Monk, Thelonious Sphere. (1917–1982) [Quackenbush, Doug]
Two Original Photographs
Two original doubleweight photographs of the influential American jazz pianist and composer, captured by photographer Doug Quackenbush ca. 1964. One photograph shows Monk in coat and hat from behind, while in the other he appears to be dancing or conducting in a mostly-empty studio. Stamped on the verso with photographer's credit. In fine condition, each 8 x 10 inches (20.4 x 25.2 cm).Doug Quackenbush worked as a fashion photographer, but spent his spare time photographing jazz musicians. He was a devoted fan of Thelonious Monk and, by a lucky encounter, became Monk's dedicated fly-on-the-wall photographer for three months in the summer of 1964. Biographer Robin Kelley writes: "He took over six hundred shots of Thelonious, in black-and-white and color, creating one of the most comprehensive and compelling visual portraits of the man—second only to Nica's collection of Polaroids taken over the course of two decades." Kelley quotes Quackenbush as recalling: "Here was a man 'being himself,'... not just in his music, but in his whole being. He looked the way he sounded, whether he was playing or dancing. I decided that I wanted to make pictures of what that looked like." (Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original, p. 361). (16350)
Unsigned Photograph Jazz