Exhibition: The Met

From the 8th of June until the 17th October 2010, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York held a Leon Levinstein exhibition titled 'Hipster, Hustlers and Handball Players: Leon Levistein's New York Photographs, 1950-1980.' I happened to be visiting my sister in New York in August and got to go see this exhibition! The collection was donated to the Met in 2009 and this was its first time on display to the public. Below are some of my favourite images from the exhibition:

The top image of the two handball players in action is probably the most remarkable photograph of the collection. The black pants, their physique and posture make them look like ballet dancers. Taken just as the man in the foreground is throwing the ball and his feet are lifting off the ground, energy and movement is caught on camera. Composition and balance are perfected in this photograph and Henri-Cartier Bresson would have been envious of Levinstein's decisive moment!

Walking through the exhibition, the space was intimate yet the photographs stood tall. After reading a lot more about him since the exhibition, I can't help but think his photographs finally reached the place they belong - out in the open and viewed by thousands.