Connecting The Dots

Carl Van Vechten-1934

I was able recently to dispel a little of my ignorance about music with the help of Angela Davis and her history of early Blues performers, Blues Legacies and Black Feminism. The book also included a reference to the writing and photography of Carl Van Vechten who compiled a vast catalog of images of performers and creators in all the arts who were attracted to New York - and particularly to Harlem - beginning in the 1920s.

 

Celebrity photography has never held much interest for me, but the sheer volume of Van Vechten's accomplishment demands attention. He managed for several decades to make portraits of just about anyone who achieved fame on stage, in films or in recordings, often as they were just beginning their careers. Here are four by Van Vechten on the way up in the 1940s and '50s at Wikipedia:

Harry Belafonte

Marlon Brando

Truman Capote

Lena Horne

There are many big collections of Van Vechten's work in museums and university archives; the Library of Congress houses 1,388 of his portraits.  The biography page on the LOC site also contains some information about Van Vechten's gear and techniques:

In the early 1930s, Miguel Covarrubias introduced Van Vechten to the 35mm Leica camera. He began photographing his large circle of friends and acquaintances. His earlier career as a writer and his wife's experience as an actress provided him with access to both fledgling artists and the established cultural figures of the time. Some of his subjects from this period include F. Scott Fitzgerald, Langston Hughes, Alfred A. Knopf, Bessie Smith, and Gertrude Stein.

Van Vechten's portraits are frequently busts or half-length poses, in front of bold backdrops. Dancers were usually photographed on stage. Van Vechten did his own darkroom work, but frequently used an assistant to help set up lights for the portrait sittings.

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Miguel and Rose

Since I could only summon up some vague memories of Miguel Covarrubias I googled the name and easily turned up a lot about his life as an artist and writer.  I discovered that he had written a well-received book about Bali that included photographs by his wife, Rose.  Best known by her adopted stage name, Rosa Rolanda, she was multi-talented like her husband and found success in dancing, choreography, and painting as well as photography.  

Rosa was a skilled photographer and it is apparent in the portraits she made - especially those of her friend Frida Kahlo - that she had a  talent for making people feel comfortable in front of her camera.

Rosa Rolanda's charm and performance skills frequently put her in front of the cameras of some of the most highly regarded photographers of the time, including Man Ray, Steichen, and Weston.

by Man Ray

 

by Edward Steichen

by Edward Weston

I always thought the picture by Weston was one of the best he ever made, and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the sitter was Rosa Rolanda.  Now, I am looking forward to getting to know her photography.