Weird and Wonderful Photography: Exploring the Legacy of William Klein

The Visionary Photographer Who Redefined Art Across Continents

Be yourself. I much prefer seeing something, even it is clumsy, that doesn't look like somebody else's work.”—William Klein

Classic Miami Coppertone Ad. Photo by Matthew Bamberg

William Klein often felt out of place as a Jewish kid in an Irish neighborhood. Klein and his friends found refuge from their neighborhood in the New York Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), looking at art and watching films.

Klein served in the army for a brief period before going to Paris to study at the Sorbonne. In Paris, Klein learned to paint and exhibited his paintings around Europe. He then returned to New York, where he photographed all parts of the city, some of which he had never visited. The photographs were published in the book New York Is Good and Good for You. Klein developed a signature style with blur, distortion, graininess, and abstraction in his photos.

Klein went on to photograph for Vogue, where, after some hesitance, they accepted his style. The magazine became very successful in part due to Klein…