Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review"We may think we know everything about Diane Arbus just from looking at her photographs, but Frederick Gross has challenged the usual easy readings of Arbus as a gimlet eyed ironist by exploring the artist's philosophical, journalistic and political contexts in depth, and offering many surprising insights into her multifaceted motives and carefully arrived at methods. One comes away with a much enhanced appreciation of the complexity of Arbus's vision and the heroic dimensions of her empathetic activism. Such a study is especially important now because the artist's enormous cultural influence tends to obscure accurate hindsight into her development and process." —Glenn O’Brien
"Gross skillfully discusses a range of subjects (e.g., documentary photography, portraiture, the body, the social climate) and how they relate to Arbus and her work. Highly recommended for all photography and art collections as well as for photography enthusiasts." —Library Journal
Table of ContentsPreface: “Sylvia Plath with a Camera”
Introduction: Between Intention and Effect
1. Documentary Photography and the Positivist Social Gallery
2. Portraits, Pastiche, and Magazine Work
3. The Body in the 1960s
4. Madness, Disability, and the “Untitled” Series
5. The Social Panorama in Context
Revelations: Darkness and Illumination
