This is my favorite photo from the Flickr album Toni Frissell Dog Photography Part One:
It’s not my favorite because of the red Ford Country Sedan station wagon. It’s not my favorite because of the Mainbocher coat worn by C.Z. Guest. It’s my favorite because of the doggy in the window if you will. The poodle in the passenger seat of the car makes this my favorite:
It’s unexpected upon first glance to see the poodle in the car, as if he/she just drove up and is ready to join the fun. This photo was taken for Sports Illustrated for an article on Mainbocher fashions, but it and the others from the shoot were never published. Of the 98 photos of Mrs. Guest taken by Toni Frissell, I spot the poodle in the car in two. He/she also appears out of the car in a small number of images:
Two other dogs appear in some of the photos, but never with the poodle:
Toni Frissell also shot C.Z. Guest in 1957 for Harper’s Bazaar. The black-and-white contact sheets from this shoot have not been digitized. Dogs, including the poodle appear in these photos:
I find it fascinating to look through the many photos Ms. Frissell took for an assignment. Often, a close examination can lead to more questions than answers. Perhaps I’ve spent too much time thinking about these images, but I wish I knew more about the dogs.
Learn More:
- See the Flickr album Toni Frissell Dog Photography Part One.
- Look through all of the color images of C.Z. Guest taken by Toni Frissell.
- Enjoy the Flickr album Dog Stars which features images of dogs from throughout the collections of the Prints & Photographs Division.
Comments (4)
Fascinating and fabulous! That poodle’s face and gaze are noteworthy. Thanks for sharing! Especially cool to see the contact sheets.
This was an outstanding article about the works of Ms Toni Frissell featuring Ms Guest, but this article barely scratches the surface of the back-story of the Guest family. Ms Guest’s husband, Winston Frederick Churchill Guest, was an Anglo-American polo champion and a member of the Guest family of Britain. So many interesting stories thereabout featuring Ms Guest as well.
You can also see another fine picture of Lucy Douglas “C. Z.” Guest and one of her dogs on the cover of Time Magazine for July 20, 1962.
very interesting.
Another example of the fact that every photo deserves a closer look.