Karsh in Nashville, TN

[Mark MacKenzie]

http://haynesgalleries.com/hgSite/pa...ition2012.html

I went to the opening yesterday and was my first time to see Karsh originals.

The gallery is at the roundabout at the end of Music Row.

[cdholden]

I'm not familiar with the gallery, but I appreciate the heads up. I know the area and Yousef Karsh is one of my favorite portrait photographers.
Thank you!

Chris

[Mark MacKenzie]

Your welcome, Chris. I would like to know what you think once you have seen it. I was blown away!

[jp498]

I saw the exhibit a year or two ago at their other gallery in Maine. I was blown away too; I'm not up on celebrity appeal, but by using celebs, it was sort of like, "you've seen a thousand different photos of that famous person -- now look at this!", and it's a total hard hitting mix of talent and craftmanship.

[Dan Henderson]

I was fortunate to see an exhibit of Karsh portraits at the Kalamazoo Institute of Art in Michigan. I think more than "celebrities," I was awed by the history in the portraits of people such as Winston Churchill. Having said that, I think that Karsh's portrait of Ingrid Bergman is just so stunningly beautiful.

[fecaleagle]

Thanks for the heads up... I will be in Nashville for the day at the beginning of June and wouldn't have heard about this otherwise. Thanks! Karsch's work is positively stunning... How large are the "large scale portraits"?

[cdholden]

I saw the exhibit a year or two ago at their other gallery in Maine. I was blown away too; I'm not up on celebrity appeal, but by using celebs, it was sort of like, "you've seen a thousand different photos of that famous person -- now look at this!", and it's a total hard hitting mix of talent and craftmanship.

I understand that the Nashville location is fairly new... about 3 months now. I was fortunate enough to catch it here in Nashville. While Mr. Karsh has been a favorite of mine, seeing his 20x24 prints on something other than a computer monitor or magazine gave me a whole new appreciation for his work. The layout of the gallery show here, in one location I was standing, had me surrounded by his work on 3 sides. I felt that I was surrounded by a strong power. By turning my head and walkinng a few steps, I saw many greats of the early and mid 20th century... explorers, authors, physicists, humanitarians, business tycoons, etc. It was an emotionally positive experience, unlike the feeling I usually get when I have to find parking downtown. I was fortunate enough to remember this thread when I left a meeting just a few blocks away a couple of weeks ago.
Did you happen to notice that most of these were #9/100 from print dates in the early 1980s? I picked out 4 to take home, but the ATM's have their daily limits... oh well. I still have the memory.
The associate working that day was very friendly and knowledgeable, but a little annoyed that after I let her go on for about 10 minutes, my one question apparently had never been asked before: "What lens is that on the front of his camera in this photo?". I've read that he used the Commercial Ektar quite a bit, but the portrait of Mr. Karsh I referenced was from early in his career. It's a barrel lens held by an iris clamp on the front of his Ansco camera. It isn't the magic bullet that will make me produce spectacular work, but it's been an old question that I've wondered to myself and finally had the chance to ask. Some day, I'll send an inquiry letter to the museum in Ottawa.

[cowanw]

Here is a set of his equipment, none of which are the same.
http://www.festivalkarsh.ca/en/exhib...the-Studio&s=1
His biography states that his wife wanted Kodak to sponser him after the Churchill photo because the "film, lights and lens" were all Kodak.
It may therefore be that the lens was a Kodak Anastigmat. Ektars appeared in about 1940 -41, Commercial Ektars about 1946.

[cdholden]

September, 1938.
Here is the photo of which I was referring to: http://www.festivalkarsh.ca/en/exhib...oto.php?id=110
Universal iris clamp, packard shutter... and an unidentifiable (at least by me) lens.