Inge Morath (1923 – 2002)
Mrs. Evelyn Nash with her chauffeur, England, London, 1953
From the set »In our Time«
One of Inge Morath's first assignments as a Magnum member took her to London, where she shot a photo reportage of the residents of the Soho and Mayfair districts for 'Holiday Magazine'. The portrait of the wealthy Eveleigh Nash (1873–1956) with her chauffeur in Buckingham Palace Mall is one of Morath's most famous pictures.
Already a publisher since 1902, Nash worked with such prominent authors as Arthur Conan Doyle and Jane Austen. About ten years before this photograph was taken, she had published her memoirs under the title 'I liked the life I lived'.
Morath's multi-layered composition seems to have two perspectives with different vanishing points. Moreover, Nash is intertwined with the background in her open limousine, with parts of the body providing the frame for secondary characters: The chauffeur, the two male passers-by and the pedestrians on the avenue are the protagonists of these mise-en-scènes. Since framing always corresponds to demarcation, social relations are also reflected in this pictorial structure.
Gelatin silver print on double weight baryta, print date: 1989
Image dimensions 37,7 x 56,2 cm (37,7 x 56,2 inch)
Object dimensions 50,7 x 60,5 cm (50,7 x 60,5 inch)
Mounting, Framing Archival cardboard mat 60 x 80 cm, frame upon request
Condition
Semi-matte paper, excellent condition
Annotations
Magnum's »In our Time« exhibition blindstamp and Inge Morath Estate blindstamp in the lower right margin, on the reverse stamp with copyright notice of the »Inge Morath Foundation/Magnum Photos« with subsequently dated signature of the Foundation »Posthumous print from the original negative, Sep 2013«
Literature
William Manchester (ed.), In our Time. The world as seen by Magnum photographers, London 1989, p. 384; Kurt Kaindl (ed.), Inge Morath. Fotografien 1952–1992, Salzburg 1992, p. 12, 65.
Prints / Magnum / Reportage / Magnum /