Sarah McAuliffe selects a photograph by Evelyn Hofer (1922–2009) in the collection of the National Gallery of Ireland
Regarded today as a pioneer of colour photography and the dye-transfer printing process, Evelyn Hofer is a critical figure within the National Gallery of Ireland’s collection of 20th-century photography.
Hofer was born in Marburg, Germany in 1922, and her family moved to Switzerland in 1933 to escape the rise of Nazism. During their short stay there, she obtained an apprenticeship in a commercial portrait studio and diligently studied photographic technique, theory and the chemistry involved in producing prints. Resolved to make her passion for photography a career, she moved to New York in 1946, where she caught the attention of renowned designer and photographer Alexey Brodovitch. He employed her at Harper’s Bazaar, which landed her further editorial commissions from several prestigious print magazines and newspapers, including Vogue and The New York Times.
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