Ilse Bing (Frankfurt, Germany 1899–1998 New York City, New York), Konrad Wolff, Hands, 1949, Gelatin silver print, 13 3/8 x 10 1/2 in., Gift of Suzanne Ciani (Class of 1968) 2018.265

This collection of 16 photographs are the first works by Ilse Bing to enter the collections at the Davis, representing an important early modernist female photographer. Ilse Bing was a self-taught photographer, whose approach to the art form was influenced by Bauhaus-trained figures like Florence Henry. She was born to a wealthy German family and began studying mathematics in school, eventually moving to Vienna for a doctoral program in architecture. Bing discovered her interest and talent in the medium while photographing buildings for her dissertation. Famous in 1930s Paris as the “queen of the Leica [camera],” she focused on small details of urban and daily life in her personal photography; professionally she produced commercial images for the French magazine industry. Her photograph Konrad Wolff, Hands illustrates her formalist technique, as the camera closes in on two hands playing a piano—the black and white of the piano keys contrast with the grey tones of the hands to create a dynamic composition of linear, oblique shapes. She often manipulated her prints, flipping them upside-down or turning them sideways to view their compositional narratives in new ways. This collection of photographs was originally purchased by Suzanne Ciani (Class of 1968) directly from the artist and from auctions, and was recently gifted to the Davis.