PhotoLit - Morgan, John Pierpont

Curtis, Edward Sheriff

The North American Indian, being a series of volumes picturing and describing the Indians of the United States, and Alaska. Written, illustrated, and published by Edward S. Curtis, edited by Frederick Webb Hodge, foreword by Theodore Rossevelt, field research conducted under the patronage of J. Pierpont Morgan, photogravures by John Andrew and Son, Boston.

Cambridge, Mass.; Norwood, Mass.

The University Press; The Plimpton press

1907

Aufl. 272 nachgewiesene Ex., hier: Nr. 8

OLdr.

Photogravüre-Illustrationen

Buch, Mappen, mehrbändiges Werk

Das Werk besteht aus 20 Textbänden, die mit jeweils ca. 75 Photogravüren im Format von ca. 14x19cm illustriert sind, zusammen also etwa 1500 Abb.; zusätzlich gehört zu jedem dieser Textbände eine Mappe im Folioformat mit je etwa 35 Photogravüren im Format ca. 30x40cm, insges. 721 Abb. (die Zählung endet bei 722; ein Bild wurde jedoch ausgelassen). Das Gesamtwerk umfaßt also ca. 2200 Photogravür-Illustrationen. Davon sind einige wenige koloriert. Das Göttinger Exemplar trägt die Nr. 8 sowie Exlibris “Geschenk des Herrn John Pierpont Morgan aus New York”. - Curtis's "The North American Indian" is a classic of Photographic Literature. Its lavish productions values, sumptuous morocco binding, and the 1500 sepia photogravure plates, are the gold standard of photobooks. In 1907, Curtis envisioned an ambitious project to document "the vanishing race" across the United States, a survey he thought would take 15 years to complete. He approached the financier J.P. Morgan for sponsorship and Morgan agreed to advance the photographer $15,000 a year for 5 years provided the books were "the handsomest ever published." By 1930, when Curtis's final volume of his magnum opus was published, he was penniless and forgotten. - Selected by Andrew Roth to be included in The book of 101 books. New York 2001.