"Helen Frankenthaler 1960 Silver Gelatin Photograph" Original Artwork by Ben Martin

Description

Ben Martin was TIME Magazine’s first New York Bureau staff photographer covering wars, fashion, politics, arts, business, and sports for … more Ben Martin was TIME Magazine’s first New York Bureau staff photographer covering wars, fashion, politics, arts, business, and sports for TIME, Life, Fortune, People, and Sports Illustrated for thirty-three years. He immortalized evocative images that defined the 1960’s. In this series of legendary photoshoots, Martin captured the complexity of each artist's personality, art, and surroundings.

Silver gelatin photographs are revered for their rich tonal range, intricate detail, and historical significance. Crafted through a meticulous process involving manual exposure, darkroom development, and creative manipulation, these black-and-white prints offer a tangible connection to the past while providing a canvas for artistic expression. Their archival quality, tactile nature, and monochromatic focus evoke a deep emotional impact, inviting viewers to engage with the image's composition, contrast, and texture, resulting in enduring and cherished artworks.

This black & white photograph was taken in 1960 and is a rare capture of Helen Frankenthaler (1928 – 2011) in her studio. Frankenthaler had her first major museum exhibition in 1960 at New York’s Jewish Museum. Her second significant museum exhibition followed in 1969 at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Helen Frankenthaler was an American abstract expressionist painter. Her career spanned six decades, She has long been recognized as one of the great American artists of the twentieth century. She was eminent among the second generation of postwar American abstract painters and is widely credited for playing a pivotal role in the transition from Abstract Expressionism to Color Field painting. Through her invention of the soak-stain technique, she expanded the possibilities of abstract painting, while at times referencing figuration and landscape in unique ways. She produced a body of work whose impact on contemporary art has been profound and continues to grow.

The size of the silver gelatin print is 20 inches high and 16 inches wide. It is numbered 1/15 on the back of the photograph. It is framed in a black frame measuring 26 inches high and 22 inches wide. The price includes the frame. It is wired and ready to hang. Free local Los Angeles area delivery. Affordable Continental U.S. and worldwide shipping. A certificate of authenticity issued by Kathryn Leigh Scott representing Ben Martin's Photographs is included.

Ben Martin attended Ohio University, where he majored in journalism and photography, working his way through college cooking nights as a short-order “White Castle” hamburger chef, and as a stringer-photographer for UPI Newspictures. He was married to actress Kathryn Leigh Scott (1971-1990), with whom he co-founded Pomegranate Press, a book publishing company. The two remained close friends and business partners until his death on February 10, 2017, at age 86.

Ben Martin's photographs have been exhibited in galleries throughout the US.

Artplex Gallery is pleased to offer Ben Martin's photograph through official Kathryn Leigh Scott authorized editions. This edition size is only authorized for 15. Please contact us for additional photographs from Ben Martin. less