Vivian Maier and Madeleine de Sinéty share at least one thing in common, photographically. Their prodigious work was largely unknown until near or after their deaths.
As with many professions and pursuits, of course, women were discouraged from working as photographers until recent decades. That didn’t deny well-deserved, artistic acclaim for Diane Arbus and Arbus’ teacher Lisette Model in the mid-20th Century. Their work was that good, and they were the exceptions. Helen Levitt was every bit in their league, too, but fame eluded her until more recent vintage. David Levi Strauss has said that Levitt was one of “the least known photographers of her time.” So to with Maier and de Sinéty who were absolutely unknown as premier photographers. Their work was only to be discovered posthumously in 2009 in Maier’s case and 2011 in de Sinéty’s circumstance.
Maier is said to have taken over 150,000 images, largely with a Rolleiflex, though most of the negatives were never developed. Having reviewed about 50 of her images shot in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, rural France and, eventually around the world, it's clear that the work is filled with narrative appeal. She was exceptional compositionally, which aided greatly in the storytelling. Joel Meyerowitz said in the 2013 John Maloof, Oscar-nominated documentary, ”Finding Vivian Maier,” that she had an “authentic eye” and “a good sense of framing.” Notably, he added that she was able to achieve “instant alertness” on the streets, as well, when a possible image presented itself only to vanish seconds later. Notably, her use of a Rolleiflex meant she held the camera lower and less obtrusively, enabling her to capture more candid imagery without people gawking at her.
Maier was an eccentric. Yes, women photographers faced great obstacles back then, but it’s also clear that Maier had little interest in sharing her work with the world anyway. It’s only thanks to Maloof that we know much about her photography at all. He dabbled in buying unclaimed storage units, acquired vast amounts of her photographs, negatives, and Super-8 films in doing so, and made it his life’s work to bring her photography to the public. See her images and learn more about her work at https://www.vivianmaier.com/
The relatively unknown French photographer Madeleine de Sinéty was also expert at shooting daily life from Paris streets and rural France to New York City and the far reaches of northern Maine. She was expert at conveying tightly knit communities. Everyone has a good eye among the top ranks of photographers and photojournalists, which was certainly the case with de Sinéty. Her eye caught details in the images that convey everyday life and encourage the viewer to relate to the circumstance being depicted. It was her family - especially her son Peter - who cohered her vast collection of work and presented it to the world upon her death. Interestingly, people thought Maier was from France, and she let them believe it. She was not. She was a New Yorker. That said, both Maier and de Sinéty shared a love of shooting in rural France. See her images and learn more about her work at https://madeleinedesinety.com/en/about/
