Diane Arbus

When Diane Arbus died in 1971 at the age of 48, she was already a significant influence--even something of a legend--for serious photographers, although only a relatively small number of her most important pictures were widely known at the time. The publication of "Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph" in 1972--along with the posthumous retrospective at The Museum of Modern Art--offered the general public its first encounter with the breadth and power of her achievements. The response was unprecedented. The monograph, composed of 80 photographs, was edited and designed by the painter Marvin Israel, Diane Arbus' friend and colleague, and by her daughter Doon Arbus. Their goal in producing the book was to remain as faithful as possible to the standards by which Arbus judged her own work and to the ways in which she hoped it would be seen. Universally acknowledged as a photobook classic, "Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph" is a timeless masterpiece with editions in five languages, and remains the foundation of her international reputation. A quarter of a century has done nothing to diminish the riveting impact of these pictures or the controversy they inspire. Arbus' photographs penetrate the psyche with all the force of a personal encounter and, in doing so, transform the way we see the world and the people in it.

Untitled ist der dritte Band mit Photographien von Diane Arbus und der einzige, der sich ausschließlich einem Projekt widmet. Die Aufnahmen entstanden zwischen 1969 und 1971, in den letzten Lebensjahren der Photographin, in Heimen für geistig Behinderte. Sie plante zwar ein Buch zu diesem Thema, der überwiegende Teil der Photographien blieb jedoch bis heute unveröffentlicht. Die Bilder haben eine lyrische Qualität, eine emotionale Reinheit, die sie von allen anderen Werken der Photographin unterscheidet. "Endlich, was ich gesucht habe", schrieb sie damals. Die Bilder in diesem Buch sind das Ergebnis ihres stets unbeirrbaren Blicks für die Wirklichkeit, wie sie sie vorfand, sie scheinen weniger einer dokumentarischen als einer mythischen Wahrheit verpflichtet. Untitled ist vielleicht die romantischste, am deutlichsten ins Transzendente gehende Vision von Diane Arbus. Sie feiert die Unverwechselbarkeit und Zusammengehörigkeit von uns allen. Sie verlangt vom Betrachter, was sie der Künstlerin abverlangt hat: den Mut, die Dinge so zu sehen, wie sie sind, und die Bereitschaft, ihnen ihre Eigenheit zuzugestehen. Für Diane Arbus lag darin das Wesen der Photographie. Mit einem Nachwort von Doon Arbus, der Tochter der Photographin

When Diane Arbus died in 1971 at the age of forty-eight, she was already a significant influence-even something of a legend-among serious photographers, although only a relatively small number of her most important pictures were widely known at the time. The publication of Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph in 1972- along with the posthumous retrospective at The Museum of Modern Art-offered the general public its first encounter with the breadth and power of her achievements. The response was unprecedented. The monograph of eighty photographs was edited and designed by the painter Marvin Israel, Diane Arbus's friend and colleague, and by her daughter Doon Arbus. Their goal in making the book was to remain as faithful as possible to the standards by which Diane Arbus judged her own work and to the ways in which she hoped it would be seen. Universally acknowledged as a classic, Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph is a timeless masterpiece with editions in five languages and remains the foundation of her international reputation. Nearly half of a century has done nothing to diminish the riveting impact of these pictures or the controversy they inspire. Arbus's photographs penetrate the psyche with all the force of a personal encounter and, in doing so, transform the way we see the world and the people in it. This is the first edition in which the image separations were created digitally; the files have been specially prepared by Robert J. Hennessey using prints by Neil Selkirk.