Irving Penn: A Career in Photography (Hardcover)

by Colin Westerbeck (Editor), Colin Eisler (Author), Issey Miyake (Author), Edmund Carpenter (Author), Jennifer Jankauskas (Author), Rosamond Bernier (Author), Martin Harrison (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist
The occasion that inspired this retrospective of one of the century's most captivating and stylish photographers is Penn's donation of his professional archives and a hand-picked collection of his work to the Art Institute of Chicago. This is cause for celebration, and Westerbeck, the museum's curator of photography, and his contributors, including former Vogue editor Rosamond Bernier and anthropologist Edmund Carpenter, who represent the two extremes of Penn's photographic universe, explain why in their essays. In his fashion photographs, Penn combines glamour and wit; in his portraits of artists and writers (the series of such notables as Martha Graham, Marcel Duchamp, and Georgia O'Keeffe wedged into a cleverly constructed corner set are especially compelling), Penn reveals both the drama and the danger of the creative life; in his nudes, he discovers the body's eternal mystery; in his portraits of New Guinea tribesmen, he further explores the body as sculpture, attire as art. Even when Penn casts his eyes on something as classic as a tulip, or as commercial as cosmetics, he makes magic. Donna Seaman

Product Description
Trained as an artist, Irving Penn began photographing for Vogue in the 1940s--and went on to become one of the most versatile and accomplished image-makers of the last 50 years. His photographs have become documents of the century, from his portraits of native peoples to his gravity defying still lifes of Clinque cosmetics. This landmark retrospective showcases 90 of Penn's standout images.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Bulfinch; 1st edition (November 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 082122459X
• ISBN-13: 978-0821224595
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 9.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #758,822 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Irving Penn: A Career in Photography, August 18, 2005

By	Neil Bucu "Neil" - See all my reviews

Irving Penn: A Career in Photography is a book that examines the work and life of photographer Irving Penn. Several different writers and people associated with Penn have included text to describe their view of Penn and his life in photography. Colin Westerbeck, Issey Miyake, Martin Harrison, Edmund Carpenter, Rosamond Bernier, Colin Eisler, and Jennifer Jankauskas all contribute to the book. Writer and editor Colin Westerbeck invites the reader into the history of Irving Penn through a summary of Penn's life in his photo career. He begins with Penn's early fashion feature called "Flying Down to Lima" where after a case of airsickness, developed a new vision that changed his view of photography. Westerbeck also mentions Penn's different styles and renowned photo shoots including his many photos of various celebrities wedged into a narrow-angle corner he created out of theater flats, and also Penn's move to platinum prints. The remainder of the 200-page book comprises Penn's more famous photos. In total, there are 193 in the book, some which correspond to the text.
Irving Penn: A Career in Photography is an excellent book for anyone interested in photography, or even a professional looking for inspiration. Though it is a large book (approximately 10" by 12") its size is fitting for a photo book so that all the images can be easily seen and appreciated. The selection of photos is also suitable in that they are some of Penn's best and most known to the photo savvy, and are also mixed in genre. The text contributed by the aforementioned people help describe and reflect Penn's photos, and also show his many styles, techniques, and views on photography. Though these stories are informative to the reader, they can also get confusing and tough to read, as some of the writers tend to overuse unnecessary wording and phrasing. However, the excellent use of text/photo relationship in design and content work well in presentation, and contributes to an overall superb book.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Irving Penn: A Pioneer, August 17, 2005

By	Kelley Tappero (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

One of the most significant photographers of the twentyith century, Irving Penn's captivating photographs throughout his career are wonderfully showcased in this book. From his humble beginnings as a graphic dsigner in the 1940's to his portraits of the native peoples from the far reaches of the world-Penn's work has had a major impact on not only the world of photography but aslo the art world as a whole. This retrospective of Penn's body of work is much more thorough than expected.
The graphic quality of his work really speaks to me as a graphic desiner; weather it be his rich photographs of nude women or his famous portraits of politicans, actors and fashion models. The numerous illustrations of Penn's well-known corner shot were a nice surprise in the book; many of these images are very difficult to find on the internet, it was great being able to study the nuances of the portraits up close. A beautiful and informative book that any Penn fan would love.

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Photographs in a Beautiful Book, July 28, 2007

By	Ken Haggerty - See all my reviews

Very classy, clean, elegant, refined photographs. Presented beautifully. A great photo book to own if you like more classic photography.