The subject of this portrait is Theodor Seuss Geisel (1902-1991), known best as "Dr. Seuss," writer and illustrator of children's books. It is made up of two photographs that have been torn apart and the pieces rearranged. This combination was then rephotographed to create the final portrait.
Arnold Newman, the photographer, used this unusual approach to portraiture to capture the uniqueness of Geisel's personality and artistry. Throughout his life, this artist-author continually did unusual things, of which the Dr. Seuss children's books are the best known. Newman used the opportunity of this portrait to convey the gentle, humorous character of this man who exploited his talents for the pleasure of others.
• As a teen-ager, Newman wanted to be a painter but had to take a job to make a living instead of going to college. Luckily, he was hired to work for portrait photography stores. It was from these experiences that he discovered his love for photography and decided to follow that profession.
He early admired the work of American painters such as Edward Hopper, Reginald Marsh and Raphael Soyer. He also came to admire the work of such photographers as Walker Evans, Edward Steichen and Man Ray, although his own photographic style became very different from theirs.
• Newman's photographs first became known after a visit to New York where he met Alfred Steiglitz, famous for his photographs and also a mentor of young, talented artists. Through Steiglitz, Newman's photographs were included in an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. This exhibition helped launch him to the forefront of young photographers and enabled him to be given assignments from some of the major magazines of the time, such as Life, Holiday, Look and Harper's Bazaar.
• Arnold Newman's reputation is based mainly on his work as a portrait artist. Throughout his long and successful career, he has photographed numbers of the most distinguished people in the world. They include President Lyndon B. Johnson, boxer Sugar Ray Robinson and scientist Vannevar Bush.
Yet, it is through his portraits of creative artists that viewers can best appreciate his admiration and understanding of their sensitivities toward the world around them. They include painter Jacob Lawrence, musician Wynton Marsalis and poet Carl Sandberg.
• Arnold Newman's close association with artists has been life-long. He is of the opinion that a good painter can always be a good photographer if he so decides, largely because the techniques of photography are really as easy as driving a car. The test for any photographer, then, is first to think as an artist.
• Newman distinguished between painting and photography by claiming that each responds to different kinds of truth: "Painting uses creative distortion, photography uses creative selection." As a result, a subject being photographed is reduced to a moment frozen in time, while a painter has complete control over what appears on his canvas.
• Whenever he is asked to make a portrait, Newman first learns as much as possible about his sitter. He does this by visiting with them, reading about them, and talking with their friends. During the actual sitting, he tries to place subjects in the places that best describe them and their accomplishments. A sculptor may be in his workshop or beside one of his sculptures. A king is likely to be on his throne. A musician may be in a studio or concert hall.
Before taking any pictures, he waits until his sitter relaxes and falls into a natural pose. He then takes as many shots as he feels are enough in the time available, later eliminating all that do not capture the personality of the sitter.
This approach to portrait photography is in stark contrast to the usual commercial portrait that most of us experience where an individual or family is placed in front of a blank background with lights that illuminate the subject(s) evenly.
• In order to get a feel for the ways in which portrait photographer Arnold Newman solved problems, students need to look at solutions he found. This can be done by looking through any of the several books that include them (local libraries are perhaps the best source). Only in this way will they be able to understand how unique each portrait is and also how very different the portrait of Theodor Geisel is from all the others.
In addition to simply looking at the photographs, students should be encouraged to talk about those that appeal to them most and try to explain why they think they are successful.
• As in any art form, there is no substitute for practice. Students might enjoy the opportunity to make photo portraits of their friends using some of the methods used by Arnold New man. Alternatively, they might discover other portrait photographers, such as Yousef Karsh, whose work appeals to them and use that artist's techniques to help with their own work.
• Once students have become familiar with the work of several distinguished portrait photographers, a teacher might invite a local photographer (either amateur or professional) to bring his or her work to class and talk about it.
A sequel might be for students that show a particular interest to visit the studio of the visiting photographer and observe--and perhaps help with--what goes on there.
While the primary purpose of school-art programs is not to recruit students to artistic professions, an early start for a truly serious student can be very beneficial as demonstrated by the early work experience of Arnold Newman. Life-long amateur interests can also be sparked early by such experiences.
• This article is about the artistic work of a photographer and also the work of another artist, Theodor Geisel, the creator of the Dr. Seuss stories. Introducing students to Newman's photographs would be a natural outcome but so would learning more about Geisel, which in turn might help students understand why Newman created this unique portrait of Geisel.
Dr. Seuss books are likely to be found in the households of many students, and the books could be brought to class and read aloud--as they were written to be. Following that, students might like to create similar stories, perhaps even using the same images that are present in the books. Alternatively, they might have fabulous creatures of their own invention that they would like to use.
Students should be clear in their minds, however, that they must never print or publish any of the Dr. Seuss text or images because that would be against copyright law and could lead to heavy penalties.
This photo may be used to illustrate various art-teaching needs. Potentially useful picture-file categories include: "American Photographers: Arnold Newman"; "Portraits: Photographs"; "Celebrities: Dr. Seuss"; and "Multiple Images."
For ideas about collecting and retrieving pictures to help in teaching art and other subjects, readers are invited to write to: Guy Hubbard, c/o Arts & Activities, 591 Camino de la Reina, Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92108; e-mail: hubbard@indiana.edu.
Readers who know the books written and drawn by Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) might like to think how they would have solved the problem of making a portrait photograph of him. On only a few occasions did Arnold Newman tear a photograph apart and reassemble it to create a finished portrait. Most of his distinguished sitters were shown among the things most associated with their success. Newman was a master of this kind of portraiture, and it has since been used by many other photographers.
One obvious solution to the portrait might have been to have Dr. Seuss sitting among the more famous of the characters he invented for his books, such as the Grinch (who stole Christmas), Horton the Elephant, or Yertle the Turtle. But in this portrait, Newman didn't do anything like that. In fact, there is no background at all in this portrait except for the back of his chair. Moreover, Newman did what at first might seem unforgivable: he selected two of his shots and tore them up. He then reassembled the pieces into a new composition for the final portrait.
Students might ask themselves whether they would have the courage to do anything like that if they were photographing a celebrity. Probably not. Why then did Newman see this as a successful portrait, one that did justice to the sitter? We may never know exactly why he did what he did, but a likely explanation is that like a few others that Newman treated in much the same way, Theodor Geisel was quite unique.
What was important about Geisel was his gentle, offbeat character rather than his surroundings. Clearly in Newman's mind it would have lessened the power of this portrait to have shown Geisel in his study surrounded by the famous products of his imagination. And yet, a single, head-on portrait with rather ordinary lighting was also unlikely to get to the heart of this man's genius. The combination of the two images made the message come through clearly.
Everything about Geisel lay in his unique vision of a fantasy world that his readers instinctively understood. He saw the world differently from other people, and playfully drew them into it. So, might not a portrait of him attempt to reveal the heart of who he was by being at once ordinary and familiar, and also possess the kinds of ideas that are reflected in his books--visions that most people cannot even dream about?
The result is a portrait of a smiling, grandfatherly man seen by the camera as utterly extraordinary. We know that Geisel was extraordinary from reading his Dr. Seuss books, but since a photographer cannot change what the camera sees during the split-second of an exposure, Newman combined two pictures into one to show that he really was larger than life. Newman, the artist, does a balancing act between being a photographer who must abide by what the camera sees and being a painter who has full control over an image. It seems highly likely that Newman took this risk because the challenge of this portrait was so great.
The focus of attention in most of the faces included in the Clip & Save Art Print series this year has been on an artist and an artwork, usually with additional information about the artist and features in the artwork that make it distinctive. On this occasion, it seems fitting to tell viewers more about Theodor Geisel. The most complete experience, however, would have to include looking at and reading some of his books.
From his childhood in Massachusetts, Geisel was drawing animal cartoons. At college, he was the editor of a humor magazine and, after graduating, this talent led him to a career of drawing comic advertisements. He also did work for documentary motion pictures for which he received an Oscar®.
Commercial success kept him occupied until he was in his early 30s, when he first began to write and illustrate the kind of books for which he is so well known. His first book was rejected by over 25 publishers, but he finally found an editor who recognized the quality of his ideas. Not until he was 52, however, did he become a full-time author and, after that, he never stopped working on his books.
At first glance, the Dr. Seuss books appear very simple, but ideas came slowly to him and most of the books took about a year to complete. His drawings also took a long time to do to his satisfaction. He said that "...my animals look the way they do because I can't draw." In spite of that, he thought of himself first as an artist and secondly as a writer. His books are meant to be read aloud. One writer believes that they are best described as wonderlands populated by weird menageries of wacky creatures intended to make children (and adults) laugh. His success can be measured in part by the fact that over 50 million copies of his books have been sold.
Although his books are for children, it was also said that he really wrote them to amuse himself. And while he carefully hid the messages of his books, his themes emphasize honesty, loyalty and faithfulness. Some of his best-loved titles are "The Cat in the Hat," "Horton Hears a Who!" "Green Eggs and Ham" and, perhaps most famous of all, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!"
PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Arnold Newman (b. 1918). Portrait of Theodor Seuss Geisel (better known as Dr. Seuss), November 15, 1985, in La Joila, California. © Arnold Newman/Getty Images.
By Guy Hubbard
