Imogen Cunningham: A Retrospective

Thoroughly researched and beautifully produced, this book illuminates the life and work of celebrated American photographer Imogen Cunningham (1883-1976). Cunningham enjoyed a long career as a photographer, creating a large and diverse body of work that underscored her singular vision, versatility, and commitment to the medium. An early feminist and inspiration to future generations, Cunningham intensely engaged with the artistic movement of her time, ranging from Pictorialism and Modernism to portraiture and street photography.

Beginning with Cunningham’s girlhood in Seattle and spanning the entirety of her seventy-five year career, this volume contains nearly two hundred color images of Cunningham’s elegant, poignant, and groundbreaking photographs, including several that have never been published. Essays by Getty curator Paul Martineau and independent scholar Susan Ehrens draw from extensive primary source material to enrich readers’ understanding of Cunningham’s motivations and work.

This title is published to accompany forthcoming exhibitions at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center and the Seattle Art Museum.

Paul Martineau has been a curator of photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum for over fifteen years, authoring many books published by Getty Publications. Susan Ehrens, an established author regarding the art and study of photography, organized and co-curated the exhibition The Photography of Imogen Cunningham: A Centennial Selection. 

Hardcover:  256 pages

Publisher:  J. Paul Getty Museum (October 27, 2020)

ISBN:  9781606066751

Dimensions:  9.5 x 1.1 x 11 inches