VINTAGE PHOTOGRAPHIC PRINT BY DAVE HEATH FROM HIS CLASSIC BOOK, A DIALOGUE WITH SOLIDTUDE, SIGNED AND DATED BY HIM

HEATH, Dave. Photograph ("Chicago 1956," also known as "Laughing Boys"). No place, 1956 (negative), 1958 (printed). Gelatin silver print, measuring 9-1/2 by 6-1/2 inches. With notations in pencil and ink on the verso of the mount including Heath’s signature, New York City address, and information on the print, including negative date, print date and other codes. Framed, overall size is 14-3/4 by 17-3/4 inches. $12,000.

Fine vintage print from Heath’s acclaimed photo-book, A Dialogue with Solitude, entitled Chicago, 1956, better known as Laughing Boys, depicting two young boys sharing a pair of shoes. Signed and dated by Heath on the verso of the mount.

”Dave Heath was modern photography’s greatest poet of introspection and loneliness. His photographic career was long and varied, ranging from the late 1940s into the first decade of the 21st century… Heath once said that photography gave him nothing less than ‘a way of entering the world.’ Born in 1931 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he was abandoned by both parents by the age of four and raised in foster homes and an orphanage. He was haunted all his life by these early feelings of rejection and isolation. A natural ‘loner,’ Heath was almost entirely self-taught in art and photography—he learned primarily from books and visits to art museums. After an unsatisfying year of study at the Philadelphia Museum School, Heath moved to Chicago in 1955. There, he worked in a commercial studio by day, while devoting every spare minute to his own work. Heath came to full artistic maturity after his move to New York City in early 1957. Knowing that he had lived off his own resources long enough, he immersed himself in New York’s vibrant art scene. He studied work in museums and came to know many talented photographers, writers and artists. The creative energy of this world drew out the best in him, tempering his penchant for isolation. Heath began to think about his A Dialogue with Solitude sequence in 1961 and used feedback from noted photographers such as W. Eugene Smith, Robert Frank and Edward Steichen to refine his concept. The result, finally published in 1965, has long been recognized as one of the most important photo-books of the era. A Dialogue with Solitude was a complete expression of Heath’s vision at that time. He determined every aspect of the book: the size and sequence of the 82 photographs, the typeface and design, and the selected quotations. Organized into ten thematic passages, this book explores the nature of identity in modern society. Heath represented a broad cross-section of humanity: young and old, men and women, black and white, the able-bodied as well as some with physical disabilities. He depicted people as individuals—alone, lost in thought or in relationships with others. In this way, Heath transformed an inward sense of loneliness and vulnerability into a broadly inclusive work of art… Dave Heath’s great work stems from his understanding of the power of empathy. Throughout his photographic career, he looked intently at the people around him, acquaintances and strangers alike. Far from a mere voyeur, he did this in a poetic spirit of sympathy and respect. His photographs of people are infused with a psychological directness and power, while reflecting a fundamental need to connect. Through his photographs of faces, gestures and relationships, Heath sought to chart the emotional geography of the human experience—the joys, pains, and uncertainties that we all share. In his photographs, the stranger’s face is never truly alien to us: it always reflects basic elements of ourselves” (Keith Davis). The notes on the back of the mount read “LP 156.2/ APWS 77/ 99-144/ BCIDDS/ Dave Heath/ Chicago 1956 print 1958 (NYC)/ PF 55736/ Dave Heath/ 483 Columbus Ave/ EN 2 7928.”

Fine condition.