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Lot 16

Ruth Orkin
(1921-1985)
Jimmy the Storyteller, New York City 2

2 February 2021, 12:00 EST
New York

US$12,000 - US$18,000

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Ruth Orkin (1921-1985)

Jimmy the Storyteller, New York City, 1947
A suite of 6 gelatin silver prints, printed c. 1970, each signed and consecutively numbered '#1-#6' in pencil on the verso; accompanied by a letter from Edward Steichen, dated March 31, 1947, signed and annotated 'of course some of the captions are wonderful' by Steichen in ink. (2)
prints, each 7 3/4 x 10in (19.7 x 25.4cm)
sheet each 8 x 10in (20.3 x 325.4cm)

Footnotes

Literature
Orkin, A Photo Journal, Viking Press, 1981, p. 32
Ruth Orkin: A Retrospective, International Center for Photography, New York, May 5-July 16, 1995, exhibition catalogue, pp. 32-33
Cornic, Morris Engel, Ruth Orkin: Outside - From Street Photography to Filmmaking, Carlotta Films, 2014, p. 91

In 1947, I took the Jimmy, The Storyteller sequence up to The Museum of Modern Art. Several days later, I received a letter from Edward Steichen, a letter that any young photographer would cherish. It read in part, "They are indeed interesting and full of human expression. I should like to see more of your work." After that I was included in all the group photography shows held at the Museum until Steichen left in 1962.
RUTH ORKIN

Steichen's letter, referenced here, is also being offered with this lot.

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