André Kertész (1894-1985) is one my my all time favorite photographers. He was born in Hungary, moved to Paris in 1925 and then on to NYC in 1936. Most of his work is in black and white, but toward the end of his life, he took some stunning color photographs with a Polaroid SX-70. The camera was a gift from Graham Nash (yes, that Graham Nash) who had come to visit him in NYC. These photographs are proof to me that it is not the hardware that makes the difference as much as the vision of the photographer.
Kertész's wife, Elizabeth, died in 1977. It was a devastating blow. As a part of the grief process, Kertész purchased a small glass bust, rendering a graceful head, neck and shoulders. (He eventually purchased another, along with other glass objects.) He placed these
around his apartment and created various still life photographs with the SX-70. I encourage you to do an internet search for Kertész polaroids and look at these photographs. A book of these images was published in 2007 with text by Richard Gurbo. Gurbo heads the Elizabeth and André Kertész Foundation and it was my pleasure to hear him speak at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts recently.
At any rate, please do a search for these photographs. Here are a couple to tide you over. And...more on André Kertész to come.
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