Johan Hagemeyer
Encyclopedia
Johan Hagemeyer was a Dutch born horticulturalist and vegetarian who is remembered primarily for being an early 20th century photographer and artistic intellectual. His family came to California to grow fruit trees, but in 1916 he met photographer Alfred Stieglitz
, who convinced him to devote his life to the then emerging world of artistic photography. In 1923 Hagemeyer opened a portrait studio in San Francisco and also built a summer studio in Carmel, California which soon became a meeting place for artists and intellectuals.
It was there that he met Edward Weston
, who encouraged Hagemeyer to further his career in photography. Hagemeyer soon developed his own style, and from the 20s through the 40s he photographed leading figures of the day, including Albert Einstein
and Salvador Dali
. However, he sometimes retouched or manipulated his photos, which went against the beliefs of Weston. His refusal to adhere to Weston's views was a major cause in a growing alienation of the two men. When Weston, Ansel Adams
and others founded Group f/64
, devoted to straight, unmanipulated photography, Hagemeyer did not join. Perhaps because of his determination to go his own way or perhaps because his style was never fully appreciated, he never came close to achieving the fame of his former friends. In 1947 he left Carmel and returned to San Francisco full-time. He died poor and virtually forgotten at age 78.
The Johan Hagemeyer Photograph Collection at the Bancroft Library
at the University of California, Berkeley, contains the approximately 6,785 photographic prints and negatives which made up the photographer's personal archive at the time of his death in 1962. A smaller collection of prints, negatives and correspondence is at the Center for Creative Photography
in Tucson, Arizona.
Alfred Stieglitz
Alfred Stieglitz was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his fifty-year career in making photography an accepted art form...
, who convinced him to devote his life to the then emerging world of artistic photography. In 1923 Hagemeyer opened a portrait studio in San Francisco and also built a summer studio in Carmel, California which soon became a meeting place for artists and intellectuals.
It was there that he met Edward Weston
Edward Weston
Edward Henry Weston was a 20th century American photographer. He has been called "one of the most innovative and influential American photographers…" and "one of the masters of 20th century photography." Over the course of his forty-year career Weston photographed an increasingly expansive set of...
, who encouraged Hagemeyer to further his career in photography. Hagemeyer soon developed his own style, and from the 20s through the 40s he photographed leading figures of the day, including Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
and Salvador Dali
Salvador Dalí
Salvador Domènec Felip Jacint Dalí i Domènech, Marquis de Púbol , commonly known as Salvador Dalí , was a prominent Spanish Catalan surrealist painter born in Figueres,Spain....
. However, he sometimes retouched or manipulated his photos, which went against the beliefs of Weston. His refusal to adhere to Weston's views was a major cause in a growing alienation of the two men. When Weston, Ansel Adams
Ansel Adams
Ansel Easton Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist, best known for his black-and-white photographs of the American West, especially in Yosemite National Park....
and others founded Group f/64
Group f/64
Group f/64 was a group of seven 20th century San Francisco photographers who shared a common photographic style characterized by sharp-focused and carefully framed images seen through a particularly Western viewpoint...
, devoted to straight, unmanipulated photography, Hagemeyer did not join. Perhaps because of his determination to go his own way or perhaps because his style was never fully appreciated, he never came close to achieving the fame of his former friends. In 1947 he left Carmel and returned to San Francisco full-time. He died poor and virtually forgotten at age 78.
The Johan Hagemeyer Photograph Collection at the Bancroft Library
Bancroft Library
The Bancroft Library is the primary special collections library of the University of California, Berkeley. It was acquired as a gift/purchase from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, with the proviso that it retain the name Bancroft Library in perpetuity...
at the University of California, Berkeley, contains the approximately 6,785 photographic prints and negatives which made up the photographer's personal archive at the time of his death in 1962. A smaller collection of prints, negatives and correspondence is at the Center for Creative Photography
Center for Creative Photography
The Center for Creative Photography , established in 1975 and located on the University of Arizona campus, is a research facility and archival repository containing the full archives of over sixty of the most famous American photographers including those of Edward Weston, Harry Callahan and Garry...
in Tucson, Arizona.