JERRY SCHATZBERG

Inside His Studio - "25th & Park"

Cover: Bob Dylan Studio Portraits Side Light: 1965 Manhattan, New York, USA 1965; Above: The Rolling Stones-Standing in the Shadow: 1966 Manhattan, New York, USA 1966

BY: Sunny Sunday

An intimate, loft-like room sits at the top floor of Fotografiska New York with elevated ceilings and buttressed, wooden architecture encompassing a warm and private interior. Now on display within this space, Jerry Schatzberg’s 25th & Park proffers insight on the images captured beginning in 1957 within the photographer’s studio, located no more than a three-minute walk from the museum. Standing in the dimly lit crown of Fotografiska, one is struck with the inclination of how the creative pursuit might have ensued for Schatzberg as well as the famed creatives who posed before his camera.

Known for his work as a director in films such as Scarecrow, The Panic in Needle Park, and Reunion, Schatzberg possessed fruitful relationships within the sphere of fashion, art, and celebrities. While his photographic work harnessed these attributes, the genre of music was also positioned at the centerpiece of his oeuvre. Among those he shot were figures such as Aretha Franklin, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Jimi Hendrix. Parallels between Schatzberg’s photographic and filmmaking projects remain apparent, the entirety of his body of work intersecting at a point between human intimacy and inherent storytelling.

The exhibition proffers a menagerie of images, some shot in color but most in black and white. Classical in composition, his body of work exists in layers of deep-seated intention while simultaneously prevailing in superlative timing and taste. Capturing both the prominent members of the city as well as those lacking that same level of notoriety, Schatzberg portrays each individual in a deliberate flourish of poised dignity. Bold and distinguished in permanent suspension, the portraits leave the viewer with an indisputable understanding; the person within the photograph was expertly and wholly in step with the rhythm of the city.

25th & Park is on view at Fotografiska until March 5, 2022. To learn more about the exhibition, visit here.

Aretha_Franklin,_Rainbow_Fog,_1967
Aretha Franklin Rainbow Fog: 1967, Courtesy Of The Artist

 

Jimi_Hendrix,_Mirror_Image,_1967._Courtesy_of_the_artist
Jimi Hendrix Mirror Image: 1967, Courtesy Of The Artist

 

Faye Dunaway Red Hat 1968 Courtesy of The Artist
Faye Dunaway Red Hat:  1968, Courtesy Of The Artist

 

Mick_Jagger,_Lunch_Break,_1966
Mick Jagger : Lunch Break, Courtesy Of The Artist, 1966

 

Carmen de Lavallade: 1962-370-004-001Manhattan, New York, USA 1962
Carmen de Lavallade: 1962, Manhattan, New York, USA 1962

 

Geoffrey Holder Dance Group: 1963-011-003-005Manhattan, New York, USA 1963
Geoffrey Holder Dance Group: 1963, Manhattan, New York, USA