Jacques Lipchitz Standing in Front of His Sculpture "Figure"
January 1967
John Swope (American, 1908-1979)
Not on View

John Swope was a self-taught photographer who captured both the reality and the glamour of living in Hollywood. As a photojournalist who began his career working for the Resettlement Administration under the New Deal, he was influenced not only by Dorothea Lange and Walker Evans but also by the painter Piet Mondrian, who taught the young photographer to search for geometry in nature. Here Swope captures the abstract sculptor Jacques Lipchitz (1891–1973) standing before Figure (1926–30), the artist a veritable stand-in for the object itself. Using Lipchitz’s dark silhouette and upright position, Swope equates the proud artist with the totem—both figures of graceful solidity.

Details

  • Artist Name: John Swope (American, 1908-1979)
  • Title: Jacques Lipchitz Standing in Front of His Sculpture "Figure"
  • Date: January 1967
  • Medium: Gelatin silver print
  • Dimensions: 9-5/8 x 6-7/8 in. (24.4 x 17.5 cm)
  • Credit Line: Norton Simon Museum, Gift of Mrs. Herman Weiner
  • Accession Number: PH.1989.1.2
  • Copyright: © John Swope Trust

Object Information

Gaze: Portraiture After Ingres

  • Norton Simon Museum, 2009-10-30 to 2010-04-05

Additional Artwork by Artist

"King and Queen" by Henry Moore John Swope c. 1972
Entrance Walkway, Henry Moore "Knife Edge", Norton Simon Museum John Swope April 1976
From Gallery 1 with Henry Moore "Knife Edge" Looking Toward Pasadena John Swope April 1976

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