Richard Avedon's 'In the American West' and the Portrait of Boyd Fortin
From 1979 to 1984, Richard Avedon produced 'In the American West,' a collection of 124 black-and-white portraits commissioned by the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth. Avedon utilized a white background to capture individuals impacted by Reaganism across seventeen states, including miners, farmers, and drifters. Influenced by photographers such as Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange, Avedon sought 'exactitude,' merging psychological depth with social relevance. A standout piece is the portrait of Boyd Fortin, a thirteen-year-old rattlesnake skinner from Sweetwater, Texas, photographed on March 10, 1979, whose gaze reflects a 'sovereign' subject. This work was featured in the 'Richard Avedon, Photographies 1946-2004' exhibition at the Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume in Paris from July 1 to September 24, 2008.
Key facts
- Richard Avedon created the series 'In the American West' between 1979 and 1984.
- The series consists of 124 black-and-white portraits.
- It was commissioned by the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth.
- Avedon traveled through seventeen states in the American West.
- The portrait of Boyd Fortin was taken on March 10, 1979, in Sweetwater, Texas.
- Boyd Fortin was a thirteen-year-old rattlesnake skinner.
- The portrait was included in the exhibition 'Richard Avedon, Photographies 1946-2004' at the Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume in Paris in 2008.
- The exhibition previously traveled to the Louisiana Museum in Humlebaek and Forma in Milan.
Entities
Artists
- Richard Avedon
- Walker Evans
- Dorothea Lange
- Edward Curtis
- Robert Frank
- August Sander
- Nastassja Kinski
- Georges Bataille
- Rune Gade
Institutions
- Amon Carter Museum
- Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume
- Louisiana Museum
- Forma
Locations
- Fort Worth
- Texas
- Sweetwater
- Paris
- France
- Humlebaek
- Denmark
- Milan
- Italy
- United States
Sources
- artpress —