Harold Feinstein was born in Coney Island in 1931. When he passed away in 2015 the New York Times declared him: “One of the most accomplished recorders of the American experience.”
He began his photography career in 1946 at age 15. Within four short years, Edward Steichen, an early supporter, had purchased his work for the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
He joined the Photo League at 17 and became a prominent figure of the early New York City street photography scene and one of the original inhabitants of the legendary “jazz loft”.
Read moreFrom Harold’s perspective, the two best places in the world to photograph were Coney Island and Paris. In 1988 he spent several weeks in Paris and brought back thousands of black and white and color images, which still are calling out for editing! This photo was among his favorites. He said: “Paris is consonant with love. Everywhere you look couples are kissing and that romance that you thought was only from the movies is really true about Paris.”
I was sorry not to be able to go to the opening reception for Harold Feinstein: The Legacy of a Photographer, a magnificent retrospective, which opened on May 16th at O’Art, the corporate art space for Odea Bank in Istanbul.… Continue reading
We’re delighted that Photo London will be previewing excerpts from the up-coming documentary Last Stop Coney Island! The life and work of Harold Feinstein, which will be completed in the coming months! If you are going to be at Photo… Continue reading
After three glorious months of record-high sales, a flood of media attention and over 5000 visitors, Galerie Thierry Bigaignon celebrated the last day of the exhibition Contagious Optimism: Harold Feinstein the early years (1940s and 1950s) on April 30th. It… Continue reading
When asked by CNN’s Kyle Almond about the image above, gallery owner Thierry Bigaignon responded: “When you see Feinstein’s picture you think: ‘Wow what a beautiful world. What a beautiful America. It’s like a long-gone America.’” A month ago I… Continue reading
After Harold died and I was sorting through pictures, I came across these two favorites and the magnet to secure them onto my refrigerator. The portraits and caption accompanied me all year. They were among the very last items I… Continue reading
At long last, and with the help of my good friend and renaissance man, Jason Novak, I am making a small dent in reviewing, editing and packaging the huge volume of audio-visual materials that provide an inspiring record of Harold’s… Continue reading
I’ve started a new category for these blog posts that I’m calling managing an archive, in the hopes that my own joys and tribulations in this new vocation can be instructive to others. And at the get go here, a… Continue reading
I’ve only once before re-published a post, but feel compelled to do so today.This post on Dignity and the Human Spirit was originally published in November 2015. It shares Harold’s thoughts on the photo above in addition to introducing readers… Continue reading
