“If a photographer cares about the people before the lens and is compassionate, much is given. It is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument.”
~ Eve Arnold
Marilyn Monroe on the set of The Misfits, 1960
Just heard that photojournalist pioneer, Eve Arnold, passed away last week at the age of 99. Arnold had quite an honest lens: inquisitive, and at times, unflattering to its subjects. In 1951, she was one of the few women to join the Magnum Photography Agency, where she honed her skills at capturing a story in a single image.
Elizabeth Taylor with her children, watching Richard Burton act out a death scene, 1963
Paul Newman at The Actors Studio, 1951
Silva Mangano at MOMA, 1956
Marlene Dietrich, Columbia Records Studio, 1952
Opening Gala, Met Opera, New York City, 1950
Joan Crawford, 1959
Joan Crawford, 1959
Self portrait, New York City, 1950
Arnold’s photojournalistic approach to Hollywood’s greats was quite unique at a time when staged studio shots reigned supreme. She may be best known for her portraits of Marilyn Monroe who trusted Arnold to take intimate, true photos that make the icon seem real, vulnerable and hugely sensitve.
Marilyn Monroe, on the set of The Misfits, 1960
Marilyn Monroe, 1955
Marilyn Monroe, 1955
Marilyn Monroe, 1955
Marilyn Monroe and Eli Wallach, on the set of The Misfits, 1960
Marilyn Monroe, on the set of The Misfits, 1960
Arnold documented subjects beyond celebrities, including travels to Cuba, China and Africa. She received photography’s top honor in 1995, being elected Master Photographer by New York’s International Center of Photography. She has had 12 books published –most out of print, but you can look for used editions here.
The emotion and perhaps intricacies of being a woman is what strikes me the most in her photographs. You can really see and feel the beauty of it, and empathize with the subjects. Quite moving.
“Themes recur again and again in my work. I have been poor and I wanted to document poverty; I had lost a child and I was obsessed with birth; I was interested in politics and I wanted to know how it affected our lives; I am a woman and I wanted to know about women.”
~ Eve Arnold
A vast collection of her work can be seen on the Magnum Photos website here.
