Saul Leiter was a painter and a pioneer of color photography. His photos are abstractions that reflect the photographer’s love for painting, expired film, blur, and authentic composition. Unfortunately, because of his amazing modesty and fear of fame, Saul showed his color photos only at the age of 77, when he ran into financial difficulties.
Early Years
Saul was born in 1923 to an Orthodox Jewish family. His father was a rabbi and wanted his sons to follow in his footsteps. Together with the brothers, Saul studied theology from the age of 12 and eventually entered a theological school.
Around the same time, he became interested in painting. The conflict with his father began after the boy purchased his first tubes of paint. Painting, to his dad, was for losers without any plans for the future. At 23, after another scandal, Saul packed his suitcase and escaped his home to New York. The brothers considered him a freak for the rest of their lives, and the father did not forgive his son.
From Painter to Photographer
In New York, Saul Leiter met an abstract painter Richard Pousette-Dart and a photographer Eugene Smith. They inspired him to take up photography and greatly influenced his style: Eugene gave the future photographer a 33 mm Contax camera, and Richard introduced Saul to the world of abstract expressionism.
In 1949, like everyone else at the time, Saul took black and white photos, but his style was in stark contrast to the rest of the photographers. He shot from unusual angles, took pictures through foggy glass, often used shadowplay, reflections, and silhouettes. Fog, rain, and snow were his best assistants that turned photography into an abstract image. He once said: “I like ambiguity in photography. When the viewer is not sure what exactly they are seeing … I appreciate this very moment of confusion.”
In 1953, some of Saul’s photos were exhibited at the New York Museum of Modern Art. Esquire, Vogue, and Harper’s Bazaar magazines have expressed interest in his work. To make a living, Saul agreed to shoot for these periodicals. Without much success, he worked for the next 20 years. Although the popularity of the magazines, very few people got to know the photographer.
From Black and White to Color
In the 1950s, color film was not widespread for two reasons. Firstly, it was expensive. Secondly, color photographs were associated with bright advertising images, so the use of color film was considered a mauve ton.
Saul felt that color photos had untapped artistic potential. He bought an expired film and started to photograph the streets of New York. However, he was too shy to print and publish these photos. Only occasionally, Leiter was showing them to his friends on the projector.
The damaged film made Saul’s work even more abstract. As if it weren’t enough, the photographer applied paint strokes to the film and additionally colored some of the printed images so that they ended up somewhere in between photography and painting.
From Fashion Photography to Street Art
Street photography originated in the 1950s and immediately became a lucrative field for photographers. The emotional pictures of poverty, squalor, and depression of the post-war period brought fame and fortunes to many. Unsurprisingly, hundreds of photographers sought to capture New York this way, too.
He once said:Â “Some photographers think that by capturing human suffering, they are solving serious problems. I don’t think poverty is deeper than happiness. ”
Saul never dreamed of popularity and big money. Therefore, in contrast to the rest, he looked for beauty in everyday life and the colors that pleased his eye. The photographer was not interested in telling a story – his works are the poetry of the moment: indistinct figures, refracted lights, mesmerizing undertones. Leiter did not even try to sell his pictures – they were only for him and his friends. He kept on making a living by shooting for magazines.
From Obscurity to Glory
In 1993, Howard Greenberg, a gallery owner, noticed several of Leiter’s black-and-white works in the museum. 5 years later, they accidentally met at one of the exhibitions. Howard asked Saul if he had any other photos. Soon Greenberg received several boxes of undeveloped film. Howard later recalled: “Before taking the films for development, I literally blew layers of dust off them. It turned out that no one had touched them for almost 50 years! ”
These Pandora’s boxes resulted in international exhibitions, 3 books about the photographer, a biopic, and a new generation of fans. At the height of his fame, 75-year-old Saul lived modestly out of habit. He called paid bills his main ambition, and his only desire was that while cooking his favorite pasta, there was always a suitable sauce in the fridge. The photographer died in 2013 at the age of 89.
