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Lot Essay
Prior to the early 1920s, Edward Weston’s photographs were defined by his commercial portraiture and the romantic, soft-focus approach of Pictorialism that dominated American photography at the time. Sentimental portraits of women in traditional formal attire were a genre favorite, and Weston deftly mastered this requisite subject matter before he was thirty years old.
During this time Weston fostered a five-year photographic partnership with celebrated American modern dance couple, Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn, who had opened a dance studio in Los Angeles after professional successes in New York. By then, St. Denis had cemented her reputation as a revolutionary dancer and choreographer who had conceived a new, modern system of movement. She infused her affection for Eastern traditions into her innovative choreography and performances. This collaboration reflects Weston’s early interest in dance and the genesis of his lifelong dedication to capturing bodily movement on film.
St. Denis was a frequent subject for commercial photographers, often wearing the flowing, Classical white gown that became one of her iconic costumes from The Greek Veil Plastique in 1918. This is likely what St. Denis is wearing in the present lot.
In Ruth St. Denis, this ethereal white gown becomes a critically important architectural element within the frame. The layered fabric mirrors the diagonal lines within the swooping awning above, and this patterned dialogue is a more central visual focus than the figure herself. This angled compositional balance is a glimmer of Weston’s modernist eye which fully emerges about a year after this image was taken. St. Denis acts as a strong counterbalancing force, providing an element of softness within the surrounding horizontal lines. While the overall visual effect is Pictorialist, Ruth St. Denis provides a glimpse into Weston’s early incorporation of modernist forms.
Weston’s use of palladium paper is noteworthy, by virtue of the tactility of the print itself. He relied on palladium paper for the period of time between the start of World War I and 1923 when he started using a glossy gelatin silver paper while in Mexico. Palladium prints have a rich, lustrous surface, and allow for a greater range of mid-tone grays than can be accomplished with silver. The resulting print is further imbued with a sense of warmth and presence.
Excitingly, it is probable that this is the only known print of this image. Amy Conger illustrated Ruth St. Denis in her 1982 dissertation with the following note: ‘No original print of this work has been located.’ Conger initially viewed a photogravure version of the image within a book of Ruth St. Denis portraits, compiled by her husband Ted Shawn in 1920.
This is believed to be the first time a print of this image has been uncovered, and the first time offered at auction. This work is thus exceedingly rare and, additionally, benefits from exceptional provenance: it was initially owned by Betty Katz, a dear friend of Weston’s and one of his most beloved muses (for more information, see lot 114). It was very likely given to Katz by Weston himself and has descended within her family since.
During this time Weston fostered a five-year photographic partnership with celebrated American modern dance couple, Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn, who had opened a dance studio in Los Angeles after professional successes in New York. By then, St. Denis had cemented her reputation as a revolutionary dancer and choreographer who had conceived a new, modern system of movement. She infused her affection for Eastern traditions into her innovative choreography and performances. This collaboration reflects Weston’s early interest in dance and the genesis of his lifelong dedication to capturing bodily movement on film.
St. Denis was a frequent subject for commercial photographers, often wearing the flowing, Classical white gown that became one of her iconic costumes from The Greek Veil Plastique in 1918. This is likely what St. Denis is wearing in the present lot.
In Ruth St. Denis, this ethereal white gown becomes a critically important architectural element within the frame. The layered fabric mirrors the diagonal lines within the swooping awning above, and this patterned dialogue is a more central visual focus than the figure herself. This angled compositional balance is a glimmer of Weston’s modernist eye which fully emerges about a year after this image was taken. St. Denis acts as a strong counterbalancing force, providing an element of softness within the surrounding horizontal lines. While the overall visual effect is Pictorialist, Ruth St. Denis provides a glimpse into Weston’s early incorporation of modernist forms.
Weston’s use of palladium paper is noteworthy, by virtue of the tactility of the print itself. He relied on palladium paper for the period of time between the start of World War I and 1923 when he started using a glossy gelatin silver paper while in Mexico. Palladium prints have a rich, lustrous surface, and allow for a greater range of mid-tone grays than can be accomplished with silver. The resulting print is further imbued with a sense of warmth and presence.
Excitingly, it is probable that this is the only known print of this image. Amy Conger illustrated Ruth St. Denis in her 1982 dissertation with the following note: ‘No original print of this work has been located.’ Conger initially viewed a photogravure version of the image within a book of Ruth St. Denis portraits, compiled by her husband Ted Shawn in 1920.
This is believed to be the first time a print of this image has been uncovered, and the first time offered at auction. This work is thus exceedingly rare and, additionally, benefits from exceptional provenance: it was initially owned by Betty Katz, a dear friend of Weston’s and one of his most beloved muses (for more information, see lot 114). It was very likely given to Katz by Weston himself and has descended within her family since.