Wow...she really got around. It is not by accident that you find yourself 10 feet, from Frank Sinatra, as he exits a movie theater.....a Premiere to one of his own starring films.
Vivian Maier with her Robot
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Andrew O'Neill
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The Chicago library also got one of her cameras... I wonder if it was... the Robot....
If she had been born just ten or twenty years later, Vivian Maier might well have ended up right here amongst the thousands of Photrio members whose skills and personal vision rise to a certain level of distinction. How many of us will exit this world with stacks of prints, discs or negatives left behind? As it was, I think the peculiar arc of her life, her secretive personality, distinctive appearance and the buried treasure drama of John Maloof's discovery were the critical elements that drew the 'Vivian Maier Story' into the glare of the media marketplace just as the traditional role of "photographer" was being eclipsed by digital technology. As far as Maloof and the other putative owners, exhibitors, litigators and admirers of Ms. Maier's pictorial estate are concerned, it's all good, but who could know what Vivian herself would think about how things turned out? Her frequent mirror and shadow selfies could be a hint that she intuited much more about the future of her images and of her identity than we might imagine.
Vivian Maier may well be one of the last famous photographers. Now that everybody can make high-quality, no-cost still or moving pictures of everything all the time, which anyone on the internet might view at any time, the significance of any one particular frame or whomever happened to produce it is greatly diminished. Henceforth, the focus will be on what's in front of the lens, not behind it, and the image will be constantly changing.
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IMHO..... This will probably Not be the case, but i completely sympathize with your sentiment.
It will be very difficult for Any Photographer to eclipse the unique, interesting and singular person that was Vivian Maier. It is an amazing story. Hard to equate this to anything else in the world of photography.
It was a huge long-shot to have even occurred. What were the odds.?
It almost makes you wonder if she did not set this all up with Mr Mal.....................
For those that may be interested the BBC did a documentary on her a while ago, well worth a look if you have an hour to kill.
Theres also a few people working on autobiographies, think there is a lot more to her story than just a sweet nanny who liked to take random pictures. She sounds far more interesting than that and then her pictures can be looked in a different light.
For what its worth, there seems to be a huge misconception that Maloof discovered her pictures, this is not true, he was just one of many who bought her stuff after an auctioneer discovered her pictures among other personal possession in defaulted lockers he bought, the auctioneer is the one who saw initial value in her pictures bundling them up and selling for tens of thousands of dollars, he's the one to thank......all this while she was still alive and no one thought to contact her.
Theres also a few people working on autobiographies, think there is a lot more to her story than just a sweet nanny who liked to take random pictures. She sounds far more interesting than that and then her pictures can be looked in a different light.
For what its worth, there seems to be a huge misconception that Maloof discovered her pictures, this is not true, he was just one of many who bought her stuff after an auctioneer discovered her pictures among other personal possession in defaulted lockers he bought, the auctioneer is the one who saw initial value in her pictures bundling them up and selling for tens of thousands of dollars, he's the one to thank......all this while she was still alive and no one thought to contact her.
John bought the whole lot and then others came to buy from him... You are probably right but I am not sure that the original auctioneer sold them for tens of thousands of dollars... My assistant was buying them on Ebay from John in the very early days.
Here's an interview with Jeffrey Goldstein from 2015 (Jeffrey G. once owned the second largest collection of Vivian Maier negatives) -
we heard about him in post #71 - worth reading!
https://petapixel.com/2015/05/17/interview-jeffrey-goldstein-on-why-hes-suing-vivian-maiers-estate/
we heard about him in post #71 - worth reading!
https://petapixel.com/2015/05/17/interview-jeffrey-goldstein-on-why-hes-suing-vivian-maiers-estate/
Many photographers think it helps their continuing work to edit and destroy their "early work".
Painter Georgia O’Keeffe destroyed not only her own works, but those of her former husband Alfred Stieglitz.
In a September 1983 interview with A. Warhol, O’Keeffe admitted to trashing a large number of Stieglitz’s photographic negatives at his death.
Stieglitz, who printed all of his images himself, wished the negatives destroyed so that no one else could print them.
In a September 1983 interview with A. Warhol, O’Keeffe admitted to trashing a large number of Stieglitz’s photographic negatives at his death.
Stieglitz, who printed all of his images himself, wished the negatives destroyed so that no one else could print them.
This subject may have started by confusion with a fire that destroyed some of AAs work.
W. Eugene Smith destroyed all his pre-war work after he came home from WWII.
W. Eugene Smith destroyed all his pre-war work after he came home from WWII.
I probably throw out 50% of my negs.....why not.?
It seems funny, because Photographers are famous for saying you are lucky to get two great photos out of every 30 frames.
Unless of course you think you are going to be another Vivian, and leave behind tens of thousands of fabulous photos, and have people the world over clamoring to get their hands on your "work".
Anyway.....Vivian Maier.
Had life progressed differently, had she been Younger/Older...talked to more people, joined a photo club , maybe taken some classes at her local college..... Christ, didn't she live with a Photo Editor at one point.?
Had she been "discovered" she while she was shooting, she would have been the equal of, or even perhaps eclipsed the likes of Winogrand, Mary Ellen Mark, Brisson, Arbus, etc etc.
Photography was her life...just like a carpenter that works 2,000 hours a year or a guitar player that gigs 250 days every year.
It is hard not be be fascinated with her
It seems funny, because Photographers are famous for saying you are lucky to get two great photos out of every 30 frames.
Unless of course you think you are going to be another Vivian, and leave behind tens of thousands of fabulous photos, and have people the world over clamoring to get their hands on your "work".
Anyway.....Vivian Maier.
Had life progressed differently, had she been Younger/Older...talked to more people, joined a photo club , maybe taken some classes at her local college..... Christ, didn't she live with a Photo Editor at one point.?
Had she been "discovered" she while she was shooting, she would have been the equal of, or even perhaps eclipsed the likes of Winogrand, Mary Ellen Mark, Brisson, Arbus, etc etc.
Photography was her life...just like a carpenter that works 2,000 hours a year or a guitar player that gigs 250 days every year.
It is hard not be be fascinated with her
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Think his argument got thrown out of court and he sold most of his stuff to a Canadian collector, who has since sold to a European consortium of collectors. Copy right laws are pretty tight, even Maloof secret deal with the state of Illinois may come unstuck if an American heir turns up (stranger things have happened). If the Canadians are willing to arrest the head of a phone company of a world super power for steeling intellectual property, theres no safety there either. Dont think we will be seeing any Miss Maier mugs and tea towels any time soon.
Thats the amount he mentions in the BBC interview, and I would think everyone would be understating amounts in case the IRS or estate trust is listening. It will be very interesting to see what independent people make of her, think she was far more intelligent and single minded than certainly I gave her credit for, she defiantly doesn't strike me now as just a Mary Poppins type with a naive perspective, great camera skills and plenty of time to take pictures. Hopefully some day someone will provide a more truthful rendition on what she was on about instead of the selfies and what looks like random street shots......or maybe thats all she was doing.
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Or maybe she wanted to portray how self serving and materialistic society has become, innocent children growing up to become adults locked in there own little world, despondent to the poor and needy, watching us all the time through her self portraits and in the ultimate form of art, she placed her pictures in lockers that would be easily found, so when they would be found people would squabble and trade over the treasures, she herself would die with dignity, penny less with out fame or fortune, pure and the best bit, cause she purposely didnt leave an heir or will, the treasure will have less worth, and become a poisoned chalice......bloody brilliant, makes Banksy look like an amateur.It almost makes you wonder if she did not set this all up with Mr Mal.....................
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Ever heard of Ockham's razor?
"the principle (attributed to William of Occam) that in explaining a thing no more assumptions should be made than are necessary."
Andrew O'Neill
Moderator
That was excellent. Thank you for posting. I'm going to give my senior photo students a self portrait, Vivian Maier-esque project.
I have no problem with this.. I plan to not allow anyone print my negatives.. actually in my will right now..
Then you'd probably be better off destroying them. Your will won't stop anyone from printing a negative they have in their possession. Might not be able to sell the print, but if they have the neg, they can print from it.
Just to add to the above comment, think of Lee Friedlander and EJ Bellocq.
thats going to be hard as I plan to print till the day I die... I am making my new space for work wheelchair accessible. I have good people around me that will carry out my wishes.
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