Product Description
John Gutmann, D.O.S. Apology, Gelatin silver print, 1938
JOHN GUTMANN (1905-1998) USA
D.O.S. Apology 1938
Signed: 290.6, M 3 (in a circle), 5, © John Gutmann, SP, D.O.S. Apology 1938 (all in pencil on back of photo)
Framed size: H: 12 1/8“ x W: 14 3/8”
John Gutmann was a German-born American photographer and painter. After fleeing Nazi Germany to the United States, Gutmann acquired a job as a photographer for various German magazines. Gutmann quickly took an interest in the American way of life and sought to capture it through the lense of his camera. He especially took an interest in the Jazz music scene. Gutmann is recognized for his unique “worm’s-eye view” camera angle. He enjoyed taking photos of ordinary things and making them seem special.His work was shown in important galleries such as Castelli’s in NYC, Fraenkel in San Francisco, and the Centre National de la Photographie in Paris. After his death, Gutmann’s oeuvre was given to the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona.
John Gutmann, D.O.S. Apology, Gelatin silver print, 1938
TOMMI PARZINGER (1903-1981) Germany/USA
PARZINGER, INC. New York
Coffee table c.1939
Carved and ceruse oak with an incised diamond pattern pewter top
Illustrated: Arts and Decoration, June 1940
***This table was originally priced at $80 during the period, as it appears in the Arts and Decoration vintage illustration from 1940.
For other examples of Parzinger’s work see: Town & Country, Vol. 54, “Counter Points”, December 1939, p. 31; Town & Country, Vol. 95, “Counter Points”, June 1940, p. 19; The Studio, 1938, “For the Table”, p.107-09; The Studio, 1942, “Tommi Parzinger, Designer of Modern Interiors and Silver”, p.37; Decorative Art, Studio Yearbook (London & New York: The Studio Publications, 1952-53), p. 98; Craft in the Machine Age, ed. Janet Kardon (New York: American Craft Museum, 1995) p.128, 134, 183, 241.
H: 12” x L: 42” x D: 14”
Price: $34,500
This is a wonderful and rare coffee table by Tommi Parzinger in beautifully detailed ceruse oak with a diamond pattern pewter inset top. This table was
completely handmade and dates from 1940, shortly after Parzinger opened his first eponymous gallery on East 57th Street. It is low and lean with exquisite Neoclassical Revival carved details and a silhouette that calls to mind an American take on Jean Michel Frank’s sober and refined elegance of the same time period. The cross-hatch carving with tassels on the two long sides and the related top corner details also have a charm reminiscent of Parzinger’s affable personality and effervescent design sensibility.