Lois Greenfield
Encyclopedia
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Lois Greenfield (born 1949) is a photographer made famous by her ability to capture the human form in motion and her use of it as a compositional element in her art. She has been compared with Eadweard Muybridge
for exploration of human locomotion, and with Henri Cartier-Bresson
for capturing the elusive moment.
She studied anthropology and filmmaking at Brandeis University
in the late 1960s. After graduating in 1970, she worked as a freelance photographer in Boston photographing for small independent publications covering everything from rock stars to riots. Having had no formal training in photography, she learned with each project she encountered.
"Photo Equipment"
Greenfield uses a Hasselblad 500c/m camera body. With this she uses no motor drive or photo reviser. Her favorite lenses are the 120mm and 150mm. The strobes she uses, Broncolor, can set the flash duration to 1/2000 of a second or less. The flash is much more important than the shutter speed for clear images. She uses a Leaf Valeo 22i digital back. The Leaf back creates easy photographing as the dancers move and improvise.
For an assignment, Greenfield was sent to cover a dance concert, a subject in which she had no professional experience. She photographed dress rehearsals of dance performances in Boston and when she moved to New York in 1973. As a result, she built a body of work and a reputation in the modern and postmodern dance world through having her work published in the Village Voice, New York Times, Dance Magazine
and other publications.
Lois Greenfield works in New York for periodicals including Sports Illustrated
, Time
, Elle
, Vogue
, Life
, and The New York Times
. She shoots all the major contemporary dance companies including the American Ballet Theatre
, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
, Paul Taylor Dance Company
, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
, and Parsons Dance Company
. Greenfield's work has been exhibited in museums and galleries around the world. Her newest venture has taken her career full circle, collaborating and performing around the world with the Australian Dance Theatre
in "Held", a dance inspired by her photography in which she shoots the live action as part of the performance.
Lois Greenfield (born 1949) is a photographer made famous by her ability to capture the human form in motion and her use of it as a compositional element in her art. She has been compared with Eadweard Muybridge
Eadweard Muybridge
Eadweard J. Muybridge was an English photographer who spent much of his life in the United States. He is known for his pioneering work on animal locomotion which used multiple cameras to capture motion, and his zoopraxiscope, a device for projecting motion pictures that pre-dated the flexible...
for exploration of human locomotion, and with Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French photographer considered to be the father of modern photojournalism. He was an early adopter of 35 mm format, and the master of candid photography...
for capturing the elusive moment.
She studied anthropology and filmmaking at Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
in the late 1960s. After graduating in 1970, she worked as a freelance photographer in Boston photographing for small independent publications covering everything from rock stars to riots. Having had no formal training in photography, she learned with each project she encountered.
"Photo Equipment"
Greenfield uses a Hasselblad 500c/m camera body. With this she uses no motor drive or photo reviser. Her favorite lenses are the 120mm and 150mm. The strobes she uses, Broncolor, can set the flash duration to 1/2000 of a second or less. The flash is much more important than the shutter speed for clear images. She uses a Leaf Valeo 22i digital back. The Leaf back creates easy photographing as the dancers move and improvise.
For an assignment, Greenfield was sent to cover a dance concert, a subject in which she had no professional experience. She photographed dress rehearsals of dance performances in Boston and when she moved to New York in 1973. As a result, she built a body of work and a reputation in the modern and postmodern dance world through having her work published in the Village Voice, New York Times, Dance Magazine
Dance Magazine
Dance Magazine is an "influential" American trade publication for dance, currently published by the Macfadden Communications Group. It was first published in June 1927 as The American Dancer. William Como was its editor-in-chief from 1970 to his death in 1989. Wendy Perron became its editor-in...
and other publications.
"By 1978 I had become increasingly dissatisfied with a documentary approach. I didn’t want to be limited to trying to snatch a moment from a distance at a dress rehearsal. I wanted the ability to shape and refine the moment as a photograph. I wanted more control of my subjects and their representation. The dynamic relationship between the picture’s frame and the subject excited me the most. Taken as a literal boundary for the dancers, the negative’s black border intensifies the explosive energy of the movement within. Cropping into the dancer’s bodies, the frame creates unexpected entrances and exits. The viewer begins to consider “off screen” space in relation to depicted space. The square format also allows us to re-conceive our perception of gravity, with all four sides of the square exerting an equal gravitational pull on the subjects within.”
Lois Greenfield works in New York for periodicals including Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, Elle
Elle (magazine)
Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...
, Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
, Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
, and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. She shoots all the major contemporary dance companies including the American Ballet Theatre
American Ballet Theatre
American Ballet Theatre , based in New York City, was one of the foremost ballet companies of the 20th century. It continues as a leading dance company in the world today...
, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is a modern dance company based in New York, New York. It was founded in 1958 by choreographer and dancer Alvin Ailey...
, Paul Taylor Dance Company
Paul Taylor Dance Company
Paul Taylor Dance Company, is a contemporary dance company, formed by Paul Taylor, an American choreographer of the 20th century. One of the early touring companies of American modern dance, the Company has "performed in more than 500 cities in 62 countries" and still spends more than half of each...
, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
The Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company is an American dance company based out of Harlem in New York City. Founded in 1983 by Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane, the company made its debut performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music with the world premiere of Intuitive Momentum with lauded drummer...
, and Parsons Dance Company
Parsons Dance Company
-External links:*** accessed 23 June 2007**...
. Greenfield's work has been exhibited in museums and galleries around the world. Her newest venture has taken her career full circle, collaborating and performing around the world with the Australian Dance Theatre
Australian Dance Theatre
The Australian Dance Theatre is a contemporary dance company based in Adelaide, South Australia established in 1965 by Elizabeth Cameron Dalman,...
in "Held", a dance inspired by her photography in which she shoots the live action as part of the performance.
Books
- Airborne: The New Dance Photography of Lois Greenfield. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1998. ISBN 0811821552
- Breaking Bounds: The Dance Photography of Lois Greenfield. San Francisco: Chronicle Books 1992 ISBN 9780811802321
Recent Exhibitions
- 2008 – Mikimoto Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- 2007 – Gallery Orchard, Nagoya, Japan
- 2007 – Art Photo Site Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- 2007 – Bunkamura Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- 2006 – Saitama Arts Theatre, Saitama, Japan
- 2006 – Southeast Museum of Photography, Daytona Beach, Florida
- 2006 – Gallery Add 2, Tokyo, Japan
- 2006 – Espace Miramar, Cannes, France
- 2011 – Resonating Fields, Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA