Diane Arbus
Photographer, Visual Artist
1923 – 1971
Who was Diane Arbus?
Diane Arbus was an American photographer and writer noted for black-and-white square photographs of "deviant and marginal people or of people whose normality seems ugly or surreal". Arbus believed that a camera could be "a little bit cold, a little bit harsh" but its scrutiny revealed the truth; the difference between what people wanted others to see and what they really did see – the flaws. A friend said that Arbus said that she was "afraid ... that she would be known simply as 'the photographer of freaks'"; however, that phrase has been used repeatedly to describe her.
In 1972, a year after she committed suicide, Arbus became the first American photographer to have photographs displayed at the Venice Biennale. Millions viewed traveling exhibitions of her work in 1972–1979. Between 2003 and 2006, Arbus and her work were the subjects of another major traveling exhibition, Diane Arbus Revelations. In 2006, the motion picture Fur, starring Nicole Kidman as Arbus, presented a fictional version of her life story.
We need you!
Help us build the largest biographies collection on the web!
- Born
- Mar 14, 1923
New York City - Also known as
- Diane Nemerov
- Parents
- Siblings
- Spouses
- Allan Arbus
(1941/04/10 - 1969)
- Allan Arbus
- Children
- Ethnicity
- Jewish people
- Nationality
- United States of America
- Profession
- Education
- Ethical Culture Fieldston School
- The New School
- Lived in
- New York City
- Died
- Jul 26, 1971
Greenwich Village
Submitted
on July 23, 2013
Citation
Use the citation below to add to a bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Diane Arbus." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Apr. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/diane_arbus>.
Discuss this Diane Arbus biography with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In