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{{short description|American photographer}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox person {{Infobox person
|image=Joel Peter Witikin (12).jpg | image = Joel Peter Witikin (12) (cropped).jpg
| caption = Witkin in 2009
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1939|09|13|df=yes}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1939|09|13}}<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/>
|birth_place=], ]
| birth_place = ], New York City
|occupation=Photographer
| family = ] (identical twin brother)
| occupation = Photographer
| website = {{url|www.joelpeterwitkin.com}}
}} }}
'''Joel-Peter Witkin''' (born September 13, 1939, in ], ]) is an American ] who lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His work often deals with such themes as death, corpses (and sometimes dismembered portions thereof), and various outsiders such as ], ]s, ]s, and physically deformed people. Witkin's complex ] often recall religious episodes or classical paintings.<ref></ref> '''Joel-Peter Witkin''' (born September 13, 1939) is an American photographer who lives in ]. His work often deals with themes such as death, corpses (and sometimes dismembered portions thereof), often featuring ornately decorated photographic models, including ], ] and ] persons, as well as people living with a range of physical features. Witkin is often praised for presenting these figures in poses which celebrate and honor their physiques in an elevated, artistic manner. Witkin's complex '']'' often recall religious episodes or classical paintings.<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/>

==Biography== ==Biography==
Witkin was born to a ] father and ] mother. His twin brother, ],<ref></ref> and son Kersen Witkin, are also painters. Witkin's parents divorced when he was young because they were unable to overcome their religious differences{{Citation needed|date=May 2010}}. He attended grammar school at Saint Cecelia's in Brooklyn and went on to ]. Between 1961 and 1964 he was a war photographer documenting the ]. Going freelance in 1967, he became the official photographer for City Walls Inc. He attended ] in New York where he studied ], attaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974. After ] granted him a scholarship, he ended his studies at the ] in ], where he became Master of Fine Arts. Witkin was born to a Jewish father and ] mother. His twin brother, ],<ref name=":0">{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-27|title=Brothers Jerome and Joel-Peter Witkin and their 'Twin Visions'|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-jerome-joel-peter-witkin-twin-visions-20140822-story.html|date=26 August 2014|website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> and son Kersen Witkin, are also painters. Witkin's parents divorced when he was young because they were unable to overcome their religious differences. <ref name=":0" /> He attended grammar school at Saint Cecelia's in Brooklyn and went on to ].


In 1961 Witkin enlisted in the United States Army, with the intention of capturing war photography during the ]. However due to scheduling conflicts, Witkin never saw combat in Vietnam. Witkin spent his military service at ], and was mostly in charge of Public Information and classified photos.<ref name="R2"/>
== Influences and themes ==
Witkin claims that his vision and sensibility spring from an episode he witnessed as a young child, an automobile accident in front of his house in which a little girl was ].
{{cquote|It happened on a Sunday when my mother was escorting my twin brother and me down the steps of the tenement where we lived. We were going to church. While walking down the hallway to the entrance of the building, we heard an incredible crash mixed with screaming and cries for help. The accident involved three cars, all with families in them. Somehow, in the confusion, I was no longer holding my mother's hand. At the place where I stood at the curb, I could see something rolling from one of the overturned cars. It stopped at the curb where I stood. It was the head of a little girl. I bent down to touch the face, to speak to it -- but before I could touch it someone carried me away".<ref name="renegadeartists">{{cite web
| last =Storck
| first =Jeanne
| title =Band of Outsiders: Williamsburg's Renegade Artists
| publisher =Billburg.com
| year =2001
| url =http://www.billburg.com/localcolor/content.cfm?id=134
| accessdate = 2007-08-19 }}</ref>}}


In 1967, he became the official photographer for City Walls Inc. He attended ] in New York, where he studied sculpture, attaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974. ] granted him a scholarship for graduate school, but his Master of Fine Arts degree is from the ] in ].<ref name="R3"/>
He says his family's difficulties also influenced his work. His favorite artist is ]. His ] techniques draw on early ] and on the work of ].<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"></ref>

Those of Witkin's works which use corpses have had to be created in Mexico in order to get around restrictive US laws. Because of the ] nature of the contents of his images, his works have been labelled ] and have sometimes ] public opinion.<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/>


== Influences and themes ==
Witkin claims that his vision and sensibility spring from an episode he witnessed as a young child, an automobile accident in front of his house in which a little girl was ].
{{blockquote|It happened on a Sunday when my mother was escorting my twin brother and me down the steps of the tenement where we lived. We were going to church. While walking down the hallway to the entrance of the building, we heard an incredible crash mixed with screaming and cries for help. The accident involved three cars, all with families in them. Somehow, in the confusion, I was no longer holding my mother's hand. At the place where I stood at the curb, I could see something rolling from one of the overturned cars. It stopped at the curb where I stood. It was the head of a little girl. I bent down to touch the face, to speak to it – but before I could touch it someone carried me away<ref name="renegadeartists"/>
}}
He says his family's difficulties also influenced his work. His favorite artist is ]. His photographic techniques draw on early ] and on the work of ].<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/>
Those of Witkin's works which use corpses have had to be created in Mexico to get around restrictive US laws. Because of the ] nature of the contents of his images, his works have been labelled ] and have sometimes ] public opinion.<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/>
His techniques include scratching the ], bleaching or toning the print, and using a hands-in-the-chemicals printing technique. This experimentation began after seeing a 19th-century ] of a woman and her ex-lover who had been scratched from the frame.<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/> His techniques include scratching the ], bleaching or toning the print, and using a hands-in-the-chemicals printing technique. This experimentation began after seeing a 19th-century ] of a woman and her ex-lover who had been scratched from the frame.<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library"/>
Joel-Peter Witkin's photograph ''Sanitarium'' inspired the final presentation of ]’s Spring/Summer 2001 collection based on avian imagery, the walls of another box within the faux psychiatric ward collapsed to reveal a startling ''tableau vivant'': a reclining, masked nude breathing through a tube and surrounded by fluttering moths.


== Documentary films ==
Joel-Peter Witkin's photograph "Sanitarium" inspired the final presentation of Alexander McQueen's Spring/Summer 2001 collection based on avian imagery, the walls of another box within the faux psychiatric ward collapsed to reveal a startling tableau vivant: a reclining, masked nude breathing through a tube and surrounded by fluttering moths.<ref> ARTINFO.COM</ref>
In 2011, filming began on the feature-length documentary, '']''. The film, directed by Thomas Marino, examines Witkin's life and photographs. Along with interviews with Witkin, the film includes interviews from gallery owners, artists, photographers, and scholars who share insight into the impact of Witkin's work and influence on modern culture. The film was released in 2013. It will be part of the permanent collections at the ] in Paris, and the ] in Santiago, Chile.<ref name="R4"/>


''Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye'' was first publicly shown in Santiago, Chile at the Biblioteca Nacional de Chile in 2013, as part of the opening of the exhibition, ''Vanitas: Joel-Peter Witkin en Chile''.<ref name=autogenerated1/>
== Documentary ==
In July 2011, filming began on a feature length documentary titled “Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye”. The film, directed by Thomas Marino, takes a profound and introspective look into Witkin’s life and art. Along with all new in-depth interviews with Joel-Peter Witkin, the film features interviews from gallery owners, prominent artists, musicians, photographers, and scholars who share insight into the impact of Witkin's work and influence on modern culture. Filming took place in ], ], ], and ]. The film will be released on July 1, 2013 and will be part of the permanent collection at the ] in Paris, France.<ref></ref><ref></ref>


In 2017, a documentary about him and his brother, ], was made by Trisha Ziff, entitled ''Witkin and Witkin''.<ref name="R6"/>
== Chronology ==


==Publications==
* 1939: Born in Brooklyn September 13, 1939 to Max and Mary (Pellegrino) Witkin.; one child, Kersen Ahanu Witkin; m. Barbara Anne Gilbert, 2005.
*''Gods of Heaven and Earth''. Twelvetrees, 1989. {{ISBN|9780942642391}}.
*''Joel-Peter Witkin, Twelve Photographs in Gravure'' (1994)
*''Harms Way: Lust and Madness, Murder and Mayhem''. Twin Palms, 1994. {{ISBN|9780944092286}}.
*''Joel-Peter Witkin: a Retrospective''. Scalo: 1995. {{ISBN|978-1881616207}}.


==Exhibitions==
* 1959: Group show at the Museum of Modern Art, NYC
===Solo exhibitions===
*''Joel-Peter Witkin: Forty Photographs'', ], Brooklyn, New York, 1986;<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-27|title=Brooklyn Museum|url=https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/exhibitions/1019|website=www.brooklynmuseum.org}}</ref> ], San Diego, CA, 1987<ref>{{cite web|first1=Robert|last1=McDonald|access-date=2023-03-27|title=Art Review : witkin's perverse photos fail as art|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-03-21-ca-4468-story.html|date=21 March 1987|website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>
* ''Vanitas: Joel-Peter Witkin en Chile'', ], Santiago, 2013. '']'' documentary premiered at the opening of this exhibition.<ref name=autogenerated1/>


===Group exhibitions===
* 1970: Group exhibition of his photography and a major piece of his sculpture, the Margo Feiden Galleries, NYC
* ''Bodies'', Fotografiska Museum, Stockholm, 2010<ref name="R8"/>
* ''Heaven or Hell'', ], Paris, 2012<ref name="R12"/>


==Collections==
* 1973- 1974: Student poetry fellow at Columbia University
Witkin's work is held in the following permanent collections:
*], Chicago, IL: 7 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Joel Peter Witkin|url=https://www.artic.edu/artists/42867/joel-peter-witkin|website=The Art Institute of Chicago}}</ref>
*], Atlanta, GA: 1 print (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=You searched for Joel-Peter%20Witkin|url=https://high.org/search/Joel-Peter%20Witkin/|website=High Museum of Art}}</ref>
*], Los Angeles, CA: 7 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Joel-Peter Witkin (The J. Paul Getty Museum Collection)|url=https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/person/104N1V|website=The J. Paul Getty Museum Collection}}</ref>
*], Washington, D.C.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=The raft of George W. Bush|url=https://lccn.loc.gov/2012645135|website=Library of Congress}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first1=joel-peter|last1=witkin|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Search results from Witkin, Joel-Peter|url=https://www.loc.gov/search/?all=True&fa=contributor:witkin,+joel-peter&st=list|website=Library of Congress}}</ref>
*], Los Angeles, CA: 6 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Joel-Peter Witkin - LACMA Collections|url=https://collections.lacma.org/node/165452|website=collections.lacma.org}}</ref>
*], Madrid, Spain: 3 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Witkin, Joel-Peter|url=https://www.museoreinasofia.es/en/coleccion/autor/witkin-joel-peter|website=www.museoreinasofia.es}}</ref>
*], Philadelphia, PA: 7 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Search|url=https://philamuseum.org/search|website=philamuseum.org}}</ref>
*], Princeton, NJ: 24 works (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Search the Collection - Princeton University Art Museum|url=https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/search/collections?artistList=%5B%2522Joel-Peter%2520Witkin%2522%5D|website=artmuseum.princeton.edu}}</ref>
*], San Francisco, CA: 4 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Witkin, Joel Peter|url=https://www.sfmoma.org/artist/joel-peter-witkin/|website=SFMOMA}}{{Dead link|date=November 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
*], Washington, D.C.: 2 prints (as of 28 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Joel-Peter Witkin - Smithsonian American Art Museum|url=https://americanart.si.edu/artist/joel-peter-witkin-5455|website=americanart.si.edu}}</ref>
*], Amsterdam, Holland<ref>{{cite web|last1=Grrr.nl|access-date=2023-03-28|title=Joel Peter Witkin|url=https://www.stedelijk.nl/en/collectie/maker/9523-joel-peter-witkin|website=www.stedelijk.nl}}</ref>
*], New York: 1 print (as of 26 March 2023)<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-26|title=Joel-Peter Witkin|url=https://whitney.org/artists/3901|website=whitney.org}}</ref>


==Films about Witkin==
* 1974: Received his B.F.A. at Cooper Union
*''Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye'' (2013) – feature-length documentary directed by Thomas Marino

*''Witkin and Witkin'' (2017) – feature-length documentary directed by Trisha Ziff, about Witkin and his brother Jerome<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-03-28|title="Witkin and Witkin" -The wit of it all |url=https://easyreadernews.com/witkin-and-witkin-the-wit-of-it-all-movie/|date=29 September 2021|website=Easy Reader News}}</ref>
* 1980: Exhibited in Projects Studio One, NYC

* 1981: Group show at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

* 1982: Exhibited in Galerie Texbraun, Paris. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris

* 1983: Exhibited in Kansas City Art Institute. Exhibited in Stedelijk Mus, Amsterdam. Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC

* 1984: Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC

* 1985: Exhibited in San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Group show at the Whitney Biennial

* 1986: Received his M.F.A. at U.N. Mex. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Brooklyn Museum. Group show at Palis de Tokyo, Paris

* 1987: Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Fahey/Klein Gallery, L.A.

* 1988: Exhibited in Centro de Arte Reina Sofia Museum, Madrid.

* 1989: Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Palais de Tokyo, Paris. Exhibited in Fahey/Klein Gallery, L.A.

* 1990: Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris

* 1991: Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Fahey/Klein Gallery, L.A. Exhibited in Museum Of Modern Art Haifa, Israel

* 1993: Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC.<ref></ref> Exhibited in Photo Picture Space Gallery Osaka, Japan

* 1994: Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Taipei Photo Gallery, Taiwan

* 1995: Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Photo Picture Space Gallery Osaka, Japan. Exhibited in Guggenheim Museum, NYC. Exhibited in Interkamera, Prague. Exhibited in II Castello de Rivoli Museum., Turin

* 1996: Artist in residence Zerybthia Rome Italy summer of this year. Lecturer Am. Acad. Rome. Exhibited in Encontros de Fotografia, Coimbra, Portugal. Exhibited in Rencontres de la Photograpie, Arles, France. Exhibited in Taipei Photo Gallery, Taiwan. Group show at La Photographie Contemporaine en France

* 1997: Exhibited in Fraenkel Gallery. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein MacGill Gallery, NYC Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Fahey/Klein Gallery, L.A. Group show at Foto Masson, Goteberg, Sweden. Group show at Hanlin Museum, South Korea. Group show at Hayward Gallery, London

* 1998: Exhibited in Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe. Exhibited in Wildenstein Gallery, Tokyo. Exhibited in Pace Wildenstein, L.A.Exhibited in Taipei Photo Gallery, Taiwan. Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Artist in residence Berlin fall of 1998 and Paris winter 1998. Exhibited in Encontros de Fotografia, Coimbra, Portugal. Exhibited in Camera Work, Berlin, El Escorial, Spain. Exhibited in Fahey/Klein Gallery, L.A. Group show at Bogardenkapel, Bruges. Group show at Srasborg Mus. D’Art Moderne et Contemporaine

* 1999: Exhibited in Sternburg Museum, Prague. Exhibited in Mesiac Fotographie, Slovakia. Group show the Ansel Adams Ctr., San Francisco Group show at Camera Work, San Francisco. Group show at The Louvre, Paris

* 2000: Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Hotel de Sully, Paris Exhibited in Caherine Edelman Gallery, Chicago. Exhibited in Ctr. Contemporary Art, Honolulu. Group show at Musee Bourdelle, Paris. Group show at John Gibson Gallery, NYC. Group show at The High Mus. Art, Ga.,

* 2001: Lecture at Yale University. Exhibited in Photo Picture Space Gallery Osaka, Japan. Exhibited in Etherton Gallery, Tucson. Group show at The Fotografie Forum, Frankfort

* 2002: Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Stadt Mus., Jena. Exhibited in Picture Photo Space, Osaka. Exhibited in Infinito Gallery, Turin. Group show at National Gallery of Canada. Group show at Hotel de Sully, Paris. Group show at The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Group show at The Whitney Museum, NYC

* 2003: Exhibited in Galeria Juaa de Aizpura, Madrid. Exhibited in Photoes Pana, Madrid. Exhibited in Le Garage Galerie, Toulouse. Group show at H. Lunn Collection, Lille. Group show at Photology, Milan. Group show at Akira Ikeda Gallery, Berlin

* 2004: Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris. Exhibited in ARCO, Madrid. Group show at National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa. Group show at Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC

* 2005: Exhibited in Fahey/Klein Gallery, L.A. Exhibited in Etherton Gallery, Tucson. Exhibited in Linda Durham Gallery, Santa Fe. Exhibited Gary Tatinstian Gallery, Moscow. Exhibited in Moscow House Photography. Group show at Guggenheim, Bilbao. Group show at D’Art Del’Yonne. Group show at Wessel and O’Connor Fine Art, NYC. Group show at Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago

* 2006: Lecturer at Ecole Supérieure, Paris. Lecturer at Spanish Embassy, Moscow. Solo show Witkin Vintage, Hasted Hunt, NYC Solo show Café Francoise, Brussels, Paris Photo. Group show at Cité Internationale: “The Book,” M.E.P. Paris. Group show at Houston Center for Photography, Silver Retrospective

* 2007: Exhibited in ''Human Kind'', Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris and at Hasted Hunt Gallery, New York, NY; Lecturer at Medici Palace, Seravezza; Exhibited in ''Paris Photo''; Exhibited in ''The Invisible Landscape'', National Gallery of Canada; Exhibited in ''Myst: Mystic and Mystery of a photographic collection'', CRAM, Italy

* 2008: Exhibited in Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York, Exhibited in Catherine Edelman Gallery, Chicago, Illinois

* 2010: Exhibited in Counterfactuals, Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris, Exhibited in 1000 Eventi Gallery, Milan, Exhibited in Minshar Gallery, ], Exhibited in Bodies, Fotografiska Museum, Stockholm,<ref>http://en.fotografiska.eu/The-Museum/Exhibitions/Bodies</ref> Exhibited in Discoveries, ], New York, NY,<ref>http://www.brucesilverstein.com/documents/4c59cf6dcb562.jpg</ref> Exhibited in “Memento Mori:” The Birth & Resurrection of Postmortem Photography, Merchant's House Museum, New York, NY,<ref></ref> Exhibited in "Decadence Now!" BRNO House of Arts, Czech Republic <ref></ref>

* 2012: Exhibited in ''Heaven or Hell'', ], Paris.<ref>http://www.bnf.fr/documents/cp_witkin_en.pdf</ref>


== Notes == == Notes ==
{{reflist|refs=
{{Reflist}}
<ref name="R2">{{Cite web
| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtylzIiMJN0
| archive-url = https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/PtylzIiMJN0
| archive-date = 2021-12-12 | url-status = live
| title = Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye (Bonus Scene: Vietnam/JFK)
| date = December 22, 2013 | via = YouTube}}{{cbignore}}
</ref>
<ref name="R3">{{cite web
| url = http://www.ethertongallery.com/html/artist_detail.php?recordID=10
| title = Etherton Gallery - Joel-Peter Witkin
| website = www.ethertongallery.com | url-status = dead
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111029003218/http://ethertongallery.com/html/artist_detail.php?recordID=10
| archive-date = 2011-10-29}}
</ref>
<ref name="renegadeartists">{{cite web
| last = Storck | first = Jeanne
| title = Band of Outsiders: Williamsburg's Renegade Artists
| publisher = Billburg.com | year = 2001
| url = http://www.billburg.com/localcolor/content.cfm?id=134
| access-date = 2007-08-19
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070928043826/http://www.billburg.com/localcolor/content.cfm?id=134
| archive-date = 2007-09-28 | url-status = dead }}
</ref>
<ref name="Jewish Virtual Library">{{Cite web
| url = https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/joel-peter-witkin
| title = Joel-Peter Witkin | website = www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org}}
</ref>
<ref name="R4">{{Cite web
| url = https://cyclopsblog.com/2011/12/02/joel-peter-witkin-an-objective-eye/
| title = Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye | first = Juli | last = Lowe
| date = December 2, 2011}}
</ref>
<ref name=autogenerated1> {{webarchive
| url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130812024853/http://www.mnba.cl/Vistas_Publicas/publicNoticias/noticiasPublicDetalle.aspx?idNoticia=43563
| date = August 12, 2013 }}
</ref>
<ref name="R6">{{Cite web
| last = Gould | first = Rachel | date = 2018-06-15
| title = A Poignant Documentary Examines the Tension Between Photographer Joel-Peter Witkin and His Identical Twin, Painter Jerome Witkin
| url = https://news.artnet.com/art-world/documentary-film-witkin-witkin-1301411
| access-date = 2021-11-05 | website = Artnet News | language = en-US}}
</ref>
<ref name="R8"> {{webarchive
| url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100516004016/http://en.fotografiska.eu/The-Museum/Exhibitions/Bodies
| date = May 16, 2010 }}
</ref>
<ref name="R12">{{Cite web
| url = https://www.bnf.fr/fr/presse | title = Espace presse
| website = BnF – Site institutionnel| date = April 4, 2023
}}
</ref>
}}


== External links == == External links ==
*{{Official website|https://www.brucesilverstein.com/artists/joel-peter-witkin}}
*
* at correnticalde.com
*
* * at zonezero.com
* at art-forum.org
*
* ''The Journal of Joel-Peter Witkin'' at 21stphotography.com
* {{worldcat id|id=lccn-n85-226358}}
* essay at mathilda-herve.blogspot.com
* ''The Journal of Joel-Peter Witkin''
* at witkinmovie.com
* essay
*
*


{{Authority control|VIAF=111408951}} {{Authority control (arts)}}


{{Persondata
| NAME = Witkin, Joel-Peter
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American photographer
| DATE OF BIRTH = September 13, 1939
| PLACE OF BIRTH = Brooklyn, New York
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Witkin, Joel-Peter}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Witkin, Joel-Peter}}
] ]
] ]
] ]
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]

Latest revision as of 00:25, 17 November 2024

American photographer

Joel-Peter Witkin
Witkin in 2009
Born (1939-09-13) September 13, 1939 (age 85)
Brooklyn, New York City
OccupationPhotographer
FamilyJerome Witkin (identical twin brother)
Websitewww.joelpeterwitkin.com

Joel-Peter Witkin (born September 13, 1939) is an American photographer who lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His work often deals with themes such as death, corpses (and sometimes dismembered portions thereof), often featuring ornately decorated photographic models, including people with dwarfism, transgender and intersex persons, as well as people living with a range of physical features. Witkin is often praised for presenting these figures in poses which celebrate and honor their physiques in an elevated, artistic manner. Witkin's complex tableaux vivants often recall religious episodes or classical paintings.

Biography

Witkin was born to a Jewish father and Roman Catholic mother. His twin brother, Jerome Witkin, and son Kersen Witkin, are also painters. Witkin's parents divorced when he was young because they were unable to overcome their religious differences. He attended grammar school at Saint Cecelia's in Brooklyn and went on to Grover Cleveland High School.

In 1961 Witkin enlisted in the United States Army, with the intention of capturing war photography during the Vietnam War. However due to scheduling conflicts, Witkin never saw combat in Vietnam. Witkin spent his military service at Fort Hood, Texas, and was mostly in charge of Public Information and classified photos.

In 1967, he became the official photographer for City Walls Inc. He attended Cooper Union in New York, where he studied sculpture, attaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974. Columbia University granted him a scholarship for graduate school, but his Master of Fine Arts degree is from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.

Influences and themes

Witkin claims that his vision and sensibility spring from an episode he witnessed as a young child, an automobile accident in front of his house in which a little girl was decapitated.

It happened on a Sunday when my mother was escorting my twin brother and me down the steps of the tenement where we lived. We were going to church. While walking down the hallway to the entrance of the building, we heard an incredible crash mixed with screaming and cries for help. The accident involved three cars, all with families in them. Somehow, in the confusion, I was no longer holding my mother's hand. At the place where I stood at the curb, I could see something rolling from one of the overturned cars. It stopped at the curb where I stood. It was the head of a little girl. I bent down to touch the face, to speak to it – but before I could touch it someone carried me away

He says his family's difficulties also influenced his work. His favorite artist is Giotto. His photographic techniques draw on early Daguerreotypes and on the work of E. J. Bellocq.

Those of Witkin's works which use corpses have had to be created in Mexico to get around restrictive US laws. Because of the transgressive nature of the contents of his images, his works have been labelled exploitative and have sometimes shocked public opinion.

His techniques include scratching the negative, bleaching or toning the print, and using a hands-in-the-chemicals printing technique. This experimentation began after seeing a 19th-century ambrotype of a woman and her ex-lover who had been scratched from the frame.

Joel-Peter Witkin's photograph Sanitarium inspired the final presentation of Alexander McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2001 collection based on avian imagery, the walls of another box within the faux psychiatric ward collapsed to reveal a startling tableau vivant: a reclining, masked nude breathing through a tube and surrounded by fluttering moths.

Documentary films

In 2011, filming began on the feature-length documentary, Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye. The film, directed by Thomas Marino, examines Witkin's life and photographs. Along with interviews with Witkin, the film includes interviews from gallery owners, artists, photographers, and scholars who share insight into the impact of Witkin's work and influence on modern culture. The film was released in 2013. It will be part of the permanent collections at the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, and the Biblioteca Nacional de Chile in Santiago, Chile.

Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye was first publicly shown in Santiago, Chile at the Biblioteca Nacional de Chile in 2013, as part of the opening of the exhibition, Vanitas: Joel-Peter Witkin en Chile.

In 2017, a documentary about him and his brother, Jerome Witkin, was made by Trisha Ziff, entitled Witkin and Witkin.

Publications

  • Gods of Heaven and Earth. Twelvetrees, 1989. ISBN 9780942642391.
  • Joel-Peter Witkin, Twelve Photographs in Gravure (1994)
  • Harms Way: Lust and Madness, Murder and Mayhem. Twin Palms, 1994. ISBN 9780944092286.
  • Joel-Peter Witkin: a Retrospective. Scalo: 1995. ISBN 978-1881616207.

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Group exhibitions

Collections

Witkin's work is held in the following permanent collections:

Films about Witkin

  • Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye (2013) – feature-length documentary directed by Thomas Marino
  • Witkin and Witkin (2017) – feature-length documentary directed by Trisha Ziff, about Witkin and his brother Jerome

Notes

  1. ^ "Joel-Peter Witkin". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org.
  2. ^ "Brothers Jerome and Joel-Peter Witkin and their 'Twin Visions'". Los Angeles Times. August 26, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  3. "Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye (Bonus Scene: Vietnam/JFK)". December 22, 2013. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021 – via YouTube.
  4. "Etherton Gallery - Joel-Peter Witkin". www.ethertongallery.com. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011.
  5. Storck, Jeanne (2001). "Band of Outsiders: Williamsburg's Renegade Artists". Billburg.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved August 19, 2007.
  6. Lowe, Juli (December 2, 2011). "Joel-Peter Witkin: An Objective Eye".
  7. ^ Archived August 12, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  8. Gould, Rachel (June 15, 2018). "A Poignant Documentary Examines the Tension Between Photographer Joel-Peter Witkin and His Identical Twin, Painter Jerome Witkin". Artnet News. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  9. "Brooklyn Museum". www.brooklynmuseum.org. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  10. McDonald, Robert (March 21, 1987). "Art Review : witkin's perverse photos fail as art". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  11. Archived May 16, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  12. "Espace presse". BnF – Site institutionnel. April 4, 2023.
  13. "Joel Peter Witkin". The Art Institute of Chicago. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  14. "You searched for Joel-Peter%20Witkin". High Museum of Art. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  15. "Joel-Peter Witkin (The J. Paul Getty Museum Collection)". The J. Paul Getty Museum Collection. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  16. "The raft of George W. Bush". Library of Congress. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  17. witkin, joel-peter. "Search results from Witkin, Joel-Peter". Library of Congress. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  18. "Joel-Peter Witkin - LACMA Collections". collections.lacma.org. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  19. "Witkin, Joel-Peter". www.museoreinasofia.es. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  20. "Search". philamuseum.org. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  21. "Search the Collection - Princeton University Art Museum". artmuseum.princeton.edu. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  22. "Witkin, Joel Peter". SFMOMA. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  23. "Joel-Peter Witkin - Smithsonian American Art Museum". americanart.si.edu. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  24. Grrr.nl. "Joel Peter Witkin". www.stedelijk.nl. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  25. "Joel-Peter Witkin". whitney.org. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  26. ""Witkin and Witkin" -The wit of it all [MOVIE REVIEW]". Easy Reader News. September 29, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2023.

External links

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