Tuesday, May 6, 2014

"INVENTING VIVIAN MAIER" by ABIGAIL SOLOMON-GODEAU

A GOOD READ --- 
INVENTING VIVIAN MAIER by Abigail Solomon-Godeau

I watched the new film Finding Vivian Maier by John Maloof this week at FilmScene in Iowa City. Seeing it and talking to friends about it, I was reminded of my first encounter with the photographer's work.

In 2013, I spent one week in Chicago during the month of October. My six photography students and I took the megabus from Iowa City and stayed at Cornell College's newly acquired house in north part of the city. The week was filled with many viewing pleasures and among them we saw two Vivian Maier exhibitions. The first was at the Chicago History Museum. Her images were "blown" up in various sizes on poster-like boards, strung up on cables. MORE HEREI happened to meet the speaker there, Richard Cahan who is one of the authors of Vivian Maiers, Out of the Shadows; he told us to visit a small gallery nearby with a quite large and very impressive body of work by Vivian Maier. This was by far and beyond a beautiful and beautifully presented exhibition of gorgeous hand-made silver gelatin prints. So glad to have seen it!