George Platt Lynes

• George Platt Lynes: Orpheus and Eros, ca. 1936
  Courtesy of Throckmmorton Fine Art
• George Platt Lynes: William (Bill) Christian Miller, ca. 1945
  Courtesy of Throckmmorton Fine Art
• George Platt Lynes: Ruth Ford Winter Scene, ca. 1937
  Courtesy of Throckmmorton Fine Art
• George Platt Lynes: Marc Chagall, ca. 1941
• George Platt Lynes: Mildred A. Lynes, 1930s
  Courtesy of Throckmmorton Fine Art

Selected works by George Platt Lynes are currently on show at Leica Gallery Madrid, continuing until September 3, 2022.

George Platt Lynes (1907–1955) was renowned for his highly stylised fashion photographs. In the 1930s, his images were distinguished by the use of expressionist lighting, surrealist props and evocative backgrounds. A central figure of New York’s photography scene, he was commissioned to work for the School of American Ballet at the Lincoln Center. For twenty years, he documented the prestigious institution’s most important productions.

In parallel to his commissioned work, he dedicated himself to an independent project exploring male sexuality. These images are direct, honest portraits of male nudes, posing in interior spaces or in nature. Due to the era’s repressive legislation, the artist was unable to present these works beyond his closest social circle.

In 1949, Lynes befriended Alfred C. Kinsey, author of the book ‘Sexual Behavior in the Human Male’ – a highly controversial publication at the time. Despite the fact that buying and selling male nude imagery was illegal, Kinsey purchased hundreds of Lynes’ photographs, which became an integral part of his Institute for Sex Research. Lynes continued to collaborate with Kinsey for years, in the hope that society might change and his photographs could finally be showcased and, of course,  appreciated.

For further details visit Leica Gallery Madrid