Richard Neutra's Kaufman House (1946) in Palm Springs, California. Located at 740 W. Chino Canyon Road, Palm Springs
When you think of architectural photography, the only thought that comes to mind is buildings, and pictures. You are actually right on the mark, and Julius Shulman was the man to call for those pictures. What was once a stark and somewhat boring occupation, Shulman snapped his way to the top, completely unanticipated, and became the most widely known architectural photographer, with most of his work being photographed in Palm Springs, California.
The main rule in this type of photography is to keep people out of your pictures. Shulman took that idea, and turned it completely around and began including people, in small personal groups, in his photos. Not only did he help to usher in the beauty of Modern Architecture, but also included the new way of showing a "lived-in" look. By including people in his images, he showed the coveted California dream of warm, balmy days and cool nights. These soon became some of his most famous photographs.
Born on October 10, 1910, Julius Shulman lived on a farm in Connecticut for 10 years until his family moved to California where, at the age of 26, he visited a home in the Hollywood Hills. This notorious visit was his first introduction to Modern Architect and quickly led to his future popularity for his pictures of this style. At this time, the overall sentiment was still that the pictures were about the buildings only, but Shulman was well on his way to changing that.
He was hired by many different architects to photograph their homes they designed and built, but mostly for capturing the beauty of the designs, as well as the glamour of the California life. He took the largely held beliefs that mass, space, and texture were the primary components of showing how a building was made, and merged them with the beauty of how the buildings were used as well. Thus followed his famous pictures with the inclusion of people. Some are of families enjoying their home; another is of several people having an intimate discussion during dinner. Shulman showed not only the amazing structure and style of the homes he photographed, but also the beauty of the lives within them.
More images by this photographer can be found on ArtNet.com
Image copyright Barbara Alfors 2000. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify under the GFDL, version 1.2 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover Texts.
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