Herman Leonard

December 1 - December 31, 1999.

His third showing at the S K Josefsberg Studio, this exhibition is a premiere of Herman Leonard's lesser known imagery of the fashion and documentary genres, while still including selections of his classic jazz images.

Herman Leonard was first charmed by the camera at the age of eleven, his attention drawn by an older brother's study of art, and consequently gained peer popularity photographing his school chums. He studied photography formally at Ohio University, the only institute offering photography within its Fine Arts program. In 1942, only two years after enrollment, his scholastics were interrupted by the war. He would serve the next two and a half years as a medic in Burma, shuttling wounded soldiers to field hospitals. But he also took pictures, "develop[ing] the film in his helmet, using river water to facilitate the process."

After the war, Leonard returned to Ohio University finishing up his fine arts degree in 1947. He then sought out his idol, internationally known portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh. Under the apprenticeship of Karsh, he served as assist in the picture taking of such esteemed individuals as Harry Truman, Martha Graham,
Clark Gable, and Albert Einstein.

When his apprenticeship with Karsh had ended, Leonard headed to New York, opening a small studio in Greenwich Village. His mainstay was taking publicity shots for theater shows and photographing actors, singers and dancers. It was during this time that he began making connections with the magazines, including Life, Esquire, and Playboy, and when he began to follow the music scene at the Savoy Ballroom, Minton's Playhouse, Birdland, and the clubs on 52nd Street.

His circle of friends included Dizzy Gillespie and Tony Bennett, with whom he still keeps in touch. Leonard's time in jazz haunts led to commissions for album covers and publicity shots. But that was not intended: "I loved the music and the people—it began as something more personal than business for me."

Even so, Leonard's jazz work opened innumerable doors for the artist. In 1956 a friend introduced him to Marlon Brando who needed a photographer to accompany him on an excursion to Asia. Brando, a jazz aficionado himself, was most taken by the jazz work, passing over the portraits of artists and actors. Brando was so impressed he offered Leonard the job on the spot. (Unfortunately, Leonard never saw any images he took on that trip—Brando had total buy-out on everything, once the film was sent back to the states for processing, he never saw it again.)

Herman Leonard continues to live and work in New Orleans, where he still frequents the local clubs and is greeted by all walking down any given street.