Portraits by Carl Van Vechten

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Great Depression and World War II, 1929-1945

Art and Entertainment in the 1930s and 1940s

Carl Van Vechten was a music and dance critic as well as a writer. In the 1930s, when he was in his 50s, Van Vechten began photographing the many celebrities he knew. Below are ten portraits made by Van Vechten. What consistencies do you see in his work? Observe backgrounds, body positions, facial expressions, and the use of light and shadow. Use your observations to describe Van Vechten's style. Compare Van Vechten's portraits with modern photo portraits (school pictures are a good modern example). What similarities and differences do you observe? What do they tell you about changing tastes among the American public?

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Composer and singer Ethel Waters	Actor Laurence Olivier
Journalist Clare Booth Luce	Artist Georgia O'Keeffe
Poet Countee Cullen	Dancer Alicia Markova
Conductor Carlos Chavez	Writer Zora Neale Hurston
Writer Langston Hughes	Actress Tallulah Bankhead

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Progressive Era to New Era | Great Depression and World War II | Postwar United States

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Last updated 09/26/2002