1992, pp. XII-XIII;
Angeletti and Oliva, In Vogue: The Illustrated History of the World's Most Famous Fashion Magazine, Rizzoli, 2006, pp. 116-117.
Penn, Moments Preserved, Simon and Schuster, 1960, pp. 144-145;
Hall-Duncan, The History of Fashion Photography, Alpine Book Company, 1979, pp. 148-149;
Devlin, Vogue Book of Fashion Photography, Thames and Hudson, 1979, pp. 82-3;
Szarkowski, Irving Penn, Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1984, pl. 12;
Penn, Passage: A Work Record, Jonathan Cape, 1991, p. 38;
Fraser, On the Edge: Images from 100 Years of Vogue, Random House, 1992, pp. XII-XIII;
Angeletti and Oliva, In Vogue: The Illustrated History of the World's Most Famous Fashion Magazine, Rizzoli, 2006, pp. 116-117.
Further Details
The extended caption to this image in Moments Preserved explains: 'When American women think of clothes, beauties like the twelve shown here are responsible for the way they think, the way they want to look, and the dollars they spend. These are the models whose elegant bones and immaculate heads appeared most often in the fashion photographs of the decade 1937-1947 -- subtle symbols of the clothing business, the third largest industry in America. Their faces are known to millions; their talents to the few that work closely with them. Each of these girls, professional to the fingertips, has besides looks a developed sense of the source of light and how to appraise her position in that light. For this picture, the group was loosely composed and each model fell instinctively into a characteristic attitude. Out of the twenty-nine shots made in an atmosphere of polite jockeying, this one seemed the best.'
The group comprises, left to right: Meg Mundy, Marilyn Ambrose, Helen Bennett, Dana Jenney, Betty McLauchlen (on ladder), Lisa Fonssagrives, Lily Carlson, Dorian Leigh (on floor), Andrea Johnson (seated), Elisabeth Gibbons, Muriel Maxwell (in black) and Kay Hernan.
The group comprises, left to right: Meg Mundy, Marilyn Ambrose, Helen Bennett, Dana Jenney, Betty McLauchlen (on ladder), Lisa Fonssagrives, Lily Carlson, Dorian Leigh (on floor), Andrea Johnson (seated), Elisabeth Gibbons, Muriel Maxwell (in black) and Kay Hernan.