The 100th birthday of photographer Yousuf Karsh (1908 – 2002) is celebrated at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts 9/23/08 – 1/19/09.

Known mostly for his portraits of the famous and the infamous, Karsh, born in Armenia but then moved to Canada and the United States, began his successful career in the 30’s with his images of kings & queens, heads of state, movie stars, accomplished writers of the day. He continued throughout his life giving a still face to the famous in books and magazine covers with much acclaim.

The photos on view are just a small example of Karsh’s work. Included will be Winston Churchill (1941), Albert Einstein (1948), Pablo Picasso (1954), Georgia O’Keeffe (1956), Ernest Hemingway (1957), Jacqueline and John F. Kennedy (1960), Sophia Loren (1981), and Jessye Norman (1990).

Image: Fidel Castro – 1971, Havana, Cuba

Btw: the most recent images of Castro are of an old man in slippers and a red track suit. I think Karsh captured the intensity and coiled energy of the revolutionary we came to know as “Fidel”.

Boston Museum of Fine Arts

Karsh * 9/23/08 – 1/19/09

http://www.mfa.org