Showing posts with label HBO films. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HBO films. Show all posts

Monday, December 19, 2016

HAPPY 94TH BIRTHDAY TONY VACCARO!


Newly liberated women in Nante, along the North bank of the Loire River, celebrate their freedom, Nante, France, July, 1944


We are very proud to wish Tony Vaccaro the happiest of birthdays on the 94th anniversary of his birth!

Born in Greensburg, Pennsylvania on December 20, 1922, Tony Vaccaro spent the first years of his life in the village of Bonefro, Italy after his family left America under threat from the Mafia. Both of his parents had died by the time he was eight years old and he was raised by an uncaring aunt. When World War II broke out, the American Ambassador in Rome ordered Tony to return to the States. He settled in with his sisters in New Rochelle, NY where he joined his high school camera club.

A year later, at the age of 21, Tony was drafted into the war, and by the spring of 1944 he was photographing war games in Wales. By June, now a combat infantryman in the 83rd Infantry Division, he was on a boat heading toward Omaha Beach, six days after the first landings at Normandy. Denied access to the Signal Corps, Tony was determined to photograph the war, and had his portable 35mm Argus C-3 with him from the start. For the next 272 days, Tony fought on the front lines of the war. He entered Germany in December 1944, a private in the Intelligence Platoon, tasked with going behind enemy lines at night. In the years after the war, Tony remained in Germany to photograph the rebuilding of the country for Stars And Stripes magazine. Returning to the States in 1950, Tony started his career as a commercial photographer, eventually working for virtually every major publication: Flair, Look, Life, Venture, Harper’s Bazaar, Town and Country, Quick, Newsweek, and many more. Tony went on to become one the most sought after photographers of his day.

On November 14. 2016 HBO Films premiered “Under Fire: The Untold Story of Private First Class Tony Vaccaro”. The film tells the story of how Tony survived the war, fighting the enemy while also documenting his experience at great risk, developing his photos in combat helmets at night and hanging the negatives from tree branches. The film also encompasses a wide range of contemporary issues regarding combat photography such as the ethical challenges of witnessing and recording conflict, the ways in which combat photography helps to define how wars are perceived by the public, and the sheer difficulty of staying alive while taking photos in a war zone. The film is available on demand from HBO.

Tony's remarkable oeuvre was exhibited in the Pop Up "War, Peace, Beauty" exhibit in New York November 14 - 21. Watch the official video of Tony's retrospective (courtesy of Astfilm.de).

Monroe Gallery will feature a selection of Tony Vaccaro's  photographs at the 26th annual Photo LA Fair, January 12 - 15, at the Reef/LA Mart. The Gallery will also exhibit Tony's photographs, including rare vintage prints, at the AIPAD Photography Show March 30 - April 2 at Pier 94 in New York.



Monday, September 26, 2016

History in a Moment


Joe Rosenthal/©AP
Marines of the 28th Regiment of the 5th Division Raise the American Flag Atop Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima, 1945

A major exhibition of iconic moments in history as captured by the leading photojournalists of the time. September 30 - November 20, 2016


"History In A Moment" mines the depth and breadth of Monroe Gallery's archives and is combined with new, never-before exhibited photojournalism masterpieces, from the early 1900's to the present day. The photographs in this exhibition are as much a history of American photojournalism as they are a history of the changing face of the latter part of the Twentieth Century. Through the images captured in these photographs, the eyes of a nation were opened as never before to a changing world.

Historic images featured in the exhibition include the Wright Brothers’ first flight, scenes of migrant workers in the 1930’s and the Great Depression, searing war and conflict photography from World War II, Vietnam, 9/11, and the Iraq War. Historic political campaigns are represented, as are key moments in the civil rights struggle from the 1960’s to the present day.

The exhibit includes several photographs by 93-year old Tony Vaccaro. This Fall, the documentary film “Under Fire: The Untold Story of Private First Class Tony Vaccaro” will premiere at film festivals nation-wide, and debut nation-wide on HBO on November 14, 2016. The film tells the story of how Tony survived the war, fighting the enemy while also documenting his experience at great risk, developing his photos in combat helmets at night and hanging the negatives from tree branches. Monroe Gallery is the exclusive representative for Tony’s work and “History in a Moment” presents Tony’s historic photographs to the gallery public for the first time.

The unforgettable images in this exhibition are imbedded in our collective consciousness; they form a sort of shared visual heritage for the human race, a treasury of significant memories. Many of the photographs featured in this exhibition not only moved the public at the time of their publication, and continue to have an impact today, but set social and political changes in motion, transforming the way we live and think. Looking at the pictorial documentation of such extraordinary events we often get the impression that we are feeling the pulse of history more intensively than at other times.

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

US Premiere of Underfire: The Untold Story of Pfc. Tony Vaccaro at Boston Film Festival September 22






Underfire: The Untold Story of Pfc. Tony Vaccaro – Trailer from Dog Green Productions on Vimeo.


BOSTON – September 12, 2016 – The 2016 Boston Film Festival program presents a panorama of striking projects that include “American Wrestler: The Wizard” (starring Oscar winner Jon Voight and William Fichtner, “Crash,” “The Perfect Storm”) and “The First Girl I Loved” -- along with the U. S. premiere of the documentary “Underfire” and the East Coast premiere of “Finding Oscar” (produced by Oscar winner Steven Spielberg). Many of the films address themes of acceptance, tolerance and bullying, timely and urgent concerns in contemporary society.

In the Opening Night U.S. Premiere documentary “Underfire,” World War II veteran Tony Vaccaro fought as an infantryman before returning to begin a successful career as a renowned commercial photographer. As a 21-year-old soldier, Vaccaro’s story began in combat as he took over 8,000 photographs on the front lines – harrowing and personal images that were not made public until the 1990s. The director is Max Lewkowicz from Dog Green Productions and HBO/Cargo Films. Max Lewkowicz and Tony Vaccaro will be in Boston for the film premiere.

Q&A Attendees Immediately After Film:

Dir. Max Lewkowicz, Tony Vaccaro,
Senior NYT Staff Photographer James Estrin

Tickets and information here.

Full press release here.

"Underfire" will air nationally on HBO November 14, 2016.

Related: Monroe Gallery of Photography is honored to represent Tony Vaccaro

Friday, September 16, 2016

Monroe Gallery of Photography is honored to represent Tony Vaccaro




Kiss of Liberation: Sergeant Gene Costanzo kneels to kiss a little girl during spontaneous celebrations in the main square of the town of St. Briac, France, August 14, 1944
 
VACCARO STUDIO - MONROE GALLERY
New Partnership And Fall Schedule


Santa Fe, NM -- Monroe Gallery of Photography is honored to announce an exclusive partnership with the Tony Vaccaro Studio for digital and analog print sales of Tony's iconic images. 

Monroe Gallery of Photography was founded by Sidney S. Monroe and Michelle A. Monroe. Building on more than five decades of collective experience, the gallery specializes in classic black & white photography with an emphasis on humanist and photojournalist imagery– a perfect fit for the 450,000 images in the Vaccaro archive. Monroe Gallery will be exhibiting Vaccaro’s work in the exhibition “History in a Moment”, September 30 to November 20. In a statement, the Monroe’s commented: “It is a privilege to present Tony’s historic career in photography, and we are pleased that his work will be featured in this important exhibit alongside so many other great 20th and 21st century photojournalists.”  

Monroe Gallery will also contribute to the success of a special pop-up gallery under the direction of veteran curator, and art critic Peter Frank. “Tony Vaccaro: War, Peace, Beauty”, November 11 to 21, 2016, at 508 West 26th Street, 5th floor, in the West Chelsea Building, in New York City’s Chelsea district. Just shy of 3,000 square feet, the exhibit will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. with an opening reception, Friday, November 11, 6 – 8 pm. Sidney and Michelle Monroe will be in attendance. Sundays the space opens at noon. A special exhibit of Vaccaro''s photographs will be on view at Monroe Gallery in Santa Fe through December 31, 2016.

“Tony Vaccaro now boasts a seven decade career capturing images iconic to the 20th century. He aimed his camera at the Second World War and its’ aftermath with the same urgency and grace that made him one of the most artful postwar fashion and celebrity photographers. His portraits of artists, statesmen and women, invariably present their subjects deeply and vibrantly embedded in their milieus.” – Peter Frank.

Soon to turn 94, Mr. Vaccaro still carries a camera and puts in six or seven hours without a break; creating prints in his darkroom and identifying jobs for the staff. Mr. Vaccaro recently finished a run of ten prints of Eleanor Roosevelt from 1946. Mr. Vaccaro will make appearances in Boston (Sept. 22), at the Margaret Mead film festival in NYC (October 15), at the ICP in NYC (Nov.10), and at his pop up show. A solo exhibit of Mr. Vaccaro’s work will be presented at Monroe Gallery in Santa Fe, NM, in 2017.

Gallery hours are 10 to 5 Daily. Admission is free. For further information, please call: 505.992.0800; E-mail: info@monroegallery.com.


About Tony Vaccaro

This Fall, the documentary film “Under Fire: The Untold Story of Private First Class Tony Vaccaro” will premiere at film festivals across the United States, and air nationally on HBO on November 14. The film tells the story of how Tony survived the war, fighting the enemy while also documenting his experience at great risk, developing his photos in combat helmets at night and hanging the negatives from tree branches. The film also encompasses a wide range of contemporary issues regarding combat photography such as the ethical challenges of witnessing and recording conflict, the ways in which combat photography helps to define how wars are perceived by the public, and the sheer difficulty of staying alive while taking photos in a war zone.

At the age of 21, Tony was drafted into the war and by June of 1944, he was on a boat heading toward Omaha Beach, six days after the first landings at Normandy. Tony was determined to photograph the war, and had his portable 35mm Argus C-3 with him from the start. For the next 272 days, Tony fought on the front lines of the war.

After the war, Tony remained in Germany to photograph the rebuilding of the country for Stars And Stripes magazine. Returning to the US in 1950, Tony started his career as a commercial photographer, eventually working for virtually every major publication: Look, Life, Harper’s Bazaar, Town and Country, Newsweek, and many more. Tony went on to become one the most sought after photographers of his day, photographing everyone from Marilyn Monroe and Sophia Loren to Pablo Picasso and Frank Lloyd Wright.
Tony turns 94 this December, and his photographs are available for the first time exclusively at Monroe Gallery of Photography.


The Wall Street Journal:
Exposing a Life, From WWII to the West Village A documentary and a new exhibit put photographer Tony Vaccaro into focus