Vivian Maier

With the discovery of her archive in a thrift auction house in 2007, Vivian Maier’s posthumous trajectory from relative obscurity to one of the great American photographers of the 20th century is a story of a singular consistent talent. From the mid 1950s throughout her adult life she worked as a nanny between New York and Chicago, and it was during this time that she created a huge body of photographs and films recording every day street life, often including her own self portrait and moments of fleeting reflection within the cityscape. With her work compared to Helen Levitt, Robert Frank and Diane Arbus, her photographs are a fascinating window into American life.

Review

[An] incisive survey... highlighting [Maier's] discerning eye for composition and knack for finding beauty in the mundane... Insightful and appreciative, this celebrates the unique perspective of a luminous artist.-- "Publishers Weekly"

A book as rich and complexly layered as the artist herself.-- "Huck"

A meticulously reproduced and well-paced retrospective collection of the Nanny Photographer's best images.-- "Rangefinder"

For those who want sheer retinal pleasure.-- "Shelf Awareness"

Highlights Maier's fearlessness...[Her photographs are] marked by authenticity and a hunger-driven frankness for the visual glory of life.-- "Musée Magazine"

What makes this new publication worthy of collecting is the wide array of images not only from Maier's black and white street portraits shot with her Rolleiflex in the 1950s and 60s...but also the addition of images from later-day 35mm color images and cinematic efforts.-- "PhotoBook Journal"

About the Author

Anne Morin is the director of diChroma Photography in Madrid.