Vivian Maier's First US Retrospective Opens at Fotografiska New York

Fotografiska New York presents 'Vivian Maier: Unseen Work,' the first retrospective of the street photographer in the United States and her birthplace, New York City. The exhibition features 230 monochrome and color prints from Maier's archive of over 150,000 negatives, alongside her audio recordings and super 8 films. Curated by Anne Morin, Director of diChroma Photography, the show is organized into thematic chapters including the street, portraits, self-portraits, childhood, color, and cinema. Maier, who worked from the 1950s to the 1990s, never received recognition during her lifetime; her work was discovered posthumously after John Maloof purchased many of her negatives at a 2007 storage auction. The exhibition highlights Maier's consistent visual language, described by Morin as having no vertical progression but a horizontal shift between themes. It also explores her concept of 'cinetism,' the passage between still and moving images, with displays that pair contact sheets with corresponding films. The show is part of Kering's Women In Motion program, which aims to highlight women in arts and culture. 'Vivian Maier: Unseen Work' runs until September 29, 2024.