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Barnebys HQ
Brahegatan 10
BOX 5038
114 37 Stockholm
All auctions / Photographs / Bunny Yeager (1929–2014) - Pin-Up Bettie Page in Key Biscayne, Florida, 1954.
Important note: This photograph comes directly from photographer Bunny Yeager's private home, as shown in the description photos with the personal, self-addressed envelopes. It is also important to know that Bunny Yeager made copies of her photographs originally on double-thickness cotton barium paper. There are seller that sell copies on fine photographic paper, these copies do NOT come directly from the photograph, be careful. Bunny Yeager made prints almost all his life in gelatin silver, but in his last period he also made copies in dye transfer printing, this is one of those prints from his last period. • Biography Bunny Yeager (1929-2014) Was one of the most influential photographers of the modern era. Her self-portraits alone establish her as an innovative and important artist, demonstrating an ability to transform herself for the camera, via clothes, make-up, hair and setting. She would spend hours in front of a mirror trying out different expressions. Her book “How I Photograph Myself” (1964) was a watershed moment in photography, that landed her a spot on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Those images were featured in an exhibition at the Andy Warhol Museum in 2010, curated by Eric Shiner. Born in Wilkensburg, PA and raised in nearby Pitcairn, a small town built around the railroad and the coal industry, she dreamed early about Hollywood, movie stars and beauty queens. Upon her arrival in Miami in 1946, she re-invented herself as a self-assured model and beauty pageant winner. She was featured prominently in the Tourism Board of Miami Beach promotions. At the same time she was designing her own bikinis, before they were widely available. After taking a course in photography in 1953, she discovered another talent, and her photos of Bettie Page have become iconic. In addition to a Playboy photographer she was also a Girl Scout leader, actress, singer, filmmaker and fashion designer. Her and her husband partnered with Irving Klaw to make several Nudie Cutie films, as well as “Bunny Yeager’s Nude Camera”. Diane Arbus was a fan and called her “The World’s Greatest Pin-Up Photographer”. She was the only with photographer in Miami shooting black models in the 1950’s in Miami. She also taught Sammy Davis Jr. how to shoot models. After leaving the spotlight for many years, the Warhol exhibition marked the beginning of a resurgence of interest in her work, and another museum show at NSU/ Ft. Lauderdale Museum in 2013, curated by Peter Boswell. She produced two landmark books with Rizzoli: “Bunny Yeager’s Darkroom” in 2012 and “Bettie Page: Queen of the Pin-Ups” in 2013. Her work is part of the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY, and many of her important papers are housed at the Richter Library/Special Collections at the U. Of Miami. A documentary about her life, directed by Dennis Scholl and Kareem Tabsch, will be released in 2022. His work is present in museums and galleries around the world. • Biography Bettie Page, Bettie Mae Page 1923-2008). Was an American model who revolutionized fashion and world eroticism. "She was the best-known face in rockabilly culture, her bangs and aesthetic made her an icon of the '50s that is still present in pop culture." Famous for her fetish photos and recognized as "the queen of Pin-up", her appearance has influenced several artists to this day. She was one of Playboy magazine's Playmates of the Year. "I think she was a remarkable woman, a pop culture icon who exerted her influence over sexuality and fashion trends, someone who had a tremendous impact on our society," Playboy founder Hugh Hefner told the Associated Press. Press. The last years of her life were marked by depression and violent mood swings, spending some years in a psychiatric institution. In the 1960s she converted to Christianity and served a Baptist mission in Angola. After years of neglect, her popularity experienced a resurgence in the 1980s, maintaining a significant following. She, too, was uninterested in the attentions of flamboyant director, aviator, and inventor Howard Hughes, who also pursued her. Hughes phoned her and had her team calling her repeatedly, with the excuse of wanting to photograph the delicious model. She declined each offer: "I never returned any calls," the pin-up laureate said. "I think people can say I made a mistake. With her attractive figure and her face, innocently and perhaps inevitably, she was drawn into the world of "cheesecake" giggly modeling, where she Page was prolific. She almost immediately became a recognized face and figure, gracing publications like Wink, Eyeful, Sir!, He, She, Jest, Bare, Stare, Gaze, Vue, Titter, Sunbathing, Beauty Parade, Chicks and chuckles and many others. Suggestive photographs of her decorated offices, lockers, garages and all kinds of rooms around the world, like a new brand of Bettie Page wallpaper. The image of her everywhere attracted worldwide attention. Posing for these photographs (some by acclaimed fashion photographer Bunny Yeager), many of the witnesses remember how Page seemed to command them as if he were a movie director. In 1954, during one of his annual pilgrimages to Miami, Florida, Page met the photographer Bunny Yeager. For the time, Page was the best pin-up model in New York. Yeager, a former model and photographer, booked Page for a photo shoot at the now-closed Wildlife Park Africa USA in Boca Raton, Florida. Bettie's jungle photographs from this shoot are among her most celebrated. They include nude shots with a pair of Leopards named Mojah and Mbili. The leopard print fabric of the Jungle girl outfit she wore, as well as many of her outfits, were made by Page. An extensive collection of Yeager and Klaw's photos were published in the book "Bettie Page Confidential" (St. Martin's Press, 1994). After Yeager sent Page's photos to Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, he selected one of her for the centerpiece photo of "Playmate of the Month" in January 1955. The negatives of many of her photos were destroyed by court order. For many years the surviving negatives were illegal to reproduce. Bettie Page died on December 11, 2008 due to pneumonia,12 at a Los Angeles hospital. She was 85 years old. Note: The photo book of the famous photo session where the photograph was taken for sale and the original envelopes from Bunny Yeager's private home are not included in the sale of the photo. * The package will be sent with special reinforcement, by express courier and with insurance. Good luck in the auction!!!!
Estimate:£212.06
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Estimate:
£212.06
OCT 8 | 3:00 PM
OCT 8 | 3:00 PM
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