George Platt Lynes Original B&W Fashion Photograph, Metropolitan Museum Art
About the Item
- Creator:George Platt Lynes (Artist)
- Dimensions:Height: 14 in (35.56 cm)Width: 11 in (27.94 cm)Depth: 1 in (2.54 cm)
- Style:Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1990-1999
- Date of Manufacture:1990s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Palm Springs, CA
- Reference Number:
George Platt Lynes
George Platt Lynes was lauded as one the world’s top commercial photographers in the first half of the 20th century, known for his portraits of important cultural figures, surreal fashion shoots and innovative use of lighting and evocative sets. However, in an era when homosexuality was considered a crime, Lynes had to keep secret his best work: erotic nude photographs of men.
Born in 1907 in New Jersey, Lynes attended the Berkshire School in Sheffield, Massachusetts, graduating in 1925. In his youth, Lynes had dreamed of becoming a writer. He published a literary journal and opened a bookstore, both of which were unsuccessful. When he inherited a trove of photographic equipment from a friend, Lynes turned his focus toward a career in photography.
Self-taught, Lynes proved to be a gifted talent behind the camera. His preternatural understanding of the interplay between light, shadow and form garnered critical acclaim. In 1932, Lynes had his first solo exhibition, at Leggett Gallery, followed by a two-artist show with photographer Walker Evans at Julien Levy Gallery. By 1933, Lynes became a central figure in New York photography, whose stylized technique was sought by magazines such as Harper’s Bazaar, Town & Country and Vogue.
In 1935, the American Ballet Company (now the New York City Ballet) commissioned Lynes to photograph their principal dancers and performances, leading to Lynes’s appointment as the company’s primary photographer for the next 20 years.
While Lynes enjoyed immense success as a fashion and commercial photographer from the 1930s to the 1950s, he was secretly photographing male nudes — a subject considered highly taboo at the time. Fearing criminal reprisal, Lynes hid the photos and his sexual orientation from the public, sharing his work with a few select friends. Among them was Dr. Alfred Kinsey, founder of the Kinsey Institute, who, in the late 1940s, was researching human sexuality. Enthralled by Lynes’s figurative, black and white photos of the male form, Kinsey purchased more than 600 prints and several hundred negatives at the risk of prosecution.
After he was diagnosed with lung cancer, in 1955, Lynes destroyed many of his negatives and prints. However, he entrusted a sizeable volume of his male nudes to the Kinsey Institute, which today holds the largest collection of Lynes’s works, second only to the Lynes estate. In 2019, an exhibition of images culled from the Kinsey collection, “Sensual/Sexual/Social: The Photography of George Platt Lynes,” was held at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields.
Long after his death, Lynes’s legacy has shaped the evolution of sexual and gender norms. His works are highly sought by galleries and collectors of modern and contemporary photography.
On 1stDibs, discover a range of George Platt Lynes photography.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Palm Springs, CA
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- George Platt Lynes Original B&W Photograph from Vogue MagazineBy George Platt LynesLocated in Palm Springs, CAThis silver gelatin photograph was printed in New York City in the 1990s from the original negative. George Platt Lynes (1907 to 1955) was a legenda...Category
1990s American Modern Photography
MaterialsOther
- George Platt Lynes Original B&W Photograph Portrait, Vogue MagazineBy George Platt LynesLocated in Palm Springs, CAThis silver gelatin photograph was printed in New York City in the 1990s from the original negative. George Platt Lynes (1907 to 1955) was a legenda...Category
1990s American Modern Photography
MaterialsOther
- George Platt Lynes Original B&W Photograph, Ruth Elizabeth Ford, FramedBy George Platt LynesLocated in Palm Springs, CAThis silver gelatin photograph was printed in 1999 from the original negative by the Robert Miller Gallery in New York City with permission from the estate of the artist. George Platt Lynes...Category
1990s American Modern Photography
MaterialsOther
- Pair of Original B&W Male Nude Silver Gelatin Photographs 1996 by George MachadoBy George MachadoLocated in Palm Springs, CAA pair of original B&W photographs being offered for sale for the first time. Taken by fashion designer/photographer George Machado from his book “Masculine” by Crown Publishers, NYC,1997. This diptych was printed in two sizes and selected in the final edit of he book. Hand printed the old fashion way. These photographs were printed in 1996 from the original negatives. 5 x 7 photos...Category
1990s American Modern Photography
MaterialsPaper
- Douglas Kirkland "Golden Boy" Rare Male Nude Original PhotographBy Douglas Kirkland 1Located in Palm Springs, CAA very rare and highly collectible fine art original photo in original frame. A 1997 Iris nash edition 11" x 14" photograph, signed on front by Douglas Kirkland (1934-2022). From G Ray Hawkins Gallery, Sant Monica, CA. entitled "Golden Boy...Category
1990s American Modern Photography
MaterialsPaper
- Michael Roberts Original Photograph "Michel Nude" Hamilton's London, 1989By Michael RobertsLocated in Palm Springs, CAMICHAEL ROBERTS (1947-2023) PLEASE NOTE: This photograph is a one of a kind original photograph. Every photograph in the show was available to purchase, and only one of each was printed. This large black and white hand printed silver gelatin photograph of "Michel Nude" by the legendary fashion icon, Michael Roberts, London. This image was part of a Michael Roberts show in 1989 at Hamilton's gallery, London. Signed on back. Black metal simple frame. Image: 15" x 19", framed: 22' x 26". This image is one of two that were in the gallery show in London. The images from the show were very rare and now highly sought after and collected after Mr. Robert's death but there are NONE available to purchase. These two images were purchased from that Exhibit from Hamiltons. The second one, "Nude of Michel" is available on separate listing. We hope they are purchased together as they were hung next to each other in the exhibit. MICHAEL ROBERTS: The preferred medium of the fashion journalist Michael Roberts was Canson art paper, which he scissored freehand into crisp-cut collages, or snipped into minute dots to reassemble into mosaics, for magazine covers or book illustrations. His art, bit by bit putting it together, reflected his life in fashion. He wrote about it, commissioned unexpected others to do so, photographed for media and ads, and charmed cranky legendary lensmen into snapping for him. He could source the clothes, choose the crazy locale, stage the shoot’s story, and write a witty critique of the enterprise. He was also always the most elegant person involved, effortlessly cool. Roberts, who has died aged 75, never bothered with a résumé, since every new role or venture seemed to just develop, but they totted up to a serious career. He was a writer on the Sunday Times in the 1970s, when new couture catwalk drama and heightened designer celebrity demanded a fashion voice that was both theatre critic and gossip columnist. Then from 1979 he was art and style director of Tatler magazine, when the editor, Tina Brown...Category
Vintage 1980s English Modern Photography
MaterialsPaper
- George Platt Lynes 1930s Photograph of Princess Natalie PaleyBy George Platt LynesLocated in New York, NYThis photograph by George Platt Lynes is unusual for having three exposures of the Russian princess Natalie Paley, the celebrated beauty, and the wife...Category
Vintage 1940s American Photography
- George Platt-Lynes Vintage Photo Gravure, circa 1940Located in Barcelona, BarcelonaVintage photo gravure by the photographer George Platt-Lynes, circa 1940. Wood frame with passepartout and high quality museum's glass. In original co...Category
Vintage 1940s French Mid-Century Modern Photography
MaterialsGlass, Wood, Paper
- Original Photography by Robert Kent Sharpe, Metropolitan MuseumBy Robert Kent SharpeLocated in East Hampton, NYThis is an original vintage photograph from Robert Kent Sharpe's (1930-2016) personal collection. This is a series of Mr. Sharpe's human observation and the interplay of art and peop...Category
Vintage 1980s American Photography
MaterialsPaper
- Vintage 1960s Original Silver Gelatin Fashion PhotographLocated in west palm beach, FLA fantastic vintage Boho original photograph. A chic 1960s fashion image of a young model. Acquired from a Palm Beach estate.Category
Vintage 1960s American Photography
MaterialsPaper
- Poster Gianni Versace Metropolitan Museum of Art Photo by Irving Penn, 1997By Gianni Versace, Irving PennLocated in Milano, ITGIANNI Versace. Beautiful and rare Poster of the Metropolitan Museum of Art December 1997-March 1998 of the exhibition on Gianni Versace. The poster depicts a photograph by Irving Penn. Penn's photograph depicts the famous 1987 theatre costume in black quilted satin and white satin with black and white applications. from the TEATRO collection. Approximate size 89 x 63.5 cm. pay. Thank you for your cooperation! The poster is an interesting black and white look on one of Versace's most extravagant evening dresses. This item would be the perfect addition to any Gianni Versace or MMA collection. Versace's catwalk collections...Category
1990s American Post-Modern Posters
MaterialsPaper
- Original Fashion Photograph by Photographer Robert Jean Chapuis, Paris, SignedBy Robert Jean ChapuisLocated in Saint-Ouen, FROriginal fashion photograph by photographer Robert Jean Chapuis, Paris, signed, representing a girl in a yellow sweater, circa 1970s. Measures: Withou...Category
Vintage 1970s French Modern Photography
MaterialsPaper