The Best Photographer of the 20th Century

 

Elliott Erwitt: Mother and Baby with Cat

New York, 1953. Erwitt's first wife with their first child.

I consider Elliott Erwitt, who died last Wednesday, to have been the best photographer of the 20th century. I did not say "greatest," because he was not a seminal photographer. He did not found any major movement in photography, as did Kertesz, Steiglitz, Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, and maybe a few others. But he  worked in many different genres -- advertising, architecture, reportage, film -- and was the best or among the best at everything he did. As a commercial photographer, he was a consummate professional, good enough to own a spacious condominium in one of the stately old buildings on the West Side of New York's Central Park. 

However, the area in which he excelled all others was in the genre we often call "Decisive Moment" photography. (Cartier-Bresson, by the way, did not invent the genre, although the phrase was coined for his first book. He actually built on the work of Steiglitz and Kertesz.) 

In this work of observation and documentation of human (and often, dog) nature, juxtapositions, incongruities, absurdities -- combined with razor sharp reflexes and technical skill, Erwitt was simply the best. He could size up a complex situation and make a striking photograph in an instant. And no one else comes close to producing the volume (I should say "volumes") of incisive photographs Erwitt spun out, seemingly effortlessly.

This looks like a typical Erwitt photograph, yet it was made to advertise the boots.

There are others who do this work very, very well -- my favorites among them are Robert Doisneau and B.A."Tony" King, who have each produced many photographs as good as Erwitt's -- but Erwitt produces great photographs in phenomenal volume. He could walk around the block -- just about any block -- and come back with more good photographs than I could produce in a year.

Erwitt was 95 years old at the time of his death. For the past several years he had been going through his contact sheets, finding more gems, and publishing more books. Many of his books are now available on the used market. They are all worth having. I especially recommend Personal Exposures, a large volume filled with many of his best-known photographs. 

I had a large collection of Erwitt's books, but since we downsized and moved into a smaller home I've sold most of them. I'm keeping Private Experience, from the Peterson Masters of Contemporary Photography series. Private Experience is not a large book and was published more than 40 years ago, but I have not found a better overview of his life and work. It's the one book I won't part with. I'm fortunate to have a copy in hard cover. Used, softcover copies have been readily available for $5 or so at amazon.com and abebooks.com. 

I think the photograph of Erwitt's first wife and baby with the cat is one of the most beautiful photographs ever made.

Read more of Erwitt's wit an wisdom here. 

This post is adapted from one I wrote in April, 2020.

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $3.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail me a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Check out the pictures at my online gallery: https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  Looking is free, and you might find something you like.

Text copyright 2023 David B.Jenkins. Photographs copyright The Estate of Elliott Erwitt 2023.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

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