Vivian Maier Photographs

Vivian Maier Self Portrait
Vivian Maier Self Portrait

I first heard about Vivian Maier on the This American Life special The Invisible Made Visible. Aside from all the other wonderful stories and performances on the special, was the work of a photographer I had never encountered before. If you haven’t heard the story about Vivian Maier’s photographs, I won’t ruin it here. I would urge you to download the special ($5 digitally) and watch the amazing story unfold.

Issues of Vivian’s posthumous privacy aside.

Needless to say, I was blown away. I have known of many photographers’ work that is arresting, but Vivian’s raw output is incredible. Over the course of her life, Vivian generated 100,000 to 150,000 negatives and over 3,000 prints. That she was never known when she was alive and that we were almost robbed of one of the greatest American photographers, is a frightening thought. While I have selected a few of her photographs I would urge you to take a look at vivianmaier.com for an even greater collection.

I, myself, shall be saving my pennies to hopefully one day afford one of her prints. She has served as an inspiration to my work lately and has shown me how much can be accomplished by just taking a moment to see the world.