Andreas Feininger 'Self-Portrait'
About Face: The David and Gail Mixer Collection of Photographs
Andreas Feininger
1906 - 1999
'Self-Portrait'
ferrotyped gelatin silver print, signed, titled, dated '1927/1928' and stamped on the reverse, framed
image: 9¼ by 7 in. (23.5 by 17.8 cm.)
frame: 17½ by 14¾ in. (44.5 by 37.5 cm.)
Executed in 1927-28.
Condition Report:
Please note the colors and shades in the online catalogue illustration may vary depending on screen settings.
This ferrotyped print is in generally excellent condition. As is typical of prints that have been ferrotyped, a general unevenness of the glossy surface and occasional pitting are visible upon close inspection. Visible under raking light is a sharp crease at the right edge that does not appear to break the emulsion and occasional fingerprints.
On the reverse, the following is written in unidentified hands: 'C-54/1,' in pencil and 'BB.67' and 'C-print' in ink. The reverse is faintly soiled.
Catalogue Note:
Scholar Stuart Alexander calls this image a 'metaphor' for Andreas Feininger's career in photography: "Feininger, who has both used and portrayed technology throughout his life, appears as a half-man/half-machine, his face merged with radio equipment. Made in his first year as a serious amateur photographer, it shows how rapidly he had assimilated a close and positive identification with technology" (The Archive, pp. 7-8).
Born in Paris in 1906, Andreas was the first child of painter Lyonel Feininger and older brother of T. Lux Feininger (see Lots 5, 8, and 9). In the 1920s, Andreas studied at the Bauhaus—where his father was an instructor—, initially interested in cabinet-making and architecture before turning to photography. In 1929, just two years after this early experimental self-portrait was made, six of his photographs were shown at Film und Foto. Early prints from this period, such as the photograph offered here, are rare.
Provenance:
Bonni Benrubi Gallery, New York
Acquired from the above in 1998 by the present owner
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About Face: The David and Gail Mixer Collection of Photographs
Andreas Feininger
1906 - 1999
'Self-Portrait'
ferrotyped gelatin silver print, signed, titled, dated '1927/1928' and stamped on the reverse, framed
image: 9¼ by 7 in. (23.5 by 17.8 cm.)
frame: 17½ by 14¾ in. (44.5 by 37.5 cm.)
Executed in 1927-28.
Condition Report:
Please note the colors and shades in the online catalogue illustration may vary depending on screen settings.
This ferrotyped print is in generally excellent condition. As is typical of prints that have been ferrotyped, a general unevenness of the glossy surface and occasional pitting are visible upon close inspection. Visible under raking light is a sharp crease at the right edge that does not appear to break the emulsion and occasional fingerprints.
On the reverse, the following is written in unidentified hands: 'C-54/1,' in pencil and 'BB.67' and 'C-print' in ink. The reverse is faintly soiled.
Catalogue Note:
Scholar Stuart Alexander calls this image a 'metaphor' for Andreas Feininger's career in photography: "Feininger, who has both used and portrayed technology throughout his life, appears as a half-man/half-machine, his face merged with radio equipment. Made in his first year as a serious amateur photographer, it shows how rapidly he had assimilated a close and positive identification with technology" (The Archive, pp. 7-8).
Born in Paris in 1906, Andreas was the first child of painter Lyonel Feininger and older brother of T. Lux Feininger (see Lots 5, 8, and 9). In the 1920s, Andreas studied at the Bauhaus—where his father was an instructor—, initially interested in cabinet-making and architecture before turning to photography. In 1929, just two years after this early experimental self-portrait was made, six of his photographs were shown at Film und Foto. Early prints from this period, such as the photograph offered here, are rare.
Provenance:
Bonni Benrubi Gallery, New York
Acquired from the above in 1998 by the present owner
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
