GEORGE PLATT LYNES (1907-1955)

Gertrude Stein, 1931

Print in Colors

4 1/2" x 5 3/4"

George Platt Lynes was an American fashion photographer. His grayscale work is characterized by its sexual and homoerotic overtones, and is often shot in moody high-contrast. He photographed nude men, high-profile celebrities, and figures in the art world, lending his subjects a stylized sensuality through his extensive studio lighting and classical compositions. Born in East Orange, NJ on April 15, 1907, Lynes began his career through self-taught photography, gradually arising to immense fame in his field. He worked for several high-profile New York-based clients such as Vogue magazine and Bergdorf Goodman, later turning his creative eye to the celebrities of Hollywood. He would come to disavow commercial work and return to personal photography projects later in life, going on to shoot his most celebrated and well-known male nudes. Before his death on December 6, 1955 in New York, NY, Lynes destroyed many of his prints and negatives, and it was only posthumously discovered that he had sent a substantial portion of his collection the Kinsey Institute in Indiana for posterity and study.

Mounted to Archival Super Quality Arches Paper