Girls In The Windows: And Other Stories

Description

Girls in the Windows is the first book to survey the work of Ormond Gigli and looks behind the facade of that extraordinary photograph to understand its genesis and to celebrate its beauty and pathos, as well as to open the window onto the rest of Gigli's brilliant career. This handsome volume highlights a significant body of work, captures a vital aspect of the great age of photojournalism. It places in context an iconic image of the postwar era at the height of its prosperity and on the verge of transformation.

Ormond Gigli was born in New York City in 1925. He achieved success for his images of theater, celebrities, dance, and exotic people and places. His work appeared prominently on covers and in the pages of magazines such as Life, Time, Paris Match, The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's, and elsewhere. Gigli was welcomed backstage on Broadway and into the private lives of celebrities owing to his ability to earn the trust of his subjects in his vision. During the 1970s and 1980s, Gigli turned to advertising photography, while continuing his editorial work. His assignments took him around the world many times. Today, prominent galleries represent his work internationally. He lives in Western Massachusetts. Christopher Sweet was recently appointed Editorial Director of Thames & Hudson, Inc. He is the former Senior Specialist in Photography at artnet.com and writes about art and photography. He is also the former Editor in Chief of Viking Studio and the Vendome Press. His most recent book is Slim Aarons: La Dolce Vita (Abrams, 2012). He lives in New York.

"the book pays homage to a rich body of work, and to a time when a photographer could persuade a steam shovel operator to lift a model skyward." -New York Times "Widely considered one of the most famous fashion shots of the 1960s, it captures a slice of long-gone New York ...and the picture's influence stretches beyond photography." -TIME "This image [...] for Time magazine's story on saucy, skimpy bathing suits, in1968, is one of many evocative pictures in Gigli's coffee-table book." -Vanity Fair "Filled with intimate and inventive imagery, the collection brings viewers behind the scenes of that incredible photograph [Girls In The Windows], the work that lead to its genesis and what was to come after. From celebrity portraiture to little-known travel photography, Girls In The Windows conveys Gigli's masterful eye and art direction in a way not yet seen" -Cool Hunting