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Call number
*MGZEB 18-6812
Physical description
3.12 linear feet (8 boxes)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Radford Bascome collection, *MGZEB 18-6812. Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Repository
Jerome Robbins Dance Division
Portions of this collection have been digitized and are available online.

The Radford Bascome collection contains over 8,600 negatives that documents dance from 1954 through 1958 with the majority of the collection representing New York City Ballet. Other companies included are American Ballet Theatre and Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, as well as performances from Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival. Also included are Bascome's commercial and advertising work as well as some personal photographs. Brief biographies of Bascome's subjects are provided throughout the collection as well as correspondence from dancers whom he photographed.

Biographical/historical information

W. Radford Bascome, Jr. (1913-1984) was a New York City-based dance photographer.

Bascome's great-grandfather was Stephen Watts Kearney, an officer in the Mexican-American War. Bascome's father, W.R. Bascome, Sr., was a civil engineer who helped design a number of bridges in and around New York City, and was himself an amateur photographer.

Bascome Jr. was born in New York City and made his living in the field of public relations until he developed his hobby of photography into a profession in 1953. He maintained his status in the United States Marine Corps reserves while also being active in honing his photography skills. His avenue into dance photography was by chance when he used dancers to test a new electronic flash unit on his camera. His first dance pictures sold and led to him becoming a significant photographer of the New York ballet scene in the mid-20th century.

In 1955, just two years into his professional career, the New York City Center gallery held an exhibition of his photographs of the New York City Ballet titled The Ballet in Mood and Movement. The exhibition featured mostly black and white 35mm candid pictures taken backstage during rehearsals and performances. He was one of George Balanchine's favored artists and was given unparalleled access to the New York City Ballet as a result. Bascome's work was also seen in print such as his experimental "Rorschach Ballet" photographs which were featured in a 1954 Life Magazine spread. In the early 1960s he contributed to Dance Magazine's Cook of the Month articles featuring favorite recipes of dancers Violette Verdy and Lupe Serrano. He both wrote and photographed for the articles.

In addition to his dance photography, he also is credited for various Mercury Records album covers, most notably the conductor and composer Antal Doráti.

Bascome died in 1984 at age 70 on Long Island.

Scope and arrangement

The collection comprises over 8,600 black and white negatives by the photographer Radford Bascome and represents an extensive understanding of his output as a dance photographer. The photographs can be roughly dated to the 1950s with some of the photographs identified between the years 1954 through 1958. The majority of the material represents dancers of the New York City Ballet and the works of George Balanchine. Other ballet companies included are American Ballet Theatre and the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, as well as performances from Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival. Bascome's advertising and commercial clients included Pappagallo shoes, Tiffany and Company, and Kislav perfume. The collection also contains some nude and semi-nude portraiture, the relationship of which (if any) to Bascome's dance and commercial photography is undetermined. Photographic formats included in the collection are black and white 120mm negatives, 35mm negatives, contact sheets, and some proof prints.

Included among the notable dance figures are Yvonne Mounsey, Alicia Markova, Merce Cunningham, José Limón, André Eglevsky, Violette Verdy, Nora Kaye, Melissa Hayden, Tanaquil LeClercq, Mia Slavenska, Allegra Kent, Diana Adams, Maria Tallchief, and Janet Reed. Many of New York City Ballet's productions are documented in the collection such as Balanchine's The Nutcracker, The Cage, Fanfare, and Western Symphony.

The collection also includes brief biographies of Bascome's subjects which were acquired by the donor from various online resources. There is also some handwritten correspondence addressed to Bascome from dancers whom he photographed. Much of this correspondence directly addresses the photographs present in the collection. Book 14 contains a combination of unidentified negatives, contact prints, and full size prints.

Arrangement

The photographs were originally housed in three-ring binders. The original order in which the binders were received has been retained. Within each binder, the photographs are grouped by the job numbers Bascome used to identify specific shoots.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

The New York Public Library acquired the collection as a gift from James Olinkiewicz in April 2018.

Processing information

Processed by Tara D. Strongosky, 2019.

Using the collection

Location

Jerome Robbins Dance Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Access restrictions

This collection is fully digitized and available to view via digital surrogate. Some images contain sensitive content and are only available to view onsite at one of the New York Public Library research branches. The original negatives are restricted due to condition.