Object number1987.53.78
Roman Vishniac with Graflex Camera, Central Park, New York City
Date1958
Artist
Rosalie Thorne McKenna
(American, 1918-2003)
CultureAmerican
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 12 13/16 x 9 11/16 in. (32.5 x 24.6 cm)
Matted: 22 x 16 in. (55.9 x 40.6 cm)
Matted: 22 x 16 in. (55.9 x 40.6 cm)
Credit LineGift of the artist
On View
Not on viewPeriod20th c
Classification(s)
InscribedOn verso, possibly by artist, lower center in pencil: RV XX-6; by unidentified hand, upper left corner in red ink: TBN; lower right corner in pencil: 87.53.78
On typed label, possibly by artist, in pencil: 1958
1958 in pencil on above label @ lower half
RV XX-6 in pencil @ lower half
MarkingsOn verso, stamped center: Photo By: / ROLLIE MCKENNA / ONE HANCOX STREET / STONINGTON, CONN. / AREA CODE 203 533-0110 / Not To Be Reproduced / Without Permission / Please Credit With Photo; stamped lower center: ASMP MEMBER / AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MAGAZINE PHOTOGRAPHERS; stamped lower left [address and telephone scribbled out]: PHOTO BY: / ROLLIE McKENNA / [...] / Not To Be Reproduced / Without Permission / Please Credit With Photo
On printed label, on verso, upper center: © Rollie McKenna / 1 Hancox Street / Stonington, CT 06378 / (203) 535-0110/2126
On typed label, on verso, lower center: RVXX-6 Dr. V. photographing with an old Graflex [ph crossed out and F handwritten] camera to which a / Polaroid back has been attached. Scene is Central Park, background, New York Skyline.
ProvenanceGift of the artistVassar Exhibitions
Label TextIn 1958, McKenna photographed Russian American photographer Roman Vishniac with her Graflex camera. Vishniac came to the United States disguised as a Bolshevik soldier in order to seek asylum from political and racial oppression during World War II. He was known for photographing European Jewish life before the Holocaust. When he immigrated to the U.S. he became a photo-microbiologist, using color photography and an Arriflex camera for scientific research. McKenna photographed Vishniac in the naturalistic setting of Central Park as well as in Woods Hole, Massachusetts near his home, both places where he conducted field research. Observing him at work, she recognized his fascination with and respect for the natural world, which she shared. While editing her pictures of Vishniac, McKenna marked up her contact sheets with several notes to tightly crop the images to show only his eyes. Likely feeling an affinity with Vishniac and his attention to his subjects, McKenna focused on his eyes as a powerful tool for the keen observational skills he displayed in his own work.
DescriptionMan with hat, coat and large camera at edge of Central Park Lake with tree branches overhead Terms
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Rosalie Thorne McKenna
1958
Culture: American
