Ballet 104 Photographs (5 results)

Large 8vo. (142) pp. Publisher's black cloth, white lettered to the spine, dust jacket. Black and white photographic illustrations throughout. Very good. A photographic reproduction of a work first published in 1945, this edition featuring a short essay by Kerry William Purcell and a biography of Brodovitch.

First edition, one of 500 copies; oblong 8vo (214 x 277 mm, 8 ½ x 11 in); 104 black-and-white photographs and design by Alexey Brodovitch, printed in gravure; original plain boards with grey cloth spine, age-toned, spine rubbed toward foot, light cockling and a faint moisture stain to top of pages, occasional light spotting, publisher's grey printed French-dust-jacket with title printed in white on front, soiled, toned, and worn, front panel detached, head and foot of rear panel split at spine, bookseller's ticket to front free endpaper, without the rare card slipcase, a very good copy in a good example of the notoriously fragile dust-jacket; 143, [1]pp. A masterpiece of cinematic sequencing and design. Ballet established an influential template and remains a touchstone of twentieth-century photographic bookmaking. Alexey Brodovitch took these photographs between 1935 and 1937 of various international ballet companies performing in New York. Initially, he intended to capture images of the performances for 'souvenir purposes', but later expanded his scope to photograph the dancers from behind the stage during performances and rehearsals. Later, he enlarged small sections of selected frames and employed various darkroom techniques to bleach and fade certain areas, further emphasising the images' contrast and grain. Brodovitch was crucial in introducing the United States to a radically simplified, 'modern' graphic design style forged in Europe in the 1920s from various vanguard art and design movements. As graphic designer and art director of Harper's Bazaar between 1934 and 1958, he redefined the possibilities of what could be achieved in a page layout, and through his 'Design Laboratory' workshop classes, he mentored and influenced generations of photographers, including Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Robert Frank, Lisette Model, Garry Winogrand, Marvin Israel, and Tony Ray-Jones. Due to its small print run, Ballet received limited commercial exposure, though its influence was widely felt. Brodovitch distributed a significant number of the copies that did find their way into circulation, mostly giving them to friends and colleagues. The book's scarcity was exacerbated when fires in 1956 and 1959 destroyed much of Brodovitch's working archive and library, including most of his remaining copies of Ballet. Regards sur un siècle de photographie à travers Le Livre 85; The Book of 101 Books Seminal Photography Books of the Twentieth Century pp110-3; The Photobook: A History, I pp240-1; The Open Book A History of the Photographic Book from 1878 to the Present pp136-7; 802 photo books from the M + M Auer collection p314; Errata Editions Books on Books #11 Alexey Brodovitch: Ballet.

Hardcover with dustjacket; 144 pages; fair condition; the dj is missing the spine; the dj has moderate edgewear, rubbing, staining and spotting to front cover; there is a 2-inch split to the front board hinge at the bottom edge; the first blank page has creases down length; otherwise the internal pages are very good; no tears or marks. As is copy of a legendary book. An edition of 500. Shipping will be extra.

Boards in Dust Jacket, Boxed. Condition: Very Good -. First Edition. 144pp, 104 illustrations in b&w gravure. In a protective clear acetate dustwrapper. Designed by Alexey Brodovitch. "Ballet" is renowned late graphic designer Alexey Brodovitch's iconic 1945 book of photographic vignettes capturing eleven performances by The Ballets Russes between 1935 and 1937. Noted for the innovative-at-the-time use of murky shadows and blurred dancers bathed in light, these arresting images of the likes of principals Leonide Massine, Tamara Toumanova, Irina Baronova, and more are accompanied by New York poet and dance critic Edwin Denby's brief but cogent text. An internally bright, handsome example of the first and only edition of this uncommon classic (cited on pages 240-241 of Martin Parr and Gerry Badger's "The Photobook: A History Volume I, pages 136-137 of The Hassleblad Center's "The Open Book: A History of the Photographic Book from 1878 to the Present", and pages 110-113 of "The Book of 101 Books") showing a bit of typical light age-toning to the pages, a slight dent through the lower foredge corner, wear to the top of the spine, and a previous owner's name in ink on the front pastedown. It's highly sulfurous chipboard covers are lightly browned, spotted, and a bit worn. The book's striking, notoriously fragile original paper dust jacket designed by Brodovitch is lacking, but has been replaced with a facsimile jacket meticulously executed by Woonsocket, Rhode Island's esteemed Dragonfly Bindery. It is housed in the Bindery's lavish custom brown cloth-over-boards clamshell presentation box with pastedowns reproducing the "Ballet" logo on the front cover and spine. All in all, this is a sharp, internally solid copy of one of the most lauded post-war American photography books aided by the addition of its jacket and presentation box that looks far nicer in hand than it describes. Photography Monograph.

Boards in Dust Jacket, Boxed. Condition: Very Good -. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. First Edition. 144pp, 104 illustrations in b&w gravure. In a protective clear acetate dustwrapper. Designed by Alexey Brodovitch. "Ballet" is renowned late graphic designer Alexey Brodovitch's iconic 1945 book of photographic vignettes capturing eleven performances by The Ballets Russes between 1935 and 1937. Noted for the innovative-at-the-time use of murky shadows and blurred dancers bathed in light, these arresting images of the likes of principals Leonide Massine, Tamara Toumanova, Irina Baronova, and more are accompanied by New York poet and dance critic Edwin Denby's brief but cogent text. An internally bright, most handsome example example of the first and only edition of this uncommon classic (cited on pages 240-241 of Martin Parr and Gerry Badger's "The Photobook: A History Volume I, pages 136-137 of The Hassleblad Center's "The Open Book: A History of the Photographic Book from 1878 to the Present", and pages 110-113 of "The Book of 101 Books") still in its original notoriously fragile paper dust jacket designed by Brodovitch showing a few flattened soft creases to the front pastedown along with some minor brown spotting to the endpapers. It's highly sulfurous chipboard covers are lightly age-toned with a few brown spots. The book's striking jacket is complete and intact, but lightly worn, soiled, and foxed along the extremities. It is housed in a lavish custom brown cloth over boards clamshell presentation box with pastedowns reproducing the "Ballet" logo on the front cover and spine executed by Woonsocket, Rhode Island's esteemed Dragonfly Bindery. All in all, this is a sharp, internally solid copy of one of the most lauded post-war American photography books aided by the addition of a presentation box that looks far nicer in hand than it describes. Photography Monograph.