Photographer of Stars SAM SHAW (1912–1999)
Prague City Gallery
House of Photography, Revoluční 5, Prague 1
11 October 2016 – 15 January 2017
Tuesday – Sunday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.; Thursday: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Curator: Thomas Buchsteiner
American photographer Sam Shaw is internationally recognized for his photographs of films and movie
stars – he has created one of the most widely seen photographs taken in the 20th century featuring
Marilyn Monroe with a flying skirt, but his interests and talents covered a wide array of subjects
including music, theater, sculpture, painting, literature, journalism and social and political activism.
His career as a photojournalist began in the 1940s with Collier’s magazine, which allowed him to travel
throughout the United States documenting the lives of coal miners, sharecroppers, burlesque performers,
longshoremen, New Orleans’ musicians, and other everyday people and circumstances. These soulful
photographs comprise Shaw’s “Americana” collection; a large body of images depicting American life in the
mid-20th century. Shaw was also an early contributor to the prestigious photographic agency, Magnum
Photos.
In the early 1950s Sam Shaw had begun working in the film industry and made his name as a masterful
promoter of many films and actors. He captured countless stars of the cinema, including Woody Allen,
Warren Beatty, Alfred Hitchcock, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren, Charlie Chaplin, Sean Connery, Dennis
Hopper, Audrey Hepburn, Frank Sinatra and many more. His photographs appeared often on the cover of
Life and Look magazines, as well as in Paris Match, L’Europeo, The Daily Mail, Der Stern, Harper’s Bazaar,
and Connaissance des Arts. In addition to the above-mentioned iconic image of Marilyn Monroe, which
came into being during filming The Seven Year Itch (1955), Shaw photographed Marlon Brando in a ripped
T-shirt – a portrait that came to symbolize A Streetcar Named Desire (1951).
In the 1960s, Shaw started producing films such as Paris Blues, starring Paul Newman, Sidney Poitier and
Louis Armstrong. His good friend, Duke Ellington, wrote the score for the film. He also worked closely with
actor-director John Cassavetes, who is widely acknowledged to be the father of American independent
cinema. Shaw produced many of Cassavetes’s films including Gloria, which won the Venice Film Festival’s
Golden Lion, Love Streams, which was awarded the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, and A Woman
Under the Influence, which received many awards and was nominated for Best Actress and Best Director at
the 1975 Academy Awards. In addition, Shaw produced Cassavetes’s Husbands, and Opening Night, and
was the production designer for A Killing of a Chinese Bookie.
Prague City Gallery is one of the most important galleries in the Czech Republic, which in its exhibition activity focuses in
particular on modern and contemporary art. It collects, protects and professionally processes art collections of the City of
Prague. Currently, the Prague City Gallery exhibits in eight buildings: The Stone Bell House, The Golden Ring House, Municipal
nd
Library – 2 floor, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace, The House of Photography, Villa Bílek, Troja Château and František Bílek’s House
in Chýnov.
His photographic archive contains a who’s who of classic American and European cinema, as well as
musicians, artists, intellectuals, and other well-known individuals, such as Marc Chagall, Arthur Miller,
Marcel Duchamp, Igor Stravinsky, Joe DiMaggio, Irving Berlin, Tennessee Williams, and Deborah Harry
(Blondie).
Today, Sam Shaw’s legacy and work is preserved and promoted by his children and grandchildren.
Prague City Gallery is one of the most important galleries in the Czech Republic, which in its exhibition activity focuses in
particular on modern and contemporary art. It collects, protects and professionally processes art collections of the City of
Prague. Currently, the Prague City Gallery exhibits in eight buildings: The Stone Bell House, The Golden Ring House, Municipal
nd
Library – 2 floor, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace, The House of Photography, Villa Bílek, Troja Château and František Bílek’s House
in Chýnov.
Photographer of Stars SAM SHAW (1912–1999)
Organized by Prague City Gallery in collaboration with Shaw Family Archives
Exhibition Curator: Thomas Buchsteiner
Coordination of the Exhibition: Olga Malá
Exhibition Architect: Jan Šerých
Graphic Design: Petra Vaňousová, Běla Houdková
Copy Editing and Translation: Vladimíra Šefranka Žáková
Head of Installation and Production: Diana Brabcová
Head of Marketing: Miroslav Koláček
Head of Public Relations: Michaela Vrchotová
Head of Educational Programs: Lucie Haškovcová
Acknowledgements:
Shaw Family Archives
BuchsteinerArtManagement
Media Partners: Instinkt, Art&Antiques, ArtMap, Český rozhlas, Radio 1, PRAGUEEVENTSCALENDAR
Venue: House of Photography, Revoluční 5, Prague 1
Term: 11 October 2016 – 15 January 2017
Opening Hours: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.; Thursday: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Entrance Fee: CZK 120 full (adults) / CZK 60 reduced (students) / CZK 30 (senior citizens)
Contact Person for Journalists: Michaela Vrchotová, +420 725 818 721, [email protected]
More Information: www.ghmp.cz
Prague City Gallery is one of the most important galleries in the Czech Republic, which in its exhibition activity focuses in
particular on modern and contemporary art. It collects, protects and professionally processes art collections of the City of
Prague. Currently, the Prague City Gallery exhibits in eight buildings: The Stone Bell House, The Golden Ring House, Municipal
nd
Library – 2 floor, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace, The House of Photography, Villa Bílek, Troja Château and František Bílek’s House
in Chýnov.
ACCOMPANYING PROGRAMS
Guided tours:
Curator-guided tour with Olga Malá
Thursday, 27 October, 6 p.m.
Thursday, 24 November, 6 p.m.
Weekend Art Workshops:
Sat 12 November, 1–6 p.m – Starring Role, Education Center, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace
Sat 10 December, 1–6 p.m – Advertising and Illusions, House of Photography
The source of inspiration for workshops and educational activities will be not only exhibited photos, but
the starting points will also consist of topics such as the world of film, movie stars, celebrities and pop art
and advertising in general. By using the form of collages, photomontages and sketching we will change the
context of iconic photos and give them new meanings – this way, reproductions of famous images will
become, for example, a part of design of an advertising leaflet, poster or other promotional materials
highlighting a fictitious product, a cultural event and the like. We will also transform the color scheme of
photographs in the style of pop art and in doing so we will also employ the elements of comics. Another
topic will be a stylized portrait and its realization – we will try to imitate the postures, gestures, facial
expressions and expressions on the faces of the photographed people and their costumes, and possibly the
surrounding environment. For more concise and illuminating confrontation we will use large screen
projection of selected photos, to which visitors will create their own parallels. At the same time, the
blowing up through this new medium will also evoke large screens in movie theaters.
Art Studio for Adults and Senior Citizens:
Sun 13 November, 3–6 p.m – Kinetic Image, Education Center, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace
Sun 27 November, 3–6 p.m – Archive of Photographic Records, Education Center, Colloredo-Mansfeld
Palace
Within the art studio we will respond to the author of the exhibition and focus on creating kinetic images.
The subject matter of the workshop will be snapshots of life in motion, capturing kinetic beauty.
Thematically, we will deal with iconic images of celebrities and the visual appearance of magazines. We will
also give attention to documenting particular moments of lives of participants in the workshop. The result
will be a collection or archives processed in the form of photo books, participants’ own forms and soughtafter perspectives of photographic records.
Weekend programs are part of the popular series “Creative Dialogues with Art” and are intended for
children, families with children and other interested parties of all ages, including the elderly and
disadvantaged. The arrival and departure is optional – i.e., whenever within the scheduled time.
Reservation by 4:00 p.m. on the day before the event (participation without reservation is possible)
Interactive tours of the exhibition for all types of schools and other age and interest groups with the
possibility of subsequent creative response in the form of their own work. We adapt the events in terms of
time, theme and performance levels according to the specific requirements of each school.
Reservation required
Prague City Gallery is one of the most important galleries in the Czech Republic, which in its exhibition activity focuses in
particular on modern and contemporary art. It collects, protects and professionally processes art collections of the City of
Prague. Currently, the Prague City Gallery exhibits in eight buildings: The Stone Bell House, The Golden Ring House, Municipal
nd
Library – 2 floor, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace, The House of Photography, Villa Bílek, Troja Château and František Bílek’s House
in Chýnov.
Price: Children under 10, students of art schools, teachers – CZK 5; children over 10 years CZK 20
In addition to the above-mentioned events, there will be other educational activities for other groups of
visitors, such as the disadvantaged and parents on maternity and/or parental leave and their children.
Contact Person: Lucie Haškovcová, [email protected], 606 612 987, 608 216 418
Prague City Gallery is one of the most important galleries in the Czech Republic, which in its exhibition activity focuses in
particular on modern and contemporary art. It collects, protects and professionally processes art collections of the City of
Prague. Currently, the Prague City Gallery exhibits in eight buildings: The Stone Bell House, The Golden Ring House, Municipal
nd
Library – 2 floor, Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace, The House of Photography, Villa Bílek, Troja Château and František Bílek’s House
in Chýnov.