Diane Arbus

Diane Arbus

Introduction

Diane Arbus (1923-1971 ) was one of the most original and influential American artists of the 20th century . She holds a significant place in the history of American photography . She is well known for photographing an often ignored section of American society - ignored by photographic convention . Both her photographic work and her personal life exhibited a certain quest for meaning and were often connected with the sexual and erotic . Her works tried to capture the world of rituals and subcultures in and around New York City in the 1950s

and '60s , and the individuals who inhabited those realms . Her bold subject matter and photographic approach produced a body of work that is often shocking in its purity (SFMOMA , 2006 . Diane Arbus was a photographer with a special gift for rendering strange those things we consider most familiar , and uncovering the familiar within the exotic , thereby expanding our understanding of humanity as a whole . Arbus revolutionized the art she practiced and like most great artists , Arbus changed American culture in her own way Before her suicide in 1971 she had already become a serious influence to photographers of the younger generation

Subjects

Arbus viewed people in the context of their life situations and explored the manifestations of human experience in unusual places such as carnivals and nudist camps , theaters and backstage dressing rooms circuses and side shows , wax museums and dance halls , contests and pageants , parties and amusement parks . She photographed children celebrities , religious zealots , middle-class families , transvestites and eccentrics , couples , children , carnival performers , nudists and people on the street . It is interesting to observe that although Arbus 's most famous subjects were outsiders such as transvestites , strippers carnival performers , nudists , dwarves , and other assorted "freaks " she was equally drawn to the prosaic in subjects as ordinary as children mothers , couples , old people , and the like (Bissell , 2006 . Her choice of subjects indicates a curiosity about the relationship between appearance and identity , illusion and belief , theater and reality . Arbus researched extensively to choose her subjects . She roamed the streets kept journals and noted leads from newss , books radio and friends (Carpenter , 2006 . She was fascinated by oddness of appearances peculiarity of lives , bodies , physiognomies and social conditions . Much of the controversy surrounding Diane Arbus 's work involves her use of the mentally or physically handicapped as subjects , which in the 60 's and 70 's inspired accusations of exploitations from some quarters Undoubtedly , a degree of notoriety helped extend the Arbus myth , but her interest in unusual people is one that dictated the scope of her work

She said "Freaks was a thing I photographed a lot . it had a terrific kind of excitement for me . Most people go through life dreading they 'll have a traumatic experience . Freaks are born with their trauma . They 've already passed it . They 're aristocrats . She photographed her subjects in familiar settings : their homes , on the street , in the workplace , in the park . Though the environmental setting varied , all the photographs held...