The Online Photographer

Elliott Erwitt 1928–2023

Ah, well. Yesterday a sad event took place. You knew Elliott Erwitt. We all did.

Although, how can you be sad for a guy who lived to be 95, accomplished much, is known the world over, leaves a legacy, worked hard all his life, loved women and had children, and lived life as his authentic unfettered wholehearted self? I'll go ahead and be sad anyway. Even though I never met him in person.

It's probably not appropriate to call Elliott Erwitt "great," or to puff him up with highflown language. He might not approve. His stance his whole life was as an anti-artiste. Not modest or humble or self-effacing, he nevertheless dismissed pretense, excess seriousness, and ponderousness, and kept both feet firmly planted on the ground. He had an impish and unfailing sense of humor. It would be better to dub him the Grand Vizier of Shutterbuggery, the Master of Film Processing in the Bathtub, the World's Best Collector of Winks and Glimpses, or some other gently mocking title he would appreciate. The Emperor of Snaps. Snaps was what he called his huge compendium of leftovers, a treasured photobook for me since I first had my breath taken away by its cascading cornucopia of ideas, its endless fount of acute observation. He was what we all once wanted to be.

He was a hobbyist first, and practiced just like an artist—his pictures are in collections at the highest level worldwide. He is less well known as a top photojournalist, although he was that—his picture of Jacquelyn Kennedy at the funeral of JFK is one of a handful of the most famous images of the end of Camelot—and virtually unknown as an advertising photographer (never breaking style), although he was that too—did you know the famous photo of the big and little dogs' legs was taken for a shoe ad? True. It is seamlessly of a piece with all his other work, but all three of the beings in that picture were hired models! He did well enough with print sales and commercial work to be able to migrate between two homes. Most of all, though, he will be remembered for pictures that were like sweet little chuckles, affirmations, celebrations, appreciations—full of life and love, as if he were the apotheosis of an inquisitive teenager in a Photo 101 class, exploring the world like it was new. He was a man who never didn't have time for another picture of a pretty girl or a happy dog.

There have been encomiums. The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Guardian, Le Monde, CNN. All over everywhere. The one to read first would be the one by Jonas Cuénin at Blind Magazine. They were prepared for the event and first on the scene with the news and an appraisal. There will be lots more to read if you go looking. (Ken Tanaka first tipped me to this, and then many others did too. Thanks to you all.)

Looking at Snaps
The best way to mark this passing might be to dance a little jig, tell a generous joke, pat a dog. Another good way would be to go look at some pictures. Spend some time with one of your books of his; there were many—the current one is called Found Not Lost (2021), a book that resulted from Erwitt re-examining his contact sheets in old age. If you have no books by Erwitt...well, first of all, you need some, but try:

Works at the Peter Fetterman Gallery

Works and a written appreciation at Magnum Photos

Works at elliotterwitt.com

Works at the Harry Ransom Center of the University of Texas at Austin

Erwitt is a well that never runs dry.

Goodbye, Elio (if I may). Well, goodbye, okay, but farewell, never!

Mike
Photo: USA. Kilgore, Texas. 1971. courtesy Elliott Erwitt / @magnumphotos

Original contents copyright 2023 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

Featured Comments from:

Albert Smith: "Back in the '70s, there was a series of books put out called 'Masters of Contemporary Photography,' of which I bought every volume. Without a doubt, the one that effected me the most was the one on Elliott Erwitt. It was a treasure trove of biography, technical info, and best of all, 'war stories' from this shooter who was in the right place at the right time for many of the pivotal events in history. The story of his capturing then-Veep Nixon and Khrushchev in Moscow in an animated debate inches apart at an event to promote industry in Russia, and in a room full of camera-wielding journalists, being the only one to anticipate what was going to happen and be exactly in the right spot to get the photo, was worth the price of the book. Nixon used the photo without permission in his 1960 Presidential race to show he was tough on Russia, which made Erwitt mad enough to send a $500 invoice to the campaign, which was paid. I've subsequently bought every book that Erwitt put out including his last, which he personally curated from decades of long forgotten contact sheets, which he said was a revelation (we should all revisit our old work), titled, Found Not Lost.

"Another master gone."

Mike replies: Thanks for that detail about Found Not Lost, Albert. I added it to the post.

Kenneth Tanaka: "What a rich, rewarding life Elliott Erwitt lived! I first began admiring his press work the same year I returned to photography and bought my first Leica. So quick, so reflexive. Wherever he went there he was, so to speak. I especially admired his eye for capturing casual humor and irony. Reviewing each book of his work felt like completing another semester of photo school.

"Sadly, I never had an opportunity to meet him personally. (Maybe that’s for the better. What would I have said? Ask me what I talked about at dinner with Susan Meiselas in 2019 sometime.) Among all the many prominent photographers of the 20th century, Elliott Erwitt’s work and words were among the greatest influences on my own approach and outlook. (Albeit with very different results.)

"There's an excellent 2020 documentary film on Elliott's late life, titled Silence Sounds Good, available on Amazon Prime [not for me, but maybe for others —Ed.] and perhaps elsewhere. The trailer is available on YouTube. I think nearly all TOPpers will enjoy it.

"Goodbye, Elliott. Ya done good, man. Real good."

David Elesh: "Perhaps my favorite photographer because of his ability to capture the humor in what makes us human."

Dillan: "This has been a bad week for famous nonagenarians! Erwitt, Kissinger and Rosalynn Carter all in one week. As for Erwitt, I would say he is certainly a photography great. His famous photos generally showed the best side of humanity. If that lessens the gravitas of his work, I think he's being appraised using wrong measure."

Robert Roaldi: "This post an example of how useful and interesting the interweb can be. It's easy to forget."

V.I. Voltz: "I met him a few times. He was very charming, in an old fashioned way that made someone like me, young enough to be his grandson, wonder if all that charm was an affectation; but I don’t think it was. His best book is his first: Eastern Europe: Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland. Life Press, 1965, but it’s very hard to find now. [I think some of the pictures are included in Personal Best. —Ed.] Found Not Lost has stunning tonal reproduction, and would be one of his best collections, but a large proportion of the best photos are reproduced across the gutter. Incredibly frustrating."