Title:
American grotesque : the life and art of William Mortensen
Publication Date:
2014
Publication Information:
Port Townsend, WA : Feral House, 2014.
©2014
Physical Description:
287 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 32 cm
ISBN:
9781936239979
Abstract:
"American Grotesque is a lavish retrospective of grotesque, occult, and erotic images by the forgotten Hollywood photographer William Mortensen (1897-1965), an innovative pictorialist visionary whom Ansel Adams called the "Antichrist" and to whom Anton LaVey dedicated The Satanic Bible. Mortensen's countless technical innovations and inspired use of special effects prefigures the development of digital manipulation and Photoshop. Includes a gallery of more than one hundred striking photographs in duotone and color, many of them previously unseen, and accompanying essays by Mortensen and others on his life, work, techniques, and influence."--Amazon.com.
Contents:
William Mortensen, herald of the American grotesque / Michael Moynihan -- The life of William Mortensen / Larry Lytle -- Venus and Vulcan: an essay on creative pictorialism : 1. Interpretations of reality ; 2. Sources and uses of material ; 3. Selection, and the function of control ; 4. Fallacies of "pure photography" ; 5. A manifesto and a prophecy / William Mortensen and George Dunham -- A glossary of Mortensen's methods / Larry Lytle -- A Mortensen gallery of grotesques : Propaganda ; The occult ; Character studies ; Nudes ; Beautiful women into crones -- Conspicuous by his absence: concerning the mysterious disappearance of William Mortensen / A.D. Coleman.
Personal Subject:
Language:
English
