Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hrs., 5 min. Partially transcribed. August 12 and September 8 sessions are transcribed; September 14 session is not transcribed.
Access Note / Rights:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Summary:
An interview of Hans Namuth conducted 1971 Aug. 12-Sept. 8, by Paul Cummings, at the artist's studio in New York, N.Y., for the Archives of American Art. Namuth speaks of his youth in Germany; the effects of Nazism on him and his family; living in Paris and Spain after leaving Germany; his first involvement with photography; living in a refugee camp; moving to New York in 1941 and working as a photographer; his activities in military intelligence during World War II; meeting Jackson Pollock in 1949 and making a film about him; and working in architectural photography.
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Hans Namuth, 1971 Aug. 12-Sept. 14. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Biography Note:
Hans Namuth (1915 -1990) was a photographer and a filmmaker from New York, N.Y.
Language Note:
English .
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Topic:
Photography -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Filmmakers -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
