Bacchanalia celebration ceramic goblet
Journey of LIFE
Naturally my insatiable art curiosity was piqued when I noticed that the LIFE Magazine archives, pre. 1972, had been made available for viewing. LIFE was a pioneer in publishing photographs of the documentary style and their collection is extensive. Life’s entire library consists of roughly 10 million photos, and was one of the premier platforms for photojournalists in the 20th century. Google began creating the online photo archive for Life magazine in 2008 and it had slowly gathered momentum. All of the photos of this era were taken with film cameras, most are monochrome and some of the images have been scanned directly off the proof sheet and have never been previously published.
The combination of art with good quality photography is always appealing and even though LIFE only occasionally did art pictorials, there was a trove of beautiful images in the vault. I came across some Picasso pieces I had never seen before and some interesting Roma Bacchanalia reliefs and pottery. There were also fascinating images from the 1939 World Fair and classic African tribal art and Peruvian artifacts. Photographers Henri Cartier-Bresson, Gjon Mili, Margaret Bourke-White, Andreas Feininger, Gordon Parks and Dimitri Kessel are some of the wonderful LIFE photographers that I’ve presented here.
Online curation is not dissimilar to collecting in the real world where exploring archives and searching through a thrift shop has an aligned objective, to discover an object to admire, appreciate and prepare for presentation, whether it be restoration or editing. This foray into the LIFE archives definitely delivered.
Search tip – Add “source:life” to any Google image search and this will take you to only the LIFE photo archive. For example: 1957 source:life
Gene Krupa , photo Gjon Mili
Jean Arp polisihing a sculpture in his garden in Paris
Ringling Brothers acrobat – photo by Nina Leen
1949
‘The Spy In Black’ movie poster in Ismalia, Egypt and a man with a donkey and cart –
Margaret Bourke-White
‘Museum’ – Henri Cartier-Bresson, Naples
Fashion model Donyale Luna on the runway in Sydney
1967
Cynthia the mannequin
Photo Alfred Eisenstaedt
Aiye African dancer – Photo Gjon Mili
1950
Aiye African dancer and drummers – Photo Gjon Mili
1950
‘Jonas and the Whale’ – Carl Milles
1939 World Fair
Photo – Alfred Eisenstaed
Henry Moore – photo Gjon Mili
Pier Angeli on a movie set
photo by Allan Grant – 1954
Carl Milles 1939 World Fair
“Europa and the Bull”
Photo – Alfred Eisenstaed
An ancient sculpture from the collection of primitive art at Pennsylvania University Museum. – Eliot Elisofon
1901
Billboard depicting actress Marlene Dietrich in NY
Photo Andreas Feininger, 1944
‘Models of the sculpture Night’ by artist Paul Manship, created for the 1939-1940 World’s Fair.
Margaret Bourke-White
Andreas Feininger, LIFE
‘A technically perfect photo can be the most boring image in the whole world’ – Andreas Feininger
Peruvian face mask – Andreas Feininger 1954
Museum Of Modern Art, NY
Primitive African sculpture- photo by Andreas Feininger
Pennsylvania. University Museum.
Primitive African sculpture- photo by Andreas Feininger
Pennsylvania. Univ. Museum.
Art Objects By Paul Feeley Photographer Bob Gomel
1951
‘Nude Descending’ by Gjon Mili, a photographic rendering of Marcel Duchamp’s cubist painting – Nude Descending a Staircase No. 2
The Bacchanalia were Roman festivals of Bacchus, based on various ecstatic elements of the Greek Dionysia
Goddess Ioniun and young Dionysus, , god of wine. rock-cut image is still (Azov 1948) shown near the ancient pinnacle town of Tantalus
Art Deco sculpture by Joseph Reiner – photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt
1939 World Fair NY
“American Girl in Italy” – front of Caffè Gilli, Florence, Italy by Ruth Orkin
1951
“American Girl in Italy” – Model Jinx Allen – ‘Staring at Statue’ by Ruth Orkin
In 1951, Life sent her on assignment to Israel. From where she went to Italy, and it was in Florence that she met Jinx Allen (now known as Ninalee Craig), a painter and fellow American.
A Woman and her Dogs in Harlem – Gordon Parks
1943
XXV Venice Biennale – Dimitri Kessel
Jean Patchett photo by Nina Leen
1949.
XXV Venice Biennale – photo Dimitri Kessel
XXV Venice Biennale exhibition – photo Dimitri Kessel
XXV Venice Biennale, 1950
Carved African tribal figurine—photo by Eliot Elisofon
Carving of African tribal king—Eliot Elisofon
1901
‘Centaur’ Bronze sculpture by Pablo Picasso
Photo Gjon Mili, 1948.
Aiye African percussionists – Photo Gjon Mili
1950
Gudea, Prince of Lagash, statue dedicated to Ningizzada, Neo-Sumerian, from Telloh, ancient Girsu, c.2130 BC
Louvre
Minoan pot with unusual motif
Priest sculptor – photo Alfred Eisenstaedt
Dionysus and Satyr ceramic vessel, Naples
Photo by Dmitri-Kessel
Pablo Picasso Photo by Gjon Mili
Guests on the terrace of Shepheard’s Hotel, Cairo, circa 1940. Photo by Hulton
Fashion model Donyale Luna arching back while modeling backless see-through crocheted floor-length dress.
1967, Sydney, Australia
She is remembered for portraying the witch Oenothea in the 1969 film Fellini Satyricon and being the world’s first black supermodel, and the first to grace a Vogue cover in the mid 60’s
Figure, Picasso Photo by Gjon Mili
1935, MOMA NY
Bronze sculpture – Figure of woman holding round object & vase by Pablo Picasso. photo Gjon Mili
1967
Sudanese watering crops with spherical clay pots – photo George Rodger
‘Head of a Woman’ by Picasso – photo by Gjon Mili
1967 Mougins, France
Henri Matisse sculpting nude female figure while sitting in bed in his apartment – Photographer-Dmitri Kessel
Nice, France 1951
Jacques Tati in New York by Joel Yale for LIFE, 1958
Creating James Dean heads in Hollywood – photo by Allan Grant
1956
Jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong posing for art students – photo Gordon Parks
1955
Curators moving a Greek statue – – Dmitri Kessel
Louvre Museum 1953, Paris
Louvre Museum , Paris by Dmitri Kessel
Mary Callery, Sculptor —- Gordon Parks
1952
Egyptian arch, 1940
Nina Leen photograph of model Jean Patchett for LIFE
1949
Nina Leen for Life Magazine, 1956.
Pablo Picasso light painting at Vallauris – Photo Gjon Mili
1949
Pair of dancing figures, metal cutouts, folded & painted, by Pablo Picasso. Photo Gjon Mili
1967
Yellow Lazy Boy convergence – photo – Joao Almeida d-Eca
Palm Springs, 1956
Paul Delvaux, ‘A Siren in Full Moonlight’ oil painting–Dmitri Kessel
XXV Venice Biennale, 1950
Peruvian artifact – Andreas Feininger 1954
MOMA
Chicago outdoor drive in theater – Francis Miller
1951
Remugen Bridge Okinawa Casino & Anzio Battlefield Taejon Battle Ground
Photo Walter Sanders And Joe Scherschel And N R Farbman
Sam Zemurray photo by Eliot Elisofon
Sculpture By Dina Melicov
Sculpture By Picasso ‘Little Girl Skipping Rope’ – Photo Gjon Mili
1950
‘I am Cuba’ Directed by Mikhail Kalatozov and using Infra Red film stock
1964
Starlets Jean Colleran, Peggy Lloyd & Betty Jane Hess imitating a statue at home of publisher William Randolph Hearst Sr.
1943 Photo by John Florea
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Starving old blind Indian beggar with stooped old woman standing next to empty grain pots, during famine caused by a 2-yr. droughtin Mysore
Margaret Bourke-White 1946
The-Westinghouse Exhibit with Elektro the robot. 1939 World Fair
Photo – Alfred Eisenstaed
US gymnast Muriel Davis practicing at the National Gymnastic Clinic. Photo Stan Wayman
Villa Albani wall relief, Roma
Venice Gondolas & US DUKW amphibious trucks cruising the canals, WW2
Zulu chief drinking from a beer gourd which is called ‘inKezo’
Life photo archive hosted by Google
NEXT POST — Romantic love in art, sculpture and clay
