The varied works of photographer Herman Leonard-best known for his iconic images of jazz deities like Billie Holiday, Miles Davis and Duke Ellington-has been collected and published by Scala. Jazz, Giants and Journeys: The Photography of Herman Leonard compiles not only gorgeous black and white photos of swing and bebop legends in action and in repose, but also portraits of celebrities, fashion models, New York City street scenes, exotic locales and war. The hardcover is 240 pages and sells for $60; it includes 200 photographs and an introduction by Quincy Jones.
Born in Allentown, PA in 1923, Leonard became engrossed in the world of photography at a very early age and pursued it throughout his youth, taking pictures in college and when he served in the United States Army Medical Corps in Burma. He traveled extensively and earned assignments to photograph many significant cultural figures and celebrities, among them Albert Einstein, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Marlon Brando, Brigitte Bardot and Marilyn Monroe. However, it is with his portrayals of jazz legends where his technical expertise and eye for composition and detail really shone, especially in fascinating live settings. Jazz Giants and Journeys anthologizes the very best of these images, transporting the viewer to a time and place immortalized in stories and on records.
Leonard continues to work in his new hometown of Los Angeles, after Hurricane Katrina destroyed his previous home and studio in New Orleans. Consider this book a tribute to a living legend of modern photography.
(Photo by Carezani)
Originally Published