Elliott Erwitt
(1928 - 2023)

Elliott Erwitt was born in Paris in 1928 to a Russian family. He spent his childhood in Milan. In 1939, his family immigrated to the United States. In 1951, he was drafted into the Army, where he performed photographer's duties during his service in Germany and France. In New York, Erwitt met Edward Steichen, Robert Capa, and Roy Stryker, the former Director of the Farm Security Administration’s information division. Stryker initially hired Erwitt to work on a photography project for the Standard Oil Company, where he created a photo library for the company. Elliott also completed a project for the Pittsburgh Photographic Library. In 1953, Erwitt joined the team of Magnum Photos. He also worked as a freelance photographer for Collier’s, Look, LIFE, Holiday, and other famous publications. In the late 1960s, Erwitt became the president of Magnum Photos and held the position for three years. Despite regular criticism towards Erwitt and the use of such characterizations as ‘shallow’ or ‘frivolous’ regarding his work, he remains one of the most popular and sought-after photographers. His images have been published in at least 19 books and exhibited in museums all around the world. Erwitt was awarded the Royal Photographic Society’s Centenary Medal and an honorary fellowship (HonFRPS) in 2002 in recognition of a sustained, significant contribution to the art of photography. In 2011, he received the International Center for Photography’s Infinity Award for Lifetime Achievement.

SANTA MONICA (CALIFORNIAN KISS). 
1955
Photograph
A special signed and oversized silver print was on auction at Sotheby’s in 2019
https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2019/photographs-2/elliott-erwitt-california-kiss-santa-monica-1955
https://www.elliotterwitt.com/