Alvin Langdon Coburn: Symbolist Photographer

by Mike Weaver

Alvin Langdon Coburn (1882-1966) is remembered today as one of photography's early masters and great innovators. This Aperture monograph investigates the unconventional nature of his personal and artistic achievements. Coburn's landscapes, cityscapes, portraits, and Vortographs reflect his unprecedented steps towards the creation of a photography of symbol and abstraction. In the accompanying critical essay by Mike Weaver, Coburn's life and work is seen as a quest. Freemason, Rosicrucian, and Druid, Coburn embraced occult tradition in a search for spiritual values.

80 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1986