Bruce Davidson: Magnum Legacy

by Vicki Goldberg

The second in an acclaimed series of illustrated biographies of Magnum photographers, this volume chronicles the life and work of Bruce Davidson, a truly American artist, iconoclast, and humanist. Bruce Davidson began his love affair with photography at age ten. The son of a hardworking divorced mother, he was a loner who disliked school and had difficulty conforming to the world around him. His camera released him from the boundaries of his youth and opened the doors to a lifetime’s work. Vicki Goldberg's authoritative text explores the wide range of his vision and technique, and reveals how his work has played a critical role in 20th-century photography. The text includes beautifully reproduced images from his most iconic series such as Brooklyn Gang , East 100th Street , Subway , and Time of Civil Rights Photographs , along with never-before-seen archival material from Davidson’s private archive. Davidson’s photographs reveal his curiosity about, and empathy for, his subjects; whether he is documenting circuses, gangs, East Harlem tenements, Jewish cafeterias, Welsh miners, or Central Park, Davidson imbues his work with an eye for narrative. His pictures tell stories—and he lets them speak for themselves. The result is a comprehensive and elegantly presented portrait of an artist’s life and work.

192 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2016

About the author

Victoria Hesse Goldberg was an American photography critic, author, and photo historian based in New Hampshire, United States. She has written books and articles on photography and its social history.

Reviews

[Brian Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

A particular strength of Vicky Goldberg’s Bruce Davidson: An Illustrated Biography aside from the numerous high-quality renderings of Davidson’s images, is the vast number of interviews Goldberg conducted in crafting the text. These include not only talks with Davidson himself but other luminaries such as John Morse, Ken Light, Davidson’s wife & daughters, and some of his assistants. All in all, this is not only a terrific biography of an enormously talented Magnum photographer, but also an inspirational tale of artistic pursuit.