ALEXEY BRODOVITCH (1898–1971) ‘BALLET’, J. J. Augustin Publisher, New York 1945

One of the most sought-after photo books in history, hardcover 22,3 x 28,3 cm with light blue/grey cloth with the similar original dust jacket, 144 pages with 104 black and white photographs, printed in gravure and text by Edwin Denby, ownership signature dated 1948 on front ‘Ballet’ has become a photobook legend for two reasons. Firstly, the volume was extremely radical, both in terms of the images themselves and their incorporation into the design and layout'. Secondly, only a few hundred copies were printed, and most of his remaining copies were destroyed by two consecutive fires in Brodovitch’s farmhouse in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania and his house in East Hampton, Long Island (where most of the original negatives of this series were also lost). The book is more talked about than actually seen. Reference: Roth (ed.), The Book of 101 Books, pp. 110-13; Roth (ed.), The Open Book, pp. 136-37; Parr / Badger, (eds.), The Photobook, Vol. I, pp. 235 and 240.