Lights! Camera! Glamour!
Most photographers who have delved into glamour photography know who George Hurrell is. He is the master of lighting behind glamour photography in Hollywood. The Walt Disney Family Museum is honoring George Hurell by putting on a special exhibition called Lights! Glamour! Action!- the photography of George Hurrell.
This is a selection of rare, vintage prints from George Edward Hurrell (1904–1992)—one of America’s finest photographers whose professional career had a worldwide impact that continues to this day.
Hurrell is credited with creating the standard for the idealized Hollywood glamour portrait. Always an innovator, he invented the boom light and developed several—now standard—lighting techniques. Hurrell’s signature use of precision lighting, spotlights, shadows, and hand-retouching on the negatives produced romantic portraits that became his trademark style and the definition of glamour for the movie industry. This influential look became known as “Hurrell style.”
This exhibition features more than 50 prints and objects—some of which have never been published and several of which have not been seen in more than 80 years. Lights! Camera! Glamour! highlights Hurrell’s impact as a photographer and the achievements of his unique and extraordinary eight-decade career.
While most of the country suffered during the Great Depression in the 1930s, the movie industry thrived. During this time especially, Hurrell’s photographs did more than just promote a film or a celebrity; for many, the glamour, romance, and drama of these photos provided a momentary mental escape from difficult times.
Source: Walt Disney Family Museum
