Untitled (Executors from Dumont)

From Mattatuck Museum

Philippe Halsman (created by)
Mattatuck Historical Society (owned by)
Benjamin Ortiz (previously owned by)

circa 1950 (Date manufactured/created)

silver gelatin

paper

Philippe Halsman (1906-1979) was a Latvian-born photographer who specialized in celebrity portraits and surreal collaborations with Salvador Dali. Halsman was born to a Jewish family, and in 1928 he was framed for his father's murder while hiking in a region of the Tyrolean Alps known for antisemitism. He was sentenced to 10 years of solitary confinement after a trial filled with circumstantial evidence and opinion-based testimony from local residents. Leading intellectuals of the time, including Sigmund Freud and Albert Einstein, endorsed Halsman and argued for his innocence. After two years in jail, Halsman was released and moved to France, and later the United States. There, he became famous for his photographs of celebrities such as Winston Churchill and Marilyn Monroe; his photographs of celebrities mid-jump became particularly iconic. Halsman also collaborated with Salvador Dali to create surreal photographs. 

Gift of Benjamin Ortiz and Victor Torchia Jr Collection, 2020

Accession/ID Number 2021.10.5