Kids in a Coat, New York City, 1960
Vintage gelatin silver print
9 × 6 in.
March 11, 2024
This playful photograph by Diane Arbus illuminates one of the key features of her work: she never sought to be a neutral observer, and instead used her photography as a form of direct engagement with her subjects. The two children who are sharing one garment in this picture seem to be clowning not so much for the camera, but for Arbus herself.
Arbus made it a point to get to know the people she photographed, sometimes cultivating relationships that she maintained for years. She is known for her deep curiosity about the strangeness of people, but her photographs never feel voyeuristic. Her images exist as records of an intimate exchange, like the shared amusement that we sense here, between Arbus and these two girls.
