Elias Goldensky - Studio Blindstamp, 1926
Maker: Elias Goldensky (1867-1943)
Born: Ukraine
Active: USA
Medium: blindstamp
Size:
Location: USA
Object No. 2017.157b
Shelf: A-1
Publication:
Other Collections:
Provenance:
Notes: "Wizard of Photography" Elias Goldensky was born in the small Ukrainian village of Radomysl on September 9, 1867. His father Benjamin was an oculist, and opened a photography studio in the commercial district of Kremenchug in the 1870s. After the assassination of Emperor Alexander II in 1881, the subsequent anti-Semitic pogroms resulted in oppressive living conditions for Jewish families like the Goldenskys. Elias attempted to supplement the family income by becoming a member of a local acting troupe. At the age of 23, he, his father, grandmother, and two younger brothers, emigrated to the United States, and settled in Philadelphia, which at the time was America's second largest city. Philadelphia was the natural choice because of its large Ukrainian Jewish population. Young Mr. Goldensky quickly joined William J. Kuebler Jr.'s portrait studio as a retoucher. Less than a year later, he began working for Frederick Gutekunst, and spent the next four years as a retoucher and part-time printer. In 1895, Mr. Goldensky opened his own studio, which had stiff competition from the city's more than 130 portrait studios. Despite its ghetto location, Mr. Goldensky's studio quickly earned a reputation for producing elegant portraits that soon grabbed the attention of Philadelphia's most elite citizens. Mr. Goldensky's photography studio remained profitable until World War I, when the business of portrait photography began a steady decline that bottomed out during the Great Depression. Nevertheless, he remained in demand as a photographic exhibitor, convention lecturer, and member of several photographic societies. Louis Walton Sipley named Mr. Goldensky to serve on the first board of directors of Philadelphia's American Museum of Photography in 1940. The photographic maverick dubbed the "Wizard of Photography" died from an asthmatic attack on March 10, 1943, and his massive personal archives of 1,500 prints and more than 1,600 negatives and transparencies were donated to the museum. After founder Louis Walton Sipley's death, his widow sold the museum's holdings to the 3M Company, which were donated to the George Eastman House in 1972.
To view our archive organized by themes and subjects, visit: OUR COLLECTIONS
For information about reproducing this image, visit: THE HISTORY OF PHOTOGRAPHY ARCHIVE
Elias Goldensky - Studio Blindstamp, 1926
Maker: Elias Goldensky (1867-1943)
Born: Ukraine
Active: USA
Medium: blindstamp
Size:
Location: USA
Object No. 2017.157b
Shelf: A-1
Publication:
Other Collections:
Provenance:
Notes: "Wizard of Photography" Elias Goldensky was born in the small Ukrainian village of Radomysl on September 9, 1867. His father Benjamin was an oculist, and opened a photography studio in the commercial district of Kremenchug in the 1870s. After the assassination of Emperor Alexander II in 1881, the subsequent anti-Semitic pogroms resulted in oppressive living conditions for Jewish families like the Goldenskys. Elias attempted to supplement the family income by becoming a member of a local acting troupe. At the age of 23, he, his father, grandmother, and two younger brothers, emigrated to the United States, and settled in Philadelphia, which at the time was America's second largest city. Philadelphia was the natural choice because of its large Ukrainian Jewish population. Young Mr. Goldensky quickly joined William J. Kuebler Jr.'s portrait studio as a retoucher. Less than a year later, he began working for Frederick Gutekunst, and spent the next four years as a retoucher and part-time printer. In 1895, Mr. Goldensky opened his own studio, which had stiff competition from the city's more than 130 portrait studios. Despite its ghetto location, Mr. Goldensky's studio quickly earned a reputation for producing elegant portraits that soon grabbed the attention of Philadelphia's most elite citizens. Mr. Goldensky's photography studio remained profitable until World War I, when the business of portrait photography began a steady decline that bottomed out during the Great Depression. Nevertheless, he remained in demand as a photographic exhibitor, convention lecturer, and member of several photographic societies. Louis Walton Sipley named Mr. Goldensky to serve on the first board of directors of Philadelphia's American Museum of Photography in 1940. The photographic maverick dubbed the "Wizard of Photography" died from an asthmatic attack on March 10, 1943, and his massive personal archives of 1,500 prints and more than 1,600 negatives and transparencies were donated to the museum. After founder Louis Walton Sipley's death, his widow sold the museum's holdings to the 3M Company, which were donated to the George Eastman House in 1972.
To view our archive organized by themes and subjects, visit: OUR COLLECTIONS
For information about reproducing this image, visit: THE HISTORY OF PHOTOGRAPHY ARCHIVE