Diane Arbus at the Jeu de Paume

The Jeu de Paume dedicates a retrospective unreleased in France to the American photographer Diane Arbus (1923-1971). Came from the New York bourgeoisie, the young woman falls madly in love with Allan Arbus, whom she married at age 18. Photographer, he quickly conveys his passion. Student of Lisette Model, she became one of the major figures of photography of our time, in just 15 years.

Jumelles identiques, Roselle, N.J. 1967
Copyright © The Estate of Diane Arbus

Streets as hunting ground

Diane Arbus chose the street to find the faces so characteristic in the New York of the 50s and 60s. From fairground to transvestites, nudists to middle class families, she sketches the life of atypical men and women, with an almost shocking intimacy, defying differences between madness and reality, appearance and identity. Because her primary purpose was to reveal the uniqueness of each individual, between normality and abnormality.

Photo credit: Arno Gisinger

A reporting in immersion

This is the reason why she didn’t hesitated to follow people she had met in the street to their homes, to photograph them in their own backgrounds, or to undress herself (literally) to take her nudists pictures. Thus, Diane Arbus didn’t judge her models, but showed simply characters that we would never suspected … She confided : “I truly believe that there are things which nobody would see unless I photographed them.” A very smart decision.

Diane Arbus Exhibition until the February 5th , 2012 at the Jeu de Paume Museum.
Opening Hours:
Tuesday: 12:00pm – 9:00pm
Wednesday – Friday: 12:00pm – 7:00pm
Saturday and Sunday: 10:00am – 7:00pm
Closed on Mondays
Full Price: €8.50 / Concessions : €5.50.

“Mardis Jeunes”: free entrance for students and visitors under 26 every last Tuesday of the month from 5 pm to 9pm.

Jeu de Paume
1, place de la Concorde
75008 Paris
France
T.: +33.(0)1.47.03.12.50
See other exhibitions recommended by the Jeu de Paume Hotel.

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