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PAUL OUTERBRIDGE, JR. (American, 1896-1958) UNTITLED Outerbridge Estate stamp on verso signed and da

Currency:USD Category:Everything Else / Other Start Price:NA Estimated At:22,000.00 - 28,000.00 USD
PAUL OUTERBRIDGE, JR. (American, 1896-1958) UNTITLED Outerbridge Estate stamp on verso signed and da
PAUL OUTERBRIDGE, JR. (American, 1896-1958) UNTITLED Outerbridge Estate stamp on verso signed and dated "Paul Outerbridge, Jr. 1934" in pencil on of mount vintage gelatin silver print 81/2 x 63/8 in. (21.6 x 16.2 cm) 1934 ESTIMATE: $22,000-28,000 PROVENANCE The Estate of Paul Outerbridge, Jr. Fahey/Klein Gallery, LOS ANGELES Private Collection, GERMANY This photograph was taken at a time when Outerbridge became obsessed with sexual decadence and the female form. Although he preferred that his models did not stare straight at the camera, there are many examples of his work where those wearing various types of masks were directed to do so. "The mask depersonalized her to an extent sufficient to transfer the model's sexuality into the fetishism of the picture" (Howe and Markham, PAUL OUTERBRIDGE, JR.: PHOTOGRAPHS, NEW YORK, 1980, p. 19). Although this model is not masked, her face is painted white, an example of Outerbridge's preoccupation with photographing female subjects with peculiar props, makeup or other accoutrements. In 1932, Outerbridge wrote an essay called "What Is Feminine Beauty" that was published in Physical Culture, in which he explained his extensive intellectual and artistic theories of female beauty. This woman engages and sensuously allures the viewer with her eyes, but her detachment is enforced by the white paint on her face and the white cloth wrapped around her head. This photograph falls into the category of images in which Outerbridge reveals his obsession with "feminine beauty, seductiveness, and sex, which would combine with his technical and imaginative abilities in a body of work that would startle the artistic community" (Howe, p. 10).