Patrick Faigenbaum
Patrick Faigenbaum is a Parisian portraitist photographer, born in Paris in 1954. He studied painting and drawing from 1968 until 1973, when he began exploring the medium of photography. As a young photographer, Faigenbaum was influenced by the work of Richard Avedon, W. Eugene Smith, and Bill Brandt. During a visit with Brandt in 1976, Faigenbaum was advised to photograph his subjects in their natural environment instead of a stark studio space. He began by taking portraits of his friends and family and eventually evolved beyond the familiar Parisian middle-class to the Italian aristocracy. His portraiture during this period typically features frontal figures that are carefully arranged to emphasize the relationship between them and their surroundings. Faigenbaum's portraiture of Italian aristocratic families references the age-old tradition of portraiture in painting. It acknowledges the history of these families and their everyday surroundings. More recently, Faigenbaum has turned towards a more documentary style and still lifes.
Patrick Faigenbaum is featured in Edition: Guest Editor, Wes Gordon
