1985 Signed Richard Avedon in the American West First Edition Hardcover Book

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Signed and dated by Richard Avedon in black pen.
Excellent condition, Hardcover in a clear acetate dust jacket, First Edition, … Read more Signed and dated by Richard Avedon in black pen.
Excellent condition, Hardcover in a clear acetate dust jacket, First Edition, 1985, Harry N. Abrams Inc., New York, Folio, Unpaginated, with a forward by Richard Avedon and an essay by Laura Wilson.

This is a Signed First Edition of Richard Avedon’s In The American West, published in 1985 in conjunction with an exhibition at the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. In 1979, museum director Mitchell A. Wilder commissioned the preeminent fashion and portrait photographer of his generation to create a visual portrait of the American West. Intrigued by the challenge, Avedon spent the next six summers, from 1979 to 1984, traveling to 189 towns in 17 states –Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, and Texas– conducting 752 portrait sittings. But instead of celebrities, models, the wealthy and powerful that he usually photographed, Avedon turned his camera on everyday people, many of whom were dealing with the harsh realities of life. His portraits, stark and raw, reveal the struggles of his subjects –but also their resilience and humanity. Shot in his signature technique using a large format view camera, the subjects are posed against a blank white backdrop that strips away context, focusing only on the individuality and presence of each person. In the book, as in the exhibition, each portrait is titled with the subject’s name, location, date and occupation, reinforcing the documentary nature of the photographs. Today, In The American West is widely considered a masterwork of contemporary portraiture and a testament to the power of photographic art. See less