Gregory Crewdson
{{short description|American photographer|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Gregory Crewdson
| image = Gregory Crewdson 2.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = Crewdson on location in Pittsfield, MA, 2007
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age |1962|9|26}}
| birth_place = Brooklyn, New York
| education = Brooklyn Friends; John Dewey High School; SUNY Purchase, BA, 1985; Yale University, MFA, 1988
| occupation = Fine-art photographer, professor
| employer = Yale University School of Art
| organization =
| known_for =
| notable_works =
| awards = Skowhegan Medal for Photography, National Endowment for the Arts Visual Artists Fellowship
| website = {{URL|https://gagosian.com/artists/gregory-crewdson/}}
}}
Gregory Crewdson (born September 26, 1962) is an American photographer{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/jun/20/gregory-crewdson-photographer-cathedral-of-the-pines-appalachians | date = June 20, 2017 | access-date = June 30, 2017 | first = Sean | last = O'Hagan | author-link = Sean O'Hagan (journalist) | work = The Guardian | location = London | title = Cue mist! Gregory Crewdson, the photographer with a cast, a crew and a movie-sized budget}} who makes large-scale, cinematic, psychologically charged prints of staged scenes set in suburban landscapes and interiors. He directs a large production and lighting crew to construct his images.{{cite web | last=Larocca | first=Amy | date=March 27, 2008 | title=Loneliness and Multitudes | url=https://nymag.com/arts/all/process/45584/}}
Early life and education
Crewdson was born in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. As a child, he attended Brooklyn Friends School, and then John Dewey High School.
As a teenager, he was part of a power pop group called Speedies.{{cite web | last=Sommer | first=Tim | date=August 3, 2002 | title=In the Late '70s, Teen Punks Ruled New York. These Are Their Stories. | website=The New York Times | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/03/arts/music/teen-punk-bands-nyc.html}} Their song "Let Me Take Your Photo" was used in 2005 by Hewlett-Packard in advertisements to promote its digital cameras.{{cite web |last=Yablonsky| first=Linda |date=2005-09-11 | title =A Photographer's Pop Star Moment| website=The New York Times | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/11/arts/music/a-photographers-pop-star-moment.html}}
Crewdson attended Purchase College, State University of New York, where he initially planned to study psychology.{{cite web | last=Weingart | first=Ken | date=May 18, 2016 | title=An Interview with Gregory Crewdson | url=https://petapixel.com/2016/05/18/interview-gregory-crewdson/}} At Purchase, he enrolled in a photography course taught by Laurie Simmons{{Cite web |last=Abrams |first=Amah-Rose |date=2016-04-15 |title=Beautiful Intimacy and Isolation with Gregory Crewdson |url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/experience-suburban-beauty-isolation-gregory-crewdson-423944 |access-date=2023-01-13 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}} and also studied with Jan Groover.{{cite news|title=Jan Groover, Postmodern Photographer, Dies at 68|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/12/arts/design/jan-groover-postmodern-photographer-dies-at-68.html|work=The New York Times|date=January 12, 2012|last1=Kennedy|first1=Randy}} He received an MFA in photography from the Yale School of Art.[http://rogallery.com/Crewdson/Crewdson-bio.html Gregory Crewdson Biography]. Rogallery.com. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
Life and work
Crewdson is a professor and the director of graduate studies in photography at Yale School of Art.[http://art.yale.edu/GregoryCrewdson Yale University School of Art: Gregory Crewdson]. Art.yale.edu. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
Image:Gregory Crewdson untitled photo.jpg
Crewdson's photographs are elaborately planned, produced, and lit using crews familiar with motion picture production who light large scenes using cinema production equipment and techniques.{{cite web| title=Gregory Crewdson|url=http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/photography/past_exhns/twilight/crewdson/index.html|publisher=V&A|access-date=March 19, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100416073829/http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/photography/past_exhns/twilight/crewdson/index.html|archive-date=April 16, 2010}} He works with a lighting team, art director, make-up and wardrobe department, props and effects to create mood, atmosphere, and open-ended narrative images.{{cite web| last=Fletcher | first=Kenneth | date=June 2008 | title=regory Crewdson's Epic Effects | url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/gregory-crewdsons-epic-effects-48744461/}} He has worked with the same director of photography, Richard Sands, along with other core team members, for some 25 years.{{cite web| title=Rick Sands: Breaking the Light Barrier | url=https://aperture.org/workshops/sands2017/}} He works much like a director with a budget similar to that of a movie production, each image involves dozens of people and weeks to months of planning.
Using shots that resemble film productions, Crewdson deconstructs American suburban life in his work.{{Cite book|last=Smith|first=Ian Haydn|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1002114117|title=The short story of photography : a pocket guide to key genres, works, themes & techniques|date=2018|isbn=978-1-78627-201-0|location=London|oclc=1002114117}} He has cited the films Vertigo, The Night of the Hunter, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blue Velvet, and Safe as having influenced his style,{{cite web|title=Five in Focus: Gregory Crewdson's Five Favorite Films|url=http://filminfocus.com/article/gregory_crewdson|publisher=Focus Features|access-date=March 19, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110418032119/http://filminfocus.com/article/gregory_crewdson|archive-date=April 18, 2011}} as well as the painter Edward Hopper{{cite web|last=Gregory|first=Crewdson|title=Aesthetics of Alienation|url=http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue1/article10.htm|work=Tate Etc.|access-date=March 19, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608051942/http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue1/article10.htm|archive-date=June 8, 2011}} and photographer Diane Arbus.{{cite web|title=Gregory Crewdson|url=http://www.whitecube.com/artists/crewdson/|publisher=White Cube|access-date=March 19, 2011|archive-date=May 9, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509143701/http://www.whitecube.com/artists/crewdson/|url-status=dead}}
Crewdson's most widely-known bodies of work include Twilight (1998–2002), Beneath the Roses (2003–2008), Cathedral of the Pines (2013–2014), An Eclipse of Moths (2018–2019),{{cite web|title=Photographer Gregory Crewdson and his eerie rooms of gloom|url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/oct/09/gregory-crewdson-photography-cathedral-of-the-pines|work=The Guardian|date=October 9, 2016}} and Eveningside (2021–2022). Crewdson's only body of work made outside of the U.S. was Sanctuary (2009), set at the abandoned Cinecittá studios outside of Rome.{{cite web|title=Gregory Crewdson: Sanctuary The Epic Photographer Shoots Rome's Fabled Film Studio Cinecittà|url=https://www.nowness.com/story/gregory-crewdson-sanctuary|publisher=Nowness}} Nearly all of his other work before and since was made in the small towns and cities in Western Massachusetts.{{cite news|title=How Gregory Crewdson Spends His Summer|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 19, 2016|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/19/t-magazine/travel/gregory-crewdson-summer-ritual-great-barrington-massachusetts.html|last1=Schwiegershausen|first1=Erica}}
In 2012, he was the subject of the feature documentary film Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters.{{Cite news |last=Catsoulis |first=Jeannette |date=2012-10-30 |title=Captured by a Camera, a Poetry of Lost and Missed Connections |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/31/movies/gregory-crewdson-brief-encounters-from-ben-shapiro.html |access-date=2023-10-05 |issn=0362-4331}} The film series followed the construction of and an explanation by Crewdson of his thought process and vision for pieces of Beneath the Roses.
Personal life
As of 2020, Crewdson lives primarily in western Massachusetts in a former Methodist church.{{cite web | last=Lubow | first=Arthur | title=For Gregory Crewdson, Truth Lurks in the Landscape | website=The New York Times |date=August 20, 2020 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/20/arts/design/gregory-crewdson-berkshires-photography.html/}} His long time partner, Juliane Hiam, is a writer and producer{{cite web | last=Kroll | first=Justin | date=October 26, 2017 | title=Scarlett Johansson in Talks to Star in Focus Drama 'Reflective Light' | url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/scarlett-johansson-focus-drama-reflective-light-1202594825/}}{{cite web | last=Tizard | first=Will | date=November 14, 2017 | title=David Lynch 'Changed My Life,' Says Photographer Gregory Crewdson | url=https://variety.com/2017/film/global/david-lynch-gregory-crewdson-1202614436/}} and the two work closely together.{{cite web |title=Submerged and Interior: An Interview with Gregory Crewdson |date=October 24, 2016 |url=https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2016/10/24/submerged-interior-interview-gregory-crewdson/}} Hiam has also appeared as a subject in numerous of Crewdson's pictures.{{cite web | last=Stanley | first=Roderick | date=August 15, 2017 | title=How Gregory Crewdson captured the dark heart of America, with a little help from his friends | url=https://medium.com/@rodstanley/how-gregory-crewdson-captured-the-dark-heart-of-america-with-a-little-help-from-his-friends-67662abcd53f}}{{cite web | last=Booth | first=Hannah | date=August 4, 2017 | title=Juliane Hiam remembers posing for Gregory Crewdson's Cathedral Of The Pines, 2013 | website=TheGuardian.com | url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/aug/04/juliane-hiam-gregory-crewdson-cathedral-of-the-pines/}} Crewdson has two children from a previous marriage.{{cite web |first1=Lauren |last1=Mechling |title=Inside a Brooklyn Apartment Where the Walls Talk |work=Town and Country |date=October 28, 2022 |url=https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a41561662/ivy-shapiro-art-home-interview/}} Crewdson is an open-water swimmer{{cite web | title=Notes on Swimming: Route and Repetition | url=https://gregorycrewdson.substack.com/p/notes-on-swimming-1}} and has said that the meditative state he achieves with his daily swimming practice is fundamental to his creative process as an artist.{{cite web | title=For Photographers, Living Life Is a Constant State of Preproduction | last=Rosenberg | first=David | date=February 5, 2016 | url=https://slate.com/culture/2016/02/gregory-crewdsons-photos-cathedral-of-the-pines.html}}
Publications
- Hover. Artspace Books, 1995. {{ISBN|1891273000}}.
- Twilight: Photographs by Gregory Crewdson. Harry N. Abrams, 2002. {{ISBN|0810910039}}. With an essay by Rick Moody.
- Gregory Crewdson: 1985–2005. Hatje Cantz, 2005. {{ISBN|377571622X}}.
- Fireflies. Skarstedt Fine Art, 2007. {{ISBN|0970909055}}.
- Beneath the Roses. With Russell Banks. Harry N. Abrams, 2008. {{ISBN|978-0810993808}}.
- Dream House. With text by Tilda Swinton. John Rule, 2009. {{ISBN|978-8888359410}}.
- Sanctuary. With Anthony O. Scott. Hatje Cantz, 2010. {{ISBN|978-3775727341}}.
- In a Lonely Place. Hatje Cantz, 2011. {{ISBN|978-3775731362}}.
- Gregory Crewdson. New York: Rizzoli, 2013. {{ISBN|978-0847840915}}.
- Cathedral of the Pines. New York: Aperture, 2016. {{ISBN|978-1-597113-50-2}}. With a text by Alexander Nemerov.
- An Eclipse of Moths. New York: Aperture, 2020. {{ISBN|978-1683952213}}. With an introduction by Jeff Tweedy.
- Alone Street. New York: Aperture, 2021. {{ISBN|978-1597115131}}. With an essay by Joyce Carol Oates and an interview with the artist by Cate Blanchett.
- Gregory Crewdson: Eveningside, 2012–2022. Milan: Skira Editore, 2022. {{ISBN|8857248429}}. Text by Jean-Charles Vergne.
- Gregory Crewdson. Munich, London, New York: Prestel, 2024. {{ISBN|9783791391243}}. Edited by Walter Moser, with texts by David Fincher, Daniela Hammer-Tugendhat, Beate Hofstadler, Astrid Mahler, Watler, Moser, Matthieu Orléan, and Emily St. John Mandel.
Awards
- Aaron Siskind Foundation Individual Photographer's Fellowship{{cite web | title=How I Got That Grant: The Aaron Siskind Foundation Individual Photographer's Fellowship | date=May 27, 2015 | last=Beem | first=Edgar Allen | publisher=PDN Photo District News | url=https://pdnonline.com/photography-business/photo-grants-funding/how-i-got-that-grant-the-aaron-siskind-foundation-individual-photographers-fellowship/}}
- Skowhegan Medal for Photography, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, ME.{{cite web | title=Skowhegan Medal for Photography | url=https://www.skowheganart.org/awards-dinner-history/}}
- Skowhegan Medal for Photography[https://www.skowheganart.org/honorees Skowhegan Awards Honorees]. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- National Endowment for the Arts fellowship{{Cite web |title=1992 Annual Report |url=https://www.arts.gov/about/publications/1992-annual-report |access-date=2023-01-13 |website=www.arts.gov |language=en}}
- Honorary Doctorate, Montserrat College of Art, Beverly, MA.{{cite web | title=Montserrat College of Art commencement | publisher=The Salem News | url=https://www.salemnews.com/news/local_news/montserrat-college-of-art-commencement/article_28112fdf-8ccd-5827-a91c-9a3299517505.html/}}
- Honorary Doctorate, SUNY Purchase, NY.{{cite web | title=Purchase College, SUNY Commencement Honorees | url=https://purchasecollegesuny.wordpress.com/tag/gregory-crewdson/}}
- Distinguished Artist Award, St. Botolph Club Foundation, Boston, MA.{{cite web | title=St. Botolph Club Distinguished Artist Award Recipients | url=https://sbcfboston.org/_daa_recipients/}}
Collections
Crewdson's work is held in the permanent collections of major institutions worldwide, including:
- Albertina Museum, Vienna{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://www.albertina.at/en/albertina-modern/exhibitions/preview-the-essl-collection-photography/}}
- The Broad, Los Angeles{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://www.thebroad.org/art/gregory-crewdson/}}
- The Getty Museum, Los Angeles{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/person/105G66/}}
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://collections.lacma.org/node/153801/}}
- Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York{{cite web|title=Search The Collection|access-date=2023-01-14|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search?q=Gregory+Crewdson&sortBy=Relevance&pageSize=0|website=www.metmuseum.org}}
- Museum of Modern Art, New York{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://www.moma.org/artists/7035/}}
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://www.sfmoma.org/artist/Gregory_Crewdson/}}
- Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum{{cite web|access-date=2023-01-14|title=The Guggenheim Museums and Foundation|url=https://www.guggenheim.org/artwork/artist/gregory-crewdson|website=The Guggenheim Museums and Foundation}}
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1153955/untitled-photograph-crewdson-gregory/}}
- Whitney Museum, New York{{cite web|access-date=2023-01-14|title=Gregory Crewdson|url=https://whitney.org/artists/4138|website=whitney.org}}
- Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven{{cite web| title=Collection by Artist, Gregory Crewdson | url=https://artgallery.yale.edu/collection?query=crewdson/}}
Films about Crewdson
- Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters (2012) – feature documentary directed, produced, and shot by Ben Shapiro{{Cite web |date=2013-03-08 |title=Movie review: 'Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters' of art in progress |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-xpm-2013-mar-08-la-et-mn-gregory-crewdson-20130308-story.html |access-date=2023-10-05 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}
- There But Not There (2017) – short documentary about Crewdson's casting process, directed by Juliane Hiam{{cite web | title=King of cinematic stills: Gregory Crewdson's casting secrets | website=Canon, UK | url=https://www.canon.co.uk/pro/stories/gregory-crewdson-casting-process/}}
- Making Eveningside (2022) – short interpretive documentary directed by Harper Glantz, set to original music by Stuart Bogie and James Murphy (electronic musician) about the making of Eveningside
References
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Category:American fine art photographers
Category:State University of New York at Purchase alumni
Category:Yale School of Art alumni
Category:People from Park Slope
Category:John Dewey High School alumni
Category:20th-century American photographers
Category:21st-century American photographers
Category:Brooklyn Friends School alumni
Category:20th-century American male artists