May 31, 2014
Finding Vivian Maier
Harbinger No. 20
I’ve just watched the most extraordinary film entitled “Finding Vivian Maier.”
The story begins with a man named John Maloof who purchases a box of negatives at an auction and becomes intrigued by the images and whoever created them. It is a detective story that reveals one of the most important street photographers of our time…that no one has ever heard of: Vivian Maier.
What I found most impressive about this story was not the images (which are absolutely amazing) but that Vivian was a complete unknown. She was a nanny who had never shown her work to a single soul as far as anyone knows.
No one knows for sure why Vivian kept her work to herself, but I came away from the film feeling that external validation was not necessary or important to her. I believe that her creations were all the validation that she needed.
I have always believed that I should create for myself and that what others think (family, the public, gallery owners, curators, critics and experts) should be irrelevant. If I love my work, then that should be enough.
At the end of the film John Maloof talks about how difficult it has been to have Vivian’s work recognized by the establishment. In my view this recognition is so very irrelevant, her images speak for themselves and I do not need anyone else to tell me that they are wonderful, and I doubt having the establishments approval would have affected Vivian’s view of her own work.
I recommend this film, it was both entertaining and inspiring!
http://www.vivianmaier.com/film-finding-vivian-maier/
After you’ve seen it, I’d love to know what you think of her work and why you think she didn’t show it to anyone else.
Cole
I haven’t seen the movie yet,but I was wondering if you gave up your photographic celibacy just to watch this movie. (Really like the fence in Harbinger No. 20, by the way.)
Larry I did suspend my Photographic Celibacy…but just for 90 minutes!
But I figured that my “chastity” remained intact, since Vivian’s work is nothing like mine.
It’s these very rare occasions I envy you folks living in larger, more progressive cities. I doubt it will ever play here, but I really want to see it. Either a road trip or Netflix. Glad it has your endorsement, Cole.
I guess only she truely knows why but hopefully it was for her benefit and not because she thought that she wasn’t good enough. I feel that she didn’t show her work to anyone else because she did it for purely selfish reasons, and I don’t mean this in a bad way. She didn’t need validation from anyone else, it was to nourish her own creative being.
I saw this film a while ago but now that you’ve mentioned it I might go back for another viewing. I do remember the feeling of being awestruck by it all!
Whoops! I’ve realised that the doco I saw was titled Vivian Maier: Who took Nanny’s pictures? And not the one you’ve mentioned here. Same inspiring story though! 🙂 Cheers!
Hi Cole, I knew the story! Awesome! As a matter of fact, in Grup Fotografic Manlleu we wanted to do a contest to tribute her. The problem we found is that we were not able to find who owned the rights of her work. Anyway, her photographs are simply stunning! …and yes I agree: develop your work to please you, not others! Best Regards …by the way, should you come to Europe to expose, let us know! We won’t miss it!
I saw a similar documentary on TV in the UK, and was blown away by the talent of this lady. I think she very probably didn’t realise she had good photographic skills, and also that she perhaps felt she was intruding on other people’s lives and therefore didn’t want anyone else to see her work. It was enough for her that she had her passion.
Is an extraordinary film about one of the most “unknown” street photographer!!
Everyboby must see this film!!
Cole,
I became aware of her work about a year ago and I am glad to learn they have produced a movie about her. She lived like she photographed. I think many serious photographers can see a little of themselves in her story. We recently moved into our new home and in the process I had to deal with handeling the thousands of large format prints and negatives I have managed to create over my lifetime. I have always been focused on the creation of new work with little thought about the final destination of the body of my work. Now I am getting older the thoughts of the “what and where” all of this lifes devotion will end up. I enjoy your work and really like the above image. John
An inspiring photographer and not just for street photography with a very simple message; take photographs for you and your own vision, and the world will eventually find you. I also think a part of her really did want her photos seen, as alluded to in the movie, but that she just didn’t have means or access readily available, especially as the roles of film piled up. Obviously, I agree this is a must see!
Over the winter, we were lucky enough to see prints of her negatives at Brandeis University. The ability to see the work “up close and personal” was rewarding. I’m not sure who did the printing but they did it justice. Haven’t seen the movie, but need to seek it out now. Thanks for the reminder!
Cheers!
Cole, First of all, I am so relieved to learn you are still chaste. Some might now want to add an asterisk after this confessional, but certainly not me.
As for the movie, I had a little different take. I think she DID want her images printed. There was a part of the movie where she was trying to raise money for that from a relative, who declined. She lived on the financial edge her whole life, and the expense of printing those thousands of images was beyond her means. But the fact that she just kept shooting anyway proves the point you make.
Her street photography speaks for itself, and is captivating. But perhaps even more interesting are the multiple dimensions of her entire life. I believe she had a personality disorder, and the movie reveals those various symptoms.
It seemed she used her camera to cope with her demons, and capture how she felt about and saw the world. Just like many of us do.
Another fascinating feature to the movie is what happens when “the suits” realize there is a buck to be made from a story like this, and how art can be monetized.
I agree, definitely a must see movie for all creatives.
The Cleveland Print Room, in Cleveland, was fortunate enough to be able to exhibit around 40 of her photographs from the 1950s forward. She had a spectacular eye for visual details, sometimes sad but always with a sense of humor. Fabulous exhibit and film.
It really is a wonderful film about an extraordinary woman.
Her photos show just how wonderful an eye she had. I think she worked hard at her talent & her greatest joy came from finding the photos. After all, she loved collecting items…including moments. Being able to create & being part of a family…what else is really necessary? I think she truly lived her philosophy of life. Inspiring individual…amazing talent!
I’ve been enchanted by her story and work for some time now. The fact of it makes me feel less alone with my photography and other art forms. William Eggleston is another guy who was under ground with his genius for a long time. I’ve been dying to see his movie for a long time!
I think this is one of the most fascinating stories and “art discoveries” of our era. My wife and I have been following the developments since it started becoming public a few years ago. It’s quite interesting to observe how the story is evolving as new things are learned about Vivian and her life.
A good book on VM is “Out of the Shadows” which is based on the Jeffrey Goldstein owned images. And Richard Cahan is an excellent writer on “things photographic” and more. You may find that the information in the book and the recent movie are not exactly the same!
The story has some particular interest to us in that much of it took place in and around our local area–the northern ‘burbs of Chicago. Some of the people and most of the places are familiar from our childhood, etc.
The story is fascinating as a human interest story. As a psychological study. As an art appreciation and art history topic. Etc. Etc. Mysterious and even a little “dark,” too…lotsa questions!
But, the bottom line is that her work is absolutely amazing…and THAT is the main part of the story. And if you ever get a chance to see her contact sheets, you’d be amazed at her success rate on her 12 exposure rolls (Rolleiflex). Demonstrates that her talent is real and consistent.
Many people feel she wouldn’t have wanted the attention she’s getting now. There is only one reference I’ve heard of her trying to sell or display her photos. I dunno…..
At one of the talks we went to, a woman from one of her Nanny residences where she worked for over a year said she never even saw her with a camera! Weird. Stark contrast to the other families, eh?
The point is, there’s a lot yet to be discovered and analyzed about her and her work.
The UK documentary people are referring to is called “The Vivian Maier Mystery,” and it’s available in the U.S. and Canada on iTunes, Amazon, etc.! Very different from FVM — more about her body of work. Fascinating! http://www.vivianmaiermysterymovie.com
I agree with SteveL, it’s such a fascinating story on so many levels…I have spent so much time trying to figure VM out. She was so complex, I think she’s forever an enigma and that is how she wanted it to be played out. The hoarding/creative/manic/twisted/brilliant person she was is so darn interesting. Her works leave me speechless. I thought the film was very well done. There was a huge crowd at the viewing I saw at our local university. Inquiring minds want to know! I would love to see an exhibit of her work and know more.
Love her work and the mystery of her keeping her work to herself.
I currently post my work on Facebook and Instagram, but after seeing this film I am rethinking that. I post there for exposure and because it’s easy for friends and family to see but it is easy to get caught up in the whole “like” business.
Thinking it would be best just to post at my website. I think then I would feel that I am only pleasing myself with my work (which is how it should be in my opinion).
Thank you Ms. Maier!
Maier’s work is very facinating and inspiring. I’ll be looking at it more closely.
Thanks for the recommendation.
I’ve wanted to see this film for awhile now. I wasn’t able to go when it was in town for a couple of nights. Thank you for posting the link! I’ll let you know my impressions.
I see the Vivian Maier site is a trailer. Any idea where I could watch this online?
I did see the movie this afternoon. After reading the comments here I think that no one has a clue what this lady was about, nor do I think that it is important that we know. Why she took the photos she did or what her motivation was doesn’t seem important. What is important is how her photography makes me feel within myself and what I can learn from it to satisfy my own private vision.
My suspicion is that she just wanted to capture what she saw that was important to her life. She did not appear to be interested in the afterlife of the photograph. Her thrill was pressing the shutter button. I can imagine that she would be absolutely thrilled with a digital camera and to see her vision appear on the screen immediately.
For anyone unable to see the Maier film at a theater, here it is online:
http://www.redboxinstant.com/product.html#/4d4f7f0d-54fd-46bc-820f-a623ef3a23ba/finding-vivian-maier
I’ll echo what Lisa Gordon said… “It really is a wonderful film about an extraordinary woman.”
To be concerned about why she photographed her world is not nearly as important as appreciating the fact that she did… because, she simply had to. For herself.
Ok-just watched the UK version and it was a fascinating glimpse into a very private and dedicated photographer. It’s a movie that is inspirational in her imagery, sad in loneliness, and a cautionary tale for artists and their art collection. It was apparent that her passion, addiction, coping mechanism in life possibly wasn’t the finished product but simply just the act. My impression is that she relished the adventure and received satisfaction from her environments by simply pushing the cameras shutter and at that moment it was stored for ever in her memory. The 150k exposures where possibly just the byproduct of her obsession-good for us!l Finally, she was talented because she spent every moment working on her craft to the point that she put every frame to good use. Having the movie show images in a roll of 12 exposures in order transports us into her mindset and footsteps. She is an inspirational tale of the art itself being the reward and not someone’s opinion.