“Nothing about her life, her photographs or her death was accidental or ordinary. They were mysterious and decisive and unimaginable except to her. Which is the way it is with genius.” -Richard Avedon
Against the advice of many friends, Diane Arbus pursued her photographic documentation of people on the fringes of society. Her work was first shown in 1967, when the Museum of Modern Art in New York City presented a major exhibition of several photographers. By 1972, the year after her death by suicide, Arbus’ work was everywhere.
This half-hour documentary explores her work and ideas, often in her own words as spoken by a close friend. It includes reflections by some of the people who knew her best; daughter Doon, teacher Lisette Model, colleague Marvin Israel, and John Szarkowski, at that time the director of the photography department at the Museum of Modern Art.
Masters of photography – Diane Arbus