Angelo Rizzuto's Street Photography Archive Donated to Library of Congress Reveals Decades of New York Documentation
Angelo Antonio Rizzuto, an elusive photographer, chronicled the streets of New York City between 1952 and 1964, amassing tens of thousands of images for an unpublished book titled 'Little Old New York.' Born in 1906 in South Dakota to Sicilian parents, he briefly attended Harvard Law School but did not complete his degree. His life was marked by mental health struggles, a suicide attempt in 1941, military service, and periods of instability before he settled in Manhattan. Rizzuto adhered to a disciplined routine, focusing on urban scenes featuring cats, children, and storefronts. He passed away from cancer in 1967, leaving approximately 60,000 photographs to the Library of Congress, which received his estate in 2001 and made the collection accessible in 2021.
Key facts
- Angelo Antonio Rizzuto produced tens of thousands of street photographs in New York City between 1952 and 1964.
- He planned an unrealized book titled 'Little Old New York.'
- Rizzuto was born in 1906 in South Dakota to Sicilian immigrant parents and raised in Omaha, Nebraska.
- He attended Harvard Law School but did not complete his studies.
- Rizzuto lived a reclusive life in Manhattan, owning a brownstone on East 51st Street while renting a small room.
- His work includes themes like cats, dogs, children, storefronts, subway riders, and nuns.
- Rizzuto left around 60,000 photographs to the Library of Congress upon his death in 1967.
- The archive, called The Anthony Angel Collection, became available for research in the 2000s.
Entities
Artists
- Angelo Antonio Rizzuto
- Anthony Angel
- Vivian Maier
- Jan Grenci
Institutions
- Library of Congress
- Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress
- Harvard Law School
Locations
- New York City
- Manhattan
- South Dakota
- Omaha
- Nebraska
- Sicily
- East 51st Street
- Penn Station
- United States