Andre Kertesz
ANDRE KERTESZ "MELANCHOLIC TULIP" 1939
André Kertész (1894 - 1985) was a Hungarian-born photographer renowned for his trailblazing contributions to both photojournalism and the medium as an art form.
Expected by his family to follow in his father's footsteps as a stockbroker, Kertész's banking career was side-tracked when he was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian army during World War I in 1914 at 20 years old.
Having fallen in love with photography after purchasing his first camera at the age of 18, Kertész photographed both his life at war and during recovery, when a bullet-wound decommissioned him from service.
Kertész moved to Paris to study photography and began photographing his surroundings in France. Soon he was exhibiting works and gaining recognition for his observant, gentle aesthetic. His images bordered on formalist with their impeccable lighting and composition.
In 1936 as the Nazi party grew more powerful in Europe and the threat of war approached, Kertész and his wife Elizabeth made the decision to flee Europe to New York. In America, Kertész began to focus on commercial photography, focusing on architecture and interiors, for Vogue, House & Garden, and Harper's Bazaar - eventually being contracted by Condé Nast.
After retiring from commercial work in the early 1960's, Kertész began photographing his surroundings, much like in the beginning of his photography career. The works from this period until his death in 1985 are highly coveted by collectors and praised by critics. Kertész demonstrates his vision honed through decades of practice and perfection, resulting in carefully captured images of strikingly simple, elegant compositions.
This iconic black-and-white photograph is a classic example of Kertész's work, and one of his most recognizable images. The work shows a tulip in a long glass vase, drooped right over and touching the table upon which it sits. Kertész has distorted the section with the stem and vase, elongating and texturizing the section.
Central to the image is the tension between the warped vase and the photorealistic tulip and shadow. Kertész’s plain background and dramatic lighting isolate the flower from everyday reality, lending the work a distinctly surreal quality reminiscent of Salvador Dalí and Giorgio de Chirico.
Kertész has been the recipient of numerous honours and awards including a Guggenheim fellowship, induction into the French Legion of Honor, and the inaugural Master of Photography Award from the International Centre of Photography. His work has been exhibited globally including major solo shows at the Museum of Modern Art (NYC), Bibliothèque Nationale (Paris), the Art Institute of Chicago, and the National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.) to name a few.
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"Melancholic Tulip, New York"
USA, 1939
Gelatin silver print; printed c. 1970
Signed, titled, and inscribed in pencil, verso
10"W 8"H (sheet)
19.25"W 16"H (framed)
Very good condition
Provenance: from the artist to a private collector
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