The Power of Photography

We are all photographers. The ubiquitous and excellent cameras everyone carries daily, even if we think of the device as just our phone, puts this artform literally at our fingertips as if we all walked around with a canvas, easel and paintbrushes in our pocket. 

But some photographs transcend the genre, and through their subject matter, composition, vantage point or artistry, become cultural touchstones, part of our shared consciousness. Now an exhibit at the Naples Art Institute offers the opportunity to stroll among a carefully curated selection of such important and beautiful images. 

The Power of Photography, at the Art Institute gallery off Fifth Avenue South through April 28 features a treasure trove of photographs, some famous and instantly recognizable, and some by photographers you or I have never heard of. There are classic images, like the portrait of Winston Churchill by Yousuf Karsh, where the photographer produced the classic Churchill “bulldog” expression by reaching out and plucking the cigar from the prime minister’s mouth just before snapping the shutter. 

The haunting face of the green-eyed Afghan girl that became a memorable National Geographic cover, a radiant Audrey Hepburn surrounded by a sea of flowers, and Muhammad Ali knocking out Sonny Liston are just a few of the images staring back at you from the walls within the exhibit. In all, The Power of Photography comprises 122 photographs, all of them from the collection of British collector Peter Fetterman. 

Reached in Tokyo, where he is making arrangements for a Japanese tour of the show, Fetterman spoke of how he selected these particular photos from his collection of roughly 7,000 prints. 

“All the images spoke to me at a certain time in my life. They moved me – that was the criteria,” he said. “It’s about the impact a photograph has on you.” 

The photos in the exhibit span the history of the medium, from early Daguerreotypes and platinum or palladium prints, including still lifes and a classic shot of Abraham Lincoln before he was elected president, to more modern historical figures such as Queen Elizabeth II, Maya Angelou, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. 

Many of the images feature notable musicians, from Igor Stravinsky, Billie Holiday, John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Joni Mitchell skating in a black cape, and a shirtless Bruce Springsteen from 1974. 

The great majority of the photos are from the twentieth century and are in black and white. 

“I love black and white photography,” said Claudia Healy of Naples and Kentucky, viewing a 1948 gelatin silver print by William Heick entitled “Hats, Father’s Day Picnic.” “I got my first SLR in 1977 and I was always shooting black and white.”

Many of the photographers became friends and mentors to Fetterman, including one of the greatest photographers of all time, Henri Cartier-Bresson, who along with his wife Martine became like family to him.

“Henri Cartier-Bresson was my photo god, and he and his wife adopted me. I had to pinch myself. It’s like, if you love painting, and you get to meet Rembrandt.” 

With his concept of “the decisive moment,” Cartier-Bresson revolutionized photography, said Frank Verpoorten, executive director and chief curator of the Naples Art Institute. Shot with a 35 mm Leica, what was then considered a miniature camera, in the early days of handheld photography, Cartier-Bresson’s images showed that anyone could shoot a classic photograph, or for that matter, afford to buy one. 

“It fascinates me how they captured people in their natural setting,” said Verpoorten of the photographers whose work is represented. “They were documenting life as it is. One of the points we’re making with this exhibit is that photography is such a democratic medium. Everyone can own an image, whereas you or I cannot hope to own a Modigliani (painting).” 

While the Power of Photography exhibit has been very popular during its stay in Naples, there is still plenty of room in the gallery for you to commune with a single photograph, such as the poignant shot of Anne Frank’s father, the only one of the family to survive the Holocaust and concentration camp, back in their wartime apartment.

That image was captured by Arnold Newman, a famous photographer; another legendary lensman, Ansel Adams, is represented not by his renowned Western landscapes but by an intimate study of three children in a California migrant camp. And by no means are all the images from the cameras of revered shooters. “Some of my favorite photos are by that great photographer, Anonymous,” said Fetterman. 

He complimented the Naples Art Institute and its curator on how the images are laid out and displayed. “Frank installed it beautifully,” he said. There is a companion book on sale at the institute.

Once the Power of Photography exhibit closes on April 28, their next show will be “Childhood Classics: 100 Years of Children’s Book Illustration,” from May through August. 

The Naples Art Institute is located at 585 Park St. in downtown Naples. For more information, call 239-262-6512 or go online to naplesart.org.