BALTERMANTS DIMITRI (1912 1990) Grief (Ditch of Kertsch)

Sale 2208 - Lot 146

Unsold

Estimate: $ 10,000 - $ 15,000

BALTERMANTS, DIMITRI (1912-1990)
"Grief (Ditch of Kertsch)." Silver print, 19 3/4x23 1/4 inches (50.2x59 cm.), flush mounted, with the title, in pencil, hand stamps and an exhibition label on mount verso; framed. 1942

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Additional Details

Baltermants's harrowing image of the 1942 Nazi massacre in the Crimean village of Kertsch conveys the grief felt by the village women as they search the desolate field for their children and husbands.

The photograph was enhanced in the darkroom, where Baltermants recrafted an already somber and solemn setting into one of utter doom. By rendering the clouds in a darker and more dramatic fashion, he steps beyond the purview of a photojournalist, and into that of a skilled artist, capable of manipulating the already intense photograph into a truly poignant depiction of the human costs of war.