03-07-200803-08-2008
Skinner Auctions
Skinner AuctionsBoston MA
2399Boston
March 7, 2008 12:00 PMCalender
321

Edward Steichen (American, 1879-1973) Lot of Five U.S. Navy Images from the U.S.S. Lexington during World War II: Hellcat Goes Thunderi

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$10,665$9,000
Auction: American & European Works of Art - 2399Location: BostonDate / Time: March 07, 2008 12:00PM

Description:

Edward Steichen (American, 1879-1973)

Lot of Five U.S. Navy Images from the U.S.S. Lexington during World War II: Hellcat Goes Thundering Off Deck, Getting Set for the Big Strike on Kwajelein, A Grumman F6F Hellcat Takes Off from the Deck, In Flight and Landing
1943. Unsigned. Gelatin silver prints, mounted, sizes to 19 1/2 x 23 1/4 in. (49.5 x 59.1 cm),unframed.
Condition: Loses, creases and small tears predominately to the edges, light scattered abrasions, light scattered staining.
Provenance: From the artist to Bennett Wood Wright, Commander and Executive Officer of the USS Lexington, then to the current owner.
N.B. Edward Steichen served as an officer-photographer in the U.S. Air Force during the first World War. This experience had a profound effect on Steichen, both in his work as a photographer and his attitude towards war. At the onset of World War II, Steichen felt compelled to document the war firsthand. He writes, "My own feelings of revulsion toward war had not diminished since 1917. But in the intervening years, I had gradually come to believe that, if a real image of war could be photographed and presented to the world, it might make a contribution toward ending the specter of war. This idea made me eager to participate in creating a photographic record of World War II." (1)
In 1943, Steichen, accompanied by Lieutenant Victor Jorgensen, traveled to Pearl Harbor and boarded the USS Lexington. The Lexington was nicknamed "The Blue Ghost" due to the enemy's constant claims to have sunk it, and Steichen chose that as the title of his published narrative and photographic account of the experience. (2) Life on the USS Lexington offered Steichen an endless source of photographic material as he photographed "from stem to stern, capturing the elation and the anxiety of sailors and airmen, conveying the boredom and tension, and showing the planes and ships in battle." (3)
(1) Steichen, Edward. A Life in Photography: Edward Steichen (Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Co., Inc. 1963) p 12. (2) Phillips, Christopher. Steichen At War (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1981) p 34. (3) Hood, Robert E. 12 at War: Great Photographers Under Fire (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1967) p 76.
Estimate $3,000-5,000

Hellcat Goes Thundering Off Deck measures 19 1/2 x 23 1/4 in and is mounted onto a piece of thick board. There are tears, creases, losses and wear to edges (predominately corners). The photograph is lifting off the mount in the l.r. corner. There are scattered losses and soiling/surface grime. This work is reproduced in Edward Steichen''s A Life in Photography and Christpher Phillip''s Steichen at War.
Getting Ready for the Big Strike measures 19 1/2 x 23 1/4 in. and is mounted onto thick board. There are creases, losses, and tears to edges (predominately corners). There are scattered areas of surface inconsistencies and/or mild chemical staining. There is mild scattered soiling and surface abrasions. This work is reporduced in Robert Hood''s 12 at War and Christpher Phillip''s Steichen at War.
Landing measures 19 1.2 x 23 3/8 and is mounted onto thick board. There are wear, creases and losses to edges, predominately to corners (the damage is less extensive than the first two images) Abrasions l.l., by the left leg of the figure, possible silverfish damage. There are other mild scattered abrasions and surface rubs and well as some soiling/staining.
Hellcat Takes Off From Deck measures 19 1/2 x 23 3/8 in. and is mounted onto thick board. There are small scattered losses/abrasions, possible silverfish damage. Some wear, losses to edges, predominately in the u.r. corner. There are some mild scattered surface grime/surface rubs. The work is reproduced in Christpher Phillip''s Steichen at War.
In flight measures 20 1/8 x 19 1/2 in. and is mounted onto thick board. Mild wear, creases, losses to corners to corners. Soiling and staining. Surface rubs, u.r. and l.r.

Keywords

Edward Steichen, United States, United States Navy, F6F Hellcat, artist to Bennett Wood Wright, Commander and Executive Officer, current owner , USS Lexington, Bennett Wood Wright, N.B. Edward Steichen, U.S. Air Force, Victor Jorgensen, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Victor Jorgensen, Pearl Harbor, City, Doubleday & Co. Inc., Garden City, Harry N. Abrams Inc., mild chemical staining