George Dureau, The Photographs

George Dureau, The Photographs is an album of the great photographic portraits made throughout the 40 years of Dureau's artistic career—a New Orleans romance between the photographer and his subjects. All of Dureau's exquisite photographs, many of them nudes of black and disabled men, were made in his studio in the French Quarter of New Orleans, or on the city's streets. He began photography for the pleasure of photographing his lovers, and as research material for his paintings. Only later on did he begin to take his photographs seriously as works of art in their own right. Many of his subjects became part of Dureau's extended family, whom he photographed on different occasions over many years. Surprisingly, only one book of Dureau's photographs has been published, New Orleans (1985), a modest paperback long out of print. This Aperture book is possible now because of the commitment of Dureau's supporters.

Format: Hardback
Number of pages: 160
Number of images: 98
Publication date: 2016-05-24
Measurements: 10 x 12 x 1 inches
ISBN: 9781597112840

George Dureau, The Photographs reiterates Dureau’s talent and legacy through one of the first complete collections of his groundbreaking imagery. –Issue Magazine
sumptuously illustrated –The New Orleans Advocate

George Bureau was educated at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge (1946–52) and attended the School of Architecture, Tulane University, New Orleans (1952). His paintings, drawings, sculptures, and photographs have been exhibited widely since the mid-1960s, including at the Isaac Delgado Museum of Art, New Orleans (1965); Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans (1977); Osuna Gallery, Washington, D.C. (1979); Photographers’ Gallery, London (1983); 291 Gallery, Atlanta (1985); Jamison-Thomas Gallery, Portland, Oregon (1987); Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles (1991); Galerie Callu Mérite, Paris (1997); and Higher Pictures, New York (2012, 2015), as well as multiple exhibitions of both photography and painting at Arthur Roger Gallery, New Orleans, since 1988. His photographs have been featured in many major group exhibitions, including New Southern Photographs, Burden Gallery, Aperture Foundation, New York (1989); The Nude, New Orleans Museum of Art (1998); and, most recently, Reconfigure: Transformations of the Body, Acadiana Center for the Arts, Lafayette, Louisiana (2012). Dureau’s career has been the subject of retrospectives at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans (2006, 2011), and the New Orleans Museum of Art (2009). Prior to George Dureau, The Photographs, only one book of Dureau’s photographs had been published: New Orleans (Gay Men’s Press, 1985).
George Bureau was educated at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge (1946–52) and attended the School of Architecture, Tulane University, New Orleans (1952). His paintings, drawings, sculptures, and photographs have been exhibited widely since the mid-1960s, including at the Isaac Delgado Museum of Art, New Orleans (1965); Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans (1977); Osuna Gallery, Washington, D.C. (1979); Photographers’ Gallery, London (1983); 291 Gallery, Atlanta (1985); Jamison-Thomas Gallery, Portland, Oregon (1987); Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles (1991); Galerie Callu Mérite, Paris (1997); and Higher Pictures, New York (2012, 2015), as well as multiple exhibitions of both photography and painting at Arthur Roger Gallery, New Orleans, since 1988. His photographs have been featured in many major group exhibitions, including New Southern Photographs, Burden Gallery, Aperture Foundation, New York (1989); The Nude, New Orleans Museum of Art (1998); and, most recently, Reconfigure: Transformations of the Body, Acadiana Center for the Arts, Lafayette, Louisiana (2012). Dureau’s career has been the subject of retrospectives at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans (2006, 2011), and the New Orleans Museum of Art (2009). Prior to George Dureau, The Photographs, only one book of Dureau’s photographs had been published: New Orleans (Gay Men’s Press, 1985).
Philip Gefter was on staff at The New York Times for over fifteen years, where he wrote regularly about photography. His essays are collected in the book Photography After Frank (2009). His biography of Sam Wagstaff, Wagstaff: Before and After Mapplethorpe, was published in 2014 (Liveright). He is currently at work on a biography of Richard Avedon. He lives in New York City.