Erwin Blumenfeld

Erwin Blumenfeld was a German-American photographer and artist, best known for his innovative fashion photography and surrealist photomontages. He was born in Berlin, Germany, and grew up in a Jewish family.

Blumenfeld began his career as an apprentice at a Berlin clothing store, where he became interested in fashion photography. He went on to work as a photographer for a number of German magazines, including Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. However, his career was interrupted by the rise of the Nazis, and he was forced to flee Germany in 1933.

Blumenfeld moved to Paris, where he continued to work as a fashion photographer. His innovative use of lighting and his unique approach to composition quickly gained him a reputation as one of the leading photographers of his time. He also began to experiment with surrealist photomontages, which combined photographic images with other media to create dreamlike, fantastical works.

During World War II, Blumenfeld was interned in a number of concentration camps, including Drancy and Auschwitz. He managed to escape from a transport to the latter and fled to the United States in 1941. Once in the United States, Blumenfeld continued to work as a photographer, producing images for magazines such as Vogue and Harper's Bazaar.

Erwin Blumenfeld died in Rome, Italy, in 1969. His innovative approach to fashion photography and his surrealist photomontages continue to influence artists and photographers today. His work is held in collections around the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the Centre Pompidou in Paris.