Arnold Genthe

American, 1869-1942

Birth LocationGermany

BiographyGerman American photographer Arnold Genthe (1869-1942) remains highly regarded for his turn-of-the-century documentation of San Francisco’s Chinatown and his elegant, perceptive celebrity portraiture.

After completing his doctorate in classical philology at the University of Jena, Germany (1894), Genthe took a position as a private tutor in San Francisco. Genthe taught himself photography during his employment and subsequently explored the city’s streets with his camera. The predominantly Chinese district captivated Genthe, and he regularly photographed its streetlife with a hidden camera. His photographs are regarded today as the only surviving photographic record of this community at the turn of the century. Genthe’s increasing passion for photography led him to open his own San Francisco portrait studio in 1897, and by 1901, he was among the most popular portraitists in the city. Through his profession, Genthe made many connections in the city’s social scene, and photographed socialites, artists, celebrities, and politicians. While the great 1906 earthquake destroyed his studio and many of his negatives, his eloquent photographs of the city in crisis still provide some of the disaster’s most insightful documentation.

Genthe moved to New York City in 1911 to expand his portraiture business and take on magazine, newspaper, and advertising work. His innovative approach to portraiture, experimentation with the new autochrome (color photography) process, and cosmopolitan charm quickly caught the attention of New York’s artistic, literary, and publishing circles. Among his illustrious subjects, Genthe is recognized today for his evocative photographs of modern dancers and actresses that relied upon soft light, selective focus, and his ability to put sitters at ease. In his quest to capture “human essence” through photography, Genthe made iconic images of many prominent cultural and political celebrities during the 1910s-30s. In addition to TMA’s collection, Genthe’s work can be found at numerous public institutions, including the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; National Portrait Gallery, London; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Brooklyn Museum; J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Art Institute of Chicago; and Princeton University Art Museum, among others. The Library of Congress, Washington, DC holds the contents of Genthe’s estate in its collection.

Person TypeIndividual

Terms