The Legacy of Diane Arbus
Who Was Diane Arbus?
Diane Arbus was an American photographer who was active from 1960 to 1971. Born in New York City on March 14th, 1923, as Diane Nemerov, she was raised in a wealthy family of five. In her childhood, her parents owned a fashion store called Russek's where they found great success. They later sold it while her father pursued a painting career. This decision wasn't a fluke, as almost all members of the Nemerov family became artists. Diane's older brother was a poet while her younger sister was a sculptor. For Diane, she was interested in drawing and painting. She decided not to continue after receiving high praise for her work. It was pointless, she thought, to do something she was already good at. Wanting to challenge herself, she began to learn photography when she met her husband, actor and photographer, Allan Arbus.
Claim to Fame
Arbus came under the spotlight due to her unique subject matter. She wanted to document New Yorkers' lives and focused on the strange and imperfect side of humanity. Due to this, she often photographed people from marginalized communities or otherwise ostracised members of society. Many of her photos held social commentary that challenged the public's perceptions or internal biases they may have held. This can be seen in pieces like Two female impersonators backstage, N.Y.C, from 1962, Puerto Rican Woman with a Beauty Mark, from 1969, and even in A Jewish Giant at home with his parents in the Bronx. With the content and context, her photos are distinctive stylistically as well. The dramatic, sharp-focus, black-and-white images created her legacy.
Career
Her first published photos were in Esquire, called The Vertical Journey, in 1960. After the publication, she was regularly published in many similar magazines. In 1963 and 1966, she received the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship. In 1965, her first exhibit, called Recent Acquisitions, was displayed at the Museum of Modern Art. It was highly controversial and wasn't well-received due to her subjects. She reportedly would clean the spit off of displays each morning. Her 1967 display called New Documents also got backlash, with Arbus being called the "freak" photographer, but it wasn't defaced. Her career unfortunately came to an end in 1971 when she took her own life. Death didn't stop her from breaking boundaries in the art world, as she would go on to be the first American photographer to have an exhibit at the Venice Biennale in 1972.
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