DeCordova Collects Photographs: Recent Acquisitions
Arnold Newman
One of America’s most production and distinctive portrait photographers, Arnold Newman has recorded the history of this century in his photographs, “I am interested in people who are involved with life, and what they do with their lives, no matter how modest. They become part of my life and work.” Newman’s portraits are subtly complex; at first glance easily comprehended, through study they engage viewers in uncovering his exploration of personality. In “Doc” Edgerton, it is Newman’s use of a full range of tonalities and specific props that makes for a memorable photograph. Rather than depending on Edgerton’s fame as stroboscopic photographer, the composition supports Newman’s interpretation of Edgerton as observant scientist trying to explain the wonders of the world. Unlike other portrait photographers, Newman photographs subjects in their own environments instead of creating a controlled setting in a studio. Newman has always worked independently, preserving his freedom to react to accidents, respond to his subject’s environments, and solve technical problems. “We don’t take photographs with our cameras; we take them with our hearts and our minds. They are a reflection of ourselves, what we are, and what we think. Every artist is part of his work; otherwise, the work would be nothing more than a laundry list of objects—mindless, without passion, without meaning.”
