Imogen Cunningham: A portrait by Dater, Judy (1979) Hardcover

by Judy Dater

First Edition 60, full page photos by Cunningham from Ansel Adams, Gertrude Stein, Cary Grant, nudes, still lifes, common people, Frida Kahlo

Genres: Nonfiction

187 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a terrific book of impressions of Imogen Cunningham gathered by her friend Judy Dater shortly after Cunningham's death. All three of her sons weigh in as well as their father, who had divorced Cunningham 40 years earlier, and Ansel Adams is generously represented as well. Because the photographer died at 93, the interviews are necessarily skewed towards people who knew her late in life, and how she handled achieving fame at a great age (and her bitterness at not receiving such recognition earlier) is a leitmotif of the book. Most of the interviews are affectionate - and they are not just friends and colleagues but also Cunningham's lawyer, her dealer, etc. - but I may have learned even more from somewhat more critical musings like those of Ann Hershey, who made a documentary film of Cunningham and concluded that she had a hard time being honest with herself. She would let adoring strangers overstay their visits then complain about them afterwards, for instance. A wonderful constellation of stories about a singular personality and a great photographer. The illustrations are not the highest quality, unfortunately, and seem to be in no particular order, or I would probably have given this 5 stars.

[M. Sarki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Judy Dater is an American photographer and feminist. She is perhaps best known for her 1974 photograph, "Imogen and Twinka", featuring an elderly Imogen Cunningham, one of America's first women photographers, encountering a nymph in the woods of Yosemite. The nymph is the model Twinka Thiebaud. (from Wikipedia)

This is a very good book. I highly recommend it.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting book on the art and life of the pioneering photographer Cunningham. There are as many photographs by Dter as there are of Cunningham. Dater's work is in the service of her subject and are usually of relatives, photographers, and those business professionals that were a part of her life.
I am not a particular admirer of Cunningham's work but she is an important figure in the history of photography. She was especially active in the 1920's and 1930's and was part of the group that were breaking away from the earlier painterly influences to help evolve the art form.

[Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides]

More a collection of interviews than a typical biography.

[Elliot Stoller · Rating 4 out of 5]

wonderful portrait of Imogen Cunningham by her friends and acquaintances