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George KrauseAmerican photographer
Country:
 USA |
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Biography of George Krause
George Krause, an American photographer, was born in 1937 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In the 1950s, he studied painting, graphics, and sculpture at the Philadelphia College of Art. From 1957 to 1959, Krause served in the United States Army, dedicating his free time to photography. During this period, he created his famous documentary photographs of the black neighborhoods of South Carolina. In 1959, George returned to Philadelphia and continued his studies at the College of Art while actively photographing on the city streets.
In 1960, Edward Steichen acquired one of Krause's photographs for the Museum of Modern Art. In 1963, George Krause was chosen by "Art in America" for their exhibition "Young Talent Award USA". The early 1960s proved to be incredibly important and successful for the emerging photographer. In 1963, he became one of the featured photographers in the exhibition "Five Unrelated Photographers" along with masters of photography such as Garry Winogrand, Ken Heyman, Jerry Liebling, and Minor White. The renowned George Eastman House also noticed Krause's talent and included his works in their exhibition.
Over time, Krause shifted away from documentary photography and began exploring ambiguous imagery, symbols, and interpretations. His photography began to feature sculptures, cemeteries, monuments, and a series of nudes. He delved deeply into the theme of the unreal within reality, and some of his photographs even have a sinister quality. Death became one of his favorite subjects. However, not all viewers appreciate Krause's work, considering it pompous and empty. Anne Wilkes Tucker, the curator of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, described Krause's work as an exploration of deeply personal themes that are the foundation of all human problems: sensuality, death, and mystery. Regardless, George Krause is regarded as one of the most influential American photographers.
Krause established the photography department at the University of Houston. He has received numerous awards, including two Guggenheim Fellowships, three grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, a Fulbright-Hays fellowship, and became the first photographer to be awarded the Prix de Rome. His works can be found in many public and private collections, such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the George Eastman House in Rochester, New York, the Library of Congress, the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard University, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and the Milwaukee Art Museum.
