Diane Arbus was a renowned American photographer known for her candid photographs of marginalized groups. She was born in New York City to a wealthy Jewish family in 1923. After studying under Lisette Model and working as a photojournalist, Arbus began focusing on documenting outsider communities. Her most famous works included portraits of dwarves, transvestites, and people with physical disabilities. She committed suicide in 1971 at the age of 48.

1. DIANE ARBUS 1923-1971

2. Born Diane (Dee-Ann) Nemerov in New York to a wealthy Jewish family. BIOGRAPHY • • 1923

3. Born Diane (Dee-Ann) Nemerov in New York to a wealthy Jewish family. BIOGRAPHY • • 1923 1941 Married Allan Arbus at age 18. Her father hired them to make advertisement / fashion photographs for his department store.

4. Born Diane (Dee-Ann) Nemerov in New York to a wealthy Jewish family. BIOGRAPHY • • 1923 1941 1955 Married Allan Arbus at age 18. Her father hired them to make advertisement / fashion photographs for his department store. Studied under Lisette Model at The New School (NY) for 2 years , developing her “documentary eye” and documented transvestites, twins, midgets, and asylum inmates.

5. Born Diane (Dee-Ann) Nemerov in New York to a wealthy Jewish family. BIOGRAPHY • • 1923 1941 1955 1960 Married Allan Arbus at age 18. Her father hired them to make advertisement / fashion photographs for his department store. Studied under Lisette Model at The New School (NY) for 2 years , developing her “documentary eye” and documented transvestites, twins, midgets, and asylum inmates. Worked as a photojournalist . Got published in Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, Sunday Times, and others.

6. Received Guggenheim Fellowships for American Rites, Manners and Customs project. BIOGRAPHY • • 1963 & 1966

7. Received Guggenheim Fellowships for American Rites, Manners and Customs project. BIOGRAPHY • • 1963 1967 Work mounted in New Documents show at Museum of Modern Art , NY & 1966

8. Received Guggenheim Fellowships for American Rites, Manners and Customs project. BIOGRAPHY • • 1963 1967 1971 Work mounted in New Documents show at Museum of Modern Art , NY Committed suicide at age 48 by cutting herself and overdosing & 1966

9. Waist-level viewfinder helped connect with the subjects TECHNIQUE

10. Waist-level viewfinder helped connect with the subjects TECHNIQUE Experimented with use of flash in daylight to make her subjects stand out more against the background

11. TECHNIQUE Spent hours with her subjects, followed them home and talked to them to loosen them up so they quit acting, act natural , and are “unmasked.” Experimented with use of flash in daylight to make her subjects stand out more against the background Waist-level viewfinder helped connect with the subjects

12. TECHNIQUE Spent hours with her subjects, followed them home and talked to them to loosen them up so they quit acting, act natural , and are “unmasked.” Experimented with use of flash in daylight to make her subjects stand out more against the background Waist-level viewfinder helped connect with the subjects Subjects are in focus and look directly at the camera with frontal lighting and/or flash, which makes them look “eager to reveal their flaws .”

13. Freaks was a thing I photographed a lot … It was one of the first things I photographed... INSIGHT “ Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma . They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats . What I'm trying to describe is that it's impossible to get out of your skin into somebody else's.... That somebody else's tragedy is not the same as your own.

14. FAMOUS WORK

15. 1962 Child with a Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park , NY • •••

16. Identical Twins , Roselle, New Jersey 1967 • • ••

17. Jewish Giant at Home with His Parents in The Bronx , NY 1970 •• • •

18. Masked Woman in a Wheelchair , PA 1970 ••• •

19. MIDGETS

22. TRANSVESTITES

25. “ A BOX OF TEN PHOTOGRAPHS”

27. RANDOM

37. The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/ndoc/ho_2007.509.htm Photography-Now – International Fine Art Photography Index http://photography-now.net/listings/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=350&Itemid=334 Jewish Virtual Library – A Division of The American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/arbus.html Diane Arbus Photography http://diane-arbus-photography.com/ RESOURCES