Leon Levinstein at the Met in NYC
Sunday, July 4th, 2010Currently, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC is exhibiting some of the photographic works of a relatively unknown photographer, Leon Levinstein. Levinstein, born in 1910 in West Virginia, came to NYC and photographed people on the streets of NY, mostly through the 1950’s and 60’s. His work represents everything I am drawn to in my own art.
A master of composition, his work beautifully represents the impact of the proper use of value. In all art, value is key, but in black and white photography, it is the main event. But it is his depiction of people, done in a way that pulls the viewer in closer to really examine the action, tells wonderful stories with a single image.
This photo of handball players on the lower east side captures so much movement. The composition draws the eye past the foreground into the background and the smaller figure. Photographers know that when photographing dancers, it is imperative to capture the height of the movement, the highest point of a dance move before the dancer begins to descend. We can experience that height of movement in this photo, as well. In fact, the figure in the foreground is at such a high peak of movement that his head moves out of the frame.
In “street scene, woman in dark short sleeved dress” we see again his uncanny ability to create so much depth and dimension in his images. The shapes of the two bodies, the contrasts of values in the woman in the foreground, and the negative space between the figures all make this a dynamic piece. But it is the thin white line that moves up at an angle and then diagonally across the frame to meet the white curb that adds so much beautiful movement and energy to this photo.
When it comes to story telling, this image of a man looking at a woman on the street does it masterfully. This single image tells a story that is so identifiable, has so much nuance that it compels the viewer to be drawn in. We can feel the twisting of his body, and the woman’s stance is a story in itself.
I absolutely adore this image of a woman on a park bench. The weight of her body, the forward movement, and the way the textured path leads the eye to her are spectacular. The contrast of the dark behind her, the crumbled white paper to her side, and that break in the line of the benches are so beautiful it is hard to believe the composition of the photo could have been random–and serves to remind us that “art” can come from the most ordinary places.
This photo of an elderly man in a stained white tee shirt is so filled with emotion. The angle of the body, the contrast of black and white, the triangle created in the space of the ground, and the unexpected viewpoint, all make this a very powerful image. Like the photo of the woman on the park bench, Levinstein has positioned himself so that there is a strong dark at one side of the central figure and a strong contrasting light area on the other. Despite the fact that this man is sitting still, the diagonal line of his body and the light area of the floor create energy and immediacy.
Hipsters, Hustlers, and Handball Players: Leon Levinstein’s New York Photographs, 1950-1980 will be at the Met in NYC until October 17. If you can’t see it in person, see more of his powerful images at the Met’s website:
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={C9CE6916-DFEF-4B86-BDB0-EE290C523227}
(if the link does not work, copy and past it)
