Found at Auction: The Unseen Photographs of a Legend that Never Was

de bene esse: literally, of well-being, morally acceptable but subject to future validation or exception

Picture that possibly the most important street photographer of the 20th century was a 1950s children’s nanny who kept to herself and never showed  one of her photographs. Decades later in 2007, a Chicago real estate agent and historical hobbyist, John Maloof purchased a box of never-seen, never-developed film negatives of an unknown ‘amateur’ photographer for $380 at his local auction house.

John began developing his new collection of some 100,000 negatives, abandoned in a Chicago storage locker before they landed in an auction house. It became clear these were no ordinary street snaps of 1950s & 60s Chicago and New York. John embarked on a journey to find who was behind the photographs and soon discovered her name: Vivien Maier.

A self portrait:

Before he could reach her, to John’s great dismay, he found her obituary notice in the Chicago Tribune in 2009. She had slipped on ice the previous winter, suffered a head injury and never recovered. She was 83 years-old.

Since then, the work of this incredibly talented and mysteriously private woman has  rocked the art world, receiving international media attention along with exhibitions everywhere including London, New York, Los Angeles, Chiago, Hamburg and Oslo.

The anticipated new documentary:

Now, the owner of that box of negatives has made a documentary film about the discovery of a lost talent and the path to Finding Vivian Maier. The film is scheduled for release in 2013. 

The film’s release will answer many burning questions, although many details of Vivian’s life remains unknown, most likely as she wanted it. Bits of information indicate Vivian was born in New York and raised in France, exact location unknown. Records show young Vivian and her mother lived with Jeanne J. Bertrand, a French pioneer of photography who knew the founder of the Whitney Museum of American Art. It is highly possible that Vivian developed her secret talent from Jeanne Bertrand. And yet, she remained undiscovered.

In 1951, Vivian moved to New York at 25 years-old and worked in a sweat shop until she  became a nanny for the next 40 years on and off.  On days off, she walked the streets of Chicago or New York, using her Rollieflex camera, photographing well-dressed shoppers to homeless people and even her own reflection.

Vivian’s story is inspirational in many ways. In a modern climate of celebrity culture, it is rare to hear of someone not in it for the money or fame. For Vivian it was her curiosity, love for her city and the thrill of taking a picture.

Images from John Maloof’s Vivian Maier collection