Helen Levitt

Well, I'm back from a 10 day break for the new year. Hope everyone had a great festive season. Now, on to the first post of 2007!...
Ms Levitt, born in 1913, was around during a time when the heat and the lack of television drove people into the streets of New York. Children played together, their parents worked and their grandparents sat in groups nearby. She concentrated especially on the working class suburbs and Spanish Harlem. These circumstances provided her with a fascinating backdrop to explore her interest in photography. She dropped out of school, learnt as much as she could while working with a commercial photographer in the Bronx and later began to teach art to children. Her most well-known shots are of the chalk drawings and ramblings on the walls and streets of New York. Although she has never been widely recognised by the public, she is highly respected by the photographic community. Check out the interview with her on the National Public Radio website.