Schell - Light and Shadow in New York City

By Alex Novak

New York City has long been considered one of the most important cities in the world. A center for commerce and finance, New York also maintains an aura of uniqueness with its many modern skyscrapers and a skyline that is still distinctive even after 9/11. As a consequence, it has become one of the most photographed urban landscapes on earth.

From perhaps the first photograph in America, the Big Apple has been the subject of photographers' art. It has always been a center of that art, even spawning what has become known as the "New York School of Photography."

With this Special Exhibit, Vintage Works brings you a series of urban New York images that have a special quality. Most are relatively inexpensive; and all highlight a special place that is at once familiar to most people anywhere on the globe.

Spagnoli: Limestone Facade (Columns), NYC

While many of the images are anonymous or came from various press services, some were made by the top urban photographers of the 20th century, including Andre Kertesz, Brett Weston, Sherill Schell, Edward Steichen, Lou Stoumen, Eugene Smith, Jerry Spagnoli, Frank Paulin and Fritz Henle, among others.