Helen Levitt, 1913-2009: What Do We Talk About When We Talk About New York

It would take someone like the late great Delmore Schwartz to honor Helen Levitt, who just died at 95, the way she'd really deserve: with our modest, limited means we can only say that Helen Levitt is to 20th Century New York what Dickens is to 19th Century London, and what Brunelleschi is to 15th Century Florence.

No one has depicted the life and the feeling of this great city, the feeling of, as Schwartz himself wrote, "Being amid six million souls, their breath / An empty song suppressed on every side", the way Levitt did in her images.

To Opera Chic, Helen Levitt is New York. She can't think of better praise for Levitt's work.

תנוח על משכבה בשלום

Comments

[Andrew Patner]

Here's Melissa Block's beautiful piece on Helen Levitt from yesterday's "All Things Considered on U.S. NPR. Block visited with and recorded Levitt at the photographer's apartment in 2001.

and here's an additional slideshow.

Thanks as ever for your words.

[Andrew Patner]

Not sure if links went through:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=102504602

http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2009/03/helen_levitt.html

[Miguel]

Amazing.

[Sandy]

I never knew about Helen Levitt. The photographs are delicious, and I foresee much pleasure in exploring her work.

Thank you again, dearest OC, for the many windows you open onto magic worlds. It would become monotonous to tell you everyday, but everyday I am grateful to you.