Edward S. Curtis [Hardcover]

Hans-Christian Adam (Author), Edward Sheriff Curtis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1999

Curtis's massive photographic projects document all aspects of life, landscapes, and society of Native Americans, from 1895 to 1930. 180 illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Considered by many to be the most ambitious publication ever undertaken by a single man, Edward Curtis’s magnum opus The North American Indian (1930) comprised 20 volumes of illustrated text and 20 accompanying portfolios of oversize photographs. It took 25 years and cost more than $30 million in today’s dollars to complete. Most of the 100-plus images that Curtis-expert Cardozo culled for this volume were taken from that landmark work, making this book an excellent starting point for those unfamiliar with Curtis’s poignant, penetrating photographs of Indian chiefs and warriors. No other photographer of Indian life was able to capture his subjects in such an intimate way. His photographs are dramatic, respectful and stripped of all inhibition. That so many eminencies of the Oglala, Hopi, Zuni, Nez Perce and Apsaroke tribes allowed themselves to be photographed so honestly by a white man is as captivating as the images themselves. An introductory essay by Cardozo describes the influence that Curtis’s early training as studio photographer had on his later development of a "coherent aesthetic that put great emphasis on careful lighting; classic, simplified compositions; a warm, sepia tonality; and, frequently, softened focus." Another essay recounts the man’s rise from "abject poverty" to prize-winning accomplishment. In completing his work, Curtis sacrificed fame, family and fortune and, in 1952, he died penniless and unknown. These excellent oversize reproductions of his work are a tribute to his selfless dedication.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Language Notes

Text: German --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Taschen; 1st edition (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 3822871834
• ISBN-13: 978-3822871836
• Product Dimensions: 13.4 x 10.9 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,529,582 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Edward S. Curtis by Hans Christian Adam, July 20, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Edward S. Curtis (Hardcover)

The author, Hans Christian Adam, is clearly an admirer of his subject, Edward S. Curtis. Curtis, who lived from 1868-1952, devoted his life to photographing the American Indian. In this book, Adam has included 172 pages of Curtis' most impressive photos along with 15 pages of text and a paragraph by Theodore Roosevelt on Curtis. Adam gives a clear picture of Curtis as a man as well as a photographer. In his photos, Curtis shows the life,customs,history,legends and religion of the Indians. To quote Adam: "Curtis wanted to make up for the injustices that members of his race had inflicted on the Indians". The high quality, large format, sepia photos are magical and leave a lasting impression on the viewer. The best part of the book is the photos. The only thing I do not like about the book is that the text is in English, German and French. This takes up space, but it does not detract from the photos and text. This book will make the reader want to see more photos by Curtis.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very nice Curtis collection, January 27, 2010

By 

Metallurgist (USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Edward S. Curtis (Paperback)

This is a nice Curtis collection of photographs with English text, with German and French translations at the bottom of each page. The book contains a 35-page discussion of Curtis and how he became the foremost photographer of American Indians and their lives. Most of the photographs are full page and are suitable for framing, as they are not encumbered by any text. Others are only partial page with captions on the page as opposed to being listed separately. The book has an 8x10 inch (200x250mm) format, so pictures are not as large as they are in some other books. The beginning of the book contains a portfolio of 12 full-page photographs of Indian Chiefs, but the identification is listed on a separate page with reference to the page on which the photograph is printed. Unfortunately, this identification page occurs after the portfolio pictures and none of these portfolio pages are numbered, so it is necessary to count from the pages that were numbered. The advantage to this scheme is that the photographs are more suitable for framing as there are no page numbers to remove, but it does make the identification of the individuals more difficult. Likewise, there are many full-page photographs in the rest of the book (without page numbers or text on the page), but here the caption is on the facing page, making the identification easier, while still making the pictures easy to frame. At over 200 pages in length, this book contains more than 150 photographs of Indian life as well as portraits of Indians.

While technically a paperback, the cover is stiff and should definitely give years of use. While this book may not contain as many photographs as some other Curtis books and it is not in as large a format, there are a lot of photographs here with useful text, giving a lot of value for the price, making it definitely a 5-star purchase.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Edward S. Curtis book is great, February 11, 2011

By 

L. Ogram (Fort Wayne IN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Edward S. Curtis: The Great Warriors (Hardcover)

The book has amazingly clear photos of lots of tribes. The emotion in the indian's faces is intriguing. The book I ordered was like brand new and delivered promptly at a good price.