Description

Whether photographing Hollywood icons like Grace Kelly or immigrants newly arrived in New York, photographer Dennis Stock had an extraordinary ability to capture the essence of the American experience. A Magnum photographer for over fifty years, Stock once said that “The heartbeat of good photography is discovery.” Here, Stock captures Grace Kelly in her dressing room trailer during the making of the film, High Society, directed by Charles Walters. Here, Dennis Stock captures the shadow of a plane in Playa del Rey, Los Angeles.

Photography occurs more readily when the photographer relinquishes self-consciousness for a state of humility and childlike wonderment.

Dennis Stock
© Dennis Stock | Magnum Photos

Dennis Stock was born in 1928 in New York City. At the age of 17, he left home to join the United States Navy. In 1947, he became an apprentice to Life magazine photographer Gjon Mili and won first prize in Life’s Young Photographers contest.

He joined Magnum in 1951. Stock evoked the spirit of America through his memorable and iconic portraits of Hollywood stars, most notably James Dean. Other notable projects include his work on the jazz scene and on the California free-loving counterculture of the 1960’s. In the 1990s he went back to his urban origins, exploring the modern architecture of large cities and his later work was mostly focused on the abstraction of flowers.

Dennis Stock resided in Woodstock, New York, until his death in 2010.

© Dennis Stock | Magnum Photos

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