Roman Vishniac
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Idontknow610
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doing the same as my last contribution to "Living Biology"
{{Infobox Person
|name = Roman Vishniac (Роман Вишняк)
|image = Vishniac.jpg
|image_size = 300px
|caption = Roman Vishniac, 1977. Photo by Andrew A. Skolnick
|birth_date = {{birth date|1897|8|19}}
|birth_place = [[Pavlovsk]]
|death_date = {{death date and age|1990|1|22|1897|8|19}}
|death_place = [[New York City]]
|occupation = [[Photographer]], [[Biologist]]
|nationality = [[Russia]]n, [[United States|American]]
|spouse = Luta (Leah) Bagg (1918-1946); Edith Ernst (1947-1990)
|children = [[Wolf V. Vishniac]], Mara Vishniac
}}
'''Roman Vishniac''' {{IPA|['vɪʃniæk]}} ([[Russian language|Russian]]: Роман Вишняк; [[August 19]] [[1897]] – [[January 22]] [[1990]]) was a renowned [[Russian-American]] [[photographer]], best known for capturing on film the culture of [[Jew]]s in [[Central Europe|Central]] and [[Eastern Europe]] before the [[Holocaust]].
Vishniac was an extremely diverse photographer, an accomplished [[biology|biologist]] and a knowledgeable collector and teacher of [[History of art|art history]]. Throughout his life, he made significant scientific contributions to the fields of [[Micrograph|photomicroscopy]] and [[time-lapse|time-lapse photography]]. Vishniac was very interested in history, especially that of his ancestors. In turn, he was strongly tied to his Jewish roots and was a [[Zionism|Zionist]] later in life.<ref name=roman>ICP Library of Photographers. ''Roman Vishniac''. Grossman Publishers, New York. 1974.</ref>
Roman Vishniac won international acclaim for his photography: his pictures from the ''[[shtetl]]ach'' and Jewish ghettos, celebrity portraits, and images of microscopic biology. He is known for his book ''A Vanished World'', published in 1983, which was one of the first such pictorial documentations of Jewish culture in Eastern Europe from that period and also for his extreme humanism, respect and awe for life, sentiments that can be seen in all aspects of his work.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Roman was born in his grandparent's ''[[dacha]]'' outside of [[Saint Petersburg]], in the town of [[Pavlovsk]], and grew up in [[Moscow]].<ref name=bionote>Kohn, Mara Vishniac, Biographical Note (1992). ''To Give them Light: The Legacy of Roman Vishniac''. Simon & Schuster. New York, New York 10020. 1993. ISBN 0-671-63872-6.</ref> To live in this city was [[Jews in Russia#Pogroms and the Pale of Settlement|a right granted to few Jews]] but Roman could live there because his father, Solomon Vishniac, was a wealthy manufacturer of [[umbrella]]s, and his mother, Manya, was the daughter of affluent [[diamond]] dealers (Roman also had a sister, Katja<ref name=berlin>Jüdisches Museum Berlin (2005). ''Roman Vishniac's Berlin''. Editors: Mara Vishniac Kohn, James Howard Fraser and Aubrey Pomerance. Published by Nicolaische Verlagsbuchhandlung.</ref>). During the summer months; however, the Vishniacs would leave: Moscow often became uncomfortably hot and the family would retreat to a ''dacha'' a few miles outside of that city.
As a child, Roman Vishniac was fascinated by [[biology]] and [[photography]], and his room was filled with "plants, insects, fish and small animals".<ref name=concern>Vishniac, Roman. ''The Concerns of Roman Vishhniac: Man, Nature and Science''.</ref> On his seventh birthday, Roman got a [[microscope]] from his grandmother, to which he promptly hooked up a camera, and by which he photographed the muscles in a [[cockroach]]'s leg at 150 times magnification. Young Vishniac used this microscope extensively, viewing and photographing everything he could find, from dead [[insect]]s to animal [[scale (zoology)|scale]]s, to [[pollen]] and [[protozoa]].<ref name=roman />
Until the age of ten, Vishniac was [[Homeschooling|homeschooled]]; from ten to seventeen, he attended a private school at which he earned a gold medal for [[scholar]]ship.<ref name=wilson>''Roman Vishniac''. Current Biography (1967).</ref> Beginning in 1914, he spent six years at Shanyavsky Institute (now University) in Moscow. While enrolled there, he served in the [[Tsarist]], [[Kerensky]] and [[Military history of the Soviet Union|Soviet armies]]. At the Institute, he earned a [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] in [[zoology]] and became an assistant professor of biology.<ref name=concern /> As a graduate student, he worked with prestigious biologist [[Nikolai Koltzoff]], experimenting with inducing [[Metamorphosis (biology)|metamorphosis]] in [[axolotl]], a species of aquatic [[salamander]]. While his experiments were a success, Dr. Vishniac was not able to publish a paper detailing his findings due to the [[Russian Revolution of 1917|chaos in Russia]] and his results were eventually independently duplicated. In spite of this, he went on to take a three year course in [[medicine]].<ref name=roman />
[[Image:VishniacBerlin.jpg|thumb|upright|''Berlin'', 1922 by Roman Vishniac. This photograph is currently being exhibited in "Roman Vishniac's Berlin" by [[Jewish Museum Berlin]].]]
===Berlin===
In 1918, Roman Vishniac's immediate family moved to [[Berlin]] because of [[anti-Semitism]] spurred by the [[Third Russian Revolution]]. Roman followed them and, shortly after arriving, married Luta (Leah) Bagg, who gave birth to two children, Mara and [[Wolf V. Vishniac|Wolf]].<ref name=family>Kohn, Mara Vishniac. [http://www.hias.org/WhoWeAre/120stories/59vishniac.pdf A Photographer of a Vanished World and his Family]. [[Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society|HIAS]]. Accessed [[January 1]] [[2006]].</ref> Roman Vishniac supported his own budding family (and sometimes his parents as well) by working at various jobs.<!--disputed by Mara--> In his free time, he studied [[Eastern art history|Far Eastern Art]] at the [[University of Berlin]]<!--Maybe completed doctoral studied and not given degree, but Mara denies this-->. Vishniac researched [[endocrinology]], [[optics]], and did some photography (''see right''). In Berlin, he also initiated his [[public speaking]] career by joining the [[Salamander Club]], at which he often gave lectures on [[naturalism (art)|naturalism]].<ref name=roman />
In the 1930s, as anti-Semitism was growing in [[Germany]], Vishniac took his famed trips to [[Eastern Europe]], photographing the culture of poor Jews in mountainous villages and urban ghettos. For approximately 4 years, (the exact period is debated), he would travel back and forth from Berlin to remote locations, taking thousands of pictures and living with whomever would take him in, at the same time supporting his family in Berlin. In 1939, Roman's wife and children moved to [[Sweden]] to stay with Luta's parents, away from hostile Germany. He met up with his parents in [[Nice]] that summer.<ref name=roman />
Roman Vishniac returned to [[Paris]] in late summer 1940, and was arrested by the [[Pétain]] police and interned at [[Camp du Ruchard]], a [[deportation|deportation camp]] in [[Clichy]], [[France]]. This occurred because [[Latvia]], where he had had his citizenship, had been subsumed into the [[Soviet Union]] and Vishniac was considered a "stateless person". After 3 months, as a result of his wife's efforts and aid from the [[American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee]], he obtained a [[Visa (document)|visa]] that allowed him to escape via [[Lisbon]] to the U.S. with his family. His father stayed behind and spent the war hidden in France; his mother died from cancer in 1941 while still in Nice.<ref name=berlin /><ref name=roman /><ref name=jewish>Jewish Museum Berlin (2005). [http://www.juedisches-museum-berlin.de/site/EN/06-Press/01-Press-Releases/2005_10_28.php?list=TRUE&sn=TRUE Special Exhibition: Roman Vishniac's Berlin]. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2005]].</ref>
===New York===
[[Image:EinsteinVishniac.jpg|thumb|right|upright|1942 portrait of [[Albert Einstein]] by Roman Vishniac. This is one of the best-known examples of his 1940s portraiture work.]]
The Vishniac family fled from [[Lisbon]] to [[New York City]] in 1940,<ref name=bionote /> arriving on [[New Year's Eve]]. Vishniac tried for days to get a job but failed: "For me, it was a time of distraction and fear."<ref name=roman /> Vishniac struggled. He was [[multilingual]], speaking at least [[German language|German]], [[Russian language|Russian]] and [[Yiddish]], but he could speak no [[English language|English]] yet and thus had a difficult time.<ref name=weiner>Weiner, Jonathan (circa 1981). "Field of Vision". [[Moment (magazine)|Moment]]. pg 37.</ref> He managed to do some portraiture work with mostly foreign clients; but business was poor. It was during this time, in 1942, that Roman took one of his most celebrated portraits, that of [[Albert Einstein]]. Vishniac arrived at Einstein's home in [[Princeton, New Jersey]], getting into the scientist's study with the ruse of bringing regards from mutual friends in Europe, and photographed him while the scientist was not paying attention to him, occupied in thought. Einstein later called this portrait his favourite one of him. In 1946, Roman Vishniac divorced Luta, and the next year he married Edith Ernst, an old family friend. A few years later, he gave up portraiture and went on to do freelance work in the field of [[Micrograph|photomicroscopy]].<ref name=roman />
Once in the United States, Roman Vishniac tried desperately to earn sympathy for impoverished Jews in [[Eastern Europe]]. When his work was exhibited at [[Teachers College, Columbia University]] in 1943,<ref name=misery>"Studies in Misery Shown". ''New York Times (1859-Current file);'' [[2 February]] [[1943]]; ProQuest Historical Newspapers pg. 21.</ref> Vishniac wrote to [[Eleanor Roosevelt]] ([[First Lady of the United States|First Lady]] at the time), asking her to visit the exhibit, but she did not do so. He also sent some of his photographs to the president for which he was politely thanked.<ref name=children>Edited by Kohn, Mara Vishniac and Flacks, Miriam Hartman. ''Roman Vishniac: Children of a Vanished World''. University of California Press. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California. 1999. ISBN 0-520-22187-7</ref><ref name=absart>"absolutearts.com" [http://www.absolutearts.com/artsnews/2001/02/01/28027.html Vishniac Photographs Breathe Life into Memories of Children from a Vanished World]. Accessed [[October 18]] [[2005]].</ref>
Of the 16,000 taken in Eastern Europe by Roman Vishniac, only 2,000 photographs reached America.<ref name=absart /><ref name=UCSB>UCSB Arts & Lectures (2000). [http://www.artsandlectures.ucsb.edu/archive/1999-2000/pr/vishniac.htm Work of photographer Roman Vishniac remembered in special illustrated program at UCSB]. Accessed [[October 18]] [[2005]].</ref> Most of these negatives were carefully hidden by Roman and his family; others were smuggled in by Vishniac's good friend [[Walter Bierer]] through [[Cuba]].<ref name=children /> In the photographer's own words,
{{cquote|I sewed some of the negatives into my clothing when I came to the United States in 1940. Most of them were left with my father in [[Clermont-Ferrand]], a small city in central France. He survived there, hidden. He concealed the negatives under floorboards and behind picture frames.<ref name="UCSB" />}}
===Later life===
[[Image:Vishniacs.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Roman and Edith Vishniac, 1977<br/> photo by Andrew A. Skolnick]]
Even when he grew older, Roman Vishniac was very active. In 1957, he was appointed research associate at the [[Albert Einstein College of Medicine]] and in 1961 ascended to the rank of "[[professor]] of biological education".<ref name=columbia>The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia (2003). [http://reference.allrefer.com/encyclopedia/V/Vishniac.html Roman Vishniac, (Photography, Biography)]. Accessed [[October 18]] [[2005]].</ref> In his seventies and eighties, Vishniac became "Chevron Professor of Creativity" at [[Pratt Institute]] (where he taught courses on topics such as the philosophy of photography<ref name="weiner" />). During this time he lived on the West Side of [[Manhattan]] with his wife Edith, teaching, photographing, reading and collecting artifacts.<ref name=mitgang>Mitgang, Herbert ([[2 October]] [[1983]]). "Testament to a Lost People". [[New York Times Magazine]]. pg 47.</ref> Some items that were in his collection include a 14th-century [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]], Chinese [[tapestry|tapestries]], [[Japanese sword]]s, various antique [[microscope]]s, valued old maps and venerable books.<ref name=vogt>Vogt, Richard. [http://zebra.biol.sc.edu/vishniac/rv.html Dr. Vishniac and the Beauty of the Real]. Accessed [[December 9]] [[2005]]. ''According to the site, the text originally "appeared in Kodak International Review - No. 9".''</ref> He taught [[Asian art|Oriental]] and [[Russian art]], general [[philosophy]] and [[religion]] in [[science]], specifically Jewish topics, [[ecology]], [[numismatics]], photography and general science at [[City University of New York]], [[Case Western Reserve University]]<ref name=columbia /> and at various other institutions.<ref name=roman />
[[Image:Vishniac reading.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Vishniac, c. 1981]]
During the course of his life, Vishniac was the subject and creator of many [[film]]s and [[documentary film|documentaries]]; the most celebrated of which was the Living Biology series. The series consisted of seven films on [[cell biology]]; [[Organ (anatomy)|organ]]s and [[Systems ecology|systems]]; [[embryology]]; [[evolution]]; [[genetics]]; [[ecology]]; [[botany]]; the animal world; and the [[microorganism|microbial]] world. This production was funded by a [[grant (money)|grant]] from the [[National Science Foundation]].<ref name=wilson />
Roman Vishniac received Honorary Doctoral degrees from the [[Rhode Island School of Design]], [[Columbia College of Art]] and the [[California College of Art]],<ref>Ciano, Bob. ''The Vanished World: A limited edition portfolio''. Witkin-Berley Ltd. Roslyn Heights, Ny. May 1977.</ref> before he died from [[colon cancer]] on [[January 22]] [[1990]].<ref>Shepard, Richard F. "[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE3D61130F930A15752C0A966958260 Roman Vishniac, 92, a Biologist And Photographer of Jews, Dies]". ''New York Times (1859-Current file);'' [[23 January]] [[1990]]; ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1951–2002) pg. D23.</ref>
<!--:''For a convenient [[timeline]] of Roman Vishniac's life, see page 95 of ''Roman Vishniac'' published by [[International Center of Photography|ICP]]<ref name=roman />''.-->
{{clr}}
==Photography==
[[Image:VishniacCracow.jpg|upright|thumb|''Entrance to the Ghetto, [[Cracow, Poland]]'', 1937 by Roman Vishniac. [[Gelatin silver print]]. This photograph is often associated with Vishniac's work in Central Europe.
It is currently being exhibited in the "Foto" exhibition at the [[National Gallery of Art]] ]]
===In Central and Eastern Europe===
====1935–1939====
Vishniac is best known for his dramatic photographs of [[Jew]]s in cities and ''[[shtetl]]ach'' of [[Eastern Europe]]. He was commissioned to take these pictures initially by the [[American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee]] as part of a fundraising initiative; but, Vishniac took a personal interest in this photography. He traveled back and forth from [[Berlin]] to the [[ghetto]]s of [[Russia]], [[Poland]], [[Romania]], [[Czechoslovakia]] and [[Lithuania]] for years after he worked for the Committee.<ref name=bionote />
While touring Europe, Roman Vishniac posed as a traveling [[textile|fabric]] [[sales]]man, seeking aid where he could and bribing anyone who got in his way.<ref name=schumach>Murray, Schumach. "Vishniac's Lost World Of the Jews". ''New York Times (1859-Current file);'' [[25 November]] [[1983]]; ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851–2002) pg. C1.</ref> During his touring of Eastern Europe (1935–1939), he was often arrested by police for taking these pictures, sometimes because he was thought to be spying, (Jews were not allowed to take pictures or even carry cameras).<ref name=UCSB /> Later, when published, these photographs made him popular enough for his work to be showcased as one-man shows at [[Columbia University]], the [[Jewish Museum]], [[International Center of Photography|ICP]] and other such institutions.
[[Image:VanishedWorldCover.jpg|thumb|left|Cover of ''A Vanished World'' (1983 version). This book (and cover image) are closely associated with Roman Vishniac and his photos from Eastern Europe. Its publication contributed greatly to Vishniac's renown and represented the success of his 1930s trips.]]
Vishniac, being a Jew, had to struggle immensely to take the 16,000 photos he did. Every one of his photos from this period was a candid shot; the subjects never even knew his camera existed. He also could not take more than one shot of a scene or buy two rolls of film at a time because he was not of [[Aryan race|Aryan]] descent.<ref name=weiner /><ref name=polish>Roman Vishniac. ''Polish Jews: A Pictorial Record''. Schoken Books Inc. New York. 1976.</ref> Vishniac sometimes developed his film in Berlin, other times he was forced to do it out on the countryside, in rivers of the [[Carpathian Mountains]] on [[moonlight|moonless night]]s<!--refuted by Mara-->.
In order to reach some of the small villages in these mountains, he had to carry heavy equipment (Leica, Rolleiflex, movie camera, [[Tripod (photography)|tripod]]s etc.), 115 [[pound (mass)|pound]]s (52 [[kilogram]]s) by his estimate, on his back, up steep roads, trekking many miles.<ref name=mitgang /><ref name=children /> With a concealed [[Leica Camera|Leica]] wrapped in a scarf at his forehead or a [[Rolleiflex]]<ref name=keppler>[[Herbert Keppler|Keppler, Herbert]]. "A vanished world". [[Modern Photography]], Sept 1984 v48 p92(1). Accessed [[January 3]] [[2006]], from InfoTrac Web: OneFile A3409487</ref> peeking out through an enlarged button hole of his coat,<ref name=roman /> Vishniac captured tens of thousands of impoverished Jews on film, ''"[...] to preserve – in pictures, at least – a world that might soon cease to exist"''.<ref name=mendoza>Mendoza, Bernard (2003). [http://www.nmajh.org/exhibitions/mendoza/statement.htm A Photo-Documentary on Orthodox Jewish Communities living in America]. Accessed [[September 3]] [[2005]].</ref> This Leica was acquired through a non-Jewish friend, but he had to give the [[camera]] back often (the police were trying to make sure that no Jews were using the camera, and they usually checked with his friend in the evenings).
For indoor shots, when the Leica was used, there was the problem of insufficient [[lighting]]: there would rarely be artificial light in the home of a poor Jew. Vishniac could not use a tripod (for the camera had to remain concealed) to get long exposures, so he had to bring a [[kerosene lamp]] (visible in some of his work), keep his back to a wall for support, and hold his breath.<ref name=weiner /> The Rolleiflex was used mostly for outdoor scenes.
Roman Vishniac did not just want to preserve the memories of the Jews; he actively fought to increase awareness in the West of the worsening situation in Eastern Europe. "Through his photographs, he sought to alert the rest of the world to the horrors [of the Nazi persecution]", Mitgang.<ref name=mitgang /> In late 1938, for example, he sneaked into [[Zbaszyn]], an [[internment camp]] in [[Nazi Germany|Germany]] near the border, where Jews awaited deportment to [[Poland]]. After photographing the "filthy barracks", as he described it, for two days,<ref name=levin> Levin, Eric. "A fateful photo from the Holocaust leads photographer and subject to an emotional reunion in the Bronx" People Weekly, [[April 23]] [[1984]] v21 p74(2). Retrieved [[January 3]] [[2006]], from InfoTrac Web InfoTrac OneFile A3233313. </ref> he escaped by jumping from the second floor at night and creeping away, avoiding broken glass and [[barbed wire]]. He then used photographs taken to prove the existence of such camps to the [[League of Nations]].<ref name=mitgang />
After Roman's death, more photographs were discovered, and the current exhibit in [[Berlin]] showcases such newly discovered photographs. The negatives of these were found at the end of rolls of film used by him in his scientific pursuits.
====Style====
Vishniac's photographs from the 1930s are all of a very distinct style; they are all focused on achieving the same end: capturing the unique culture of Jewish ghettos in Eastern Europe. His pictures all center on these people, usually in small groups, going about their daily lives: very often studying (generally religious texts), walking (many times through harsh weather), and sometimes just sitting; staring. The scenes are dramatic though: "There is barely a hint of a smile on any of the faces. The eyes peer at us suspiciously from behind ancient [[casement window]]s and over a peddler's tray, from crowded schoolrooms and desolate street corners."<ref name=fenyvesi>Fenyvesi, Charles. "A vanished world". [[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]], Jan 1984 v14 p130(2). Accessed [[January 3]] [[2006]], from InfoTrac Web: OneFile A3071101.</ref> [[Gene Thornton]], writer for ''[[The New York Times]]'', called them "[...] somber with poverty and with the gray light of European Winter".<ref name=thornton>Thornton, Gene. "The Two Roman Vishniacs". New York Times [[October 31]] [[1971]]. Proquest Historical Newspapers pg. D25</ref>
[[Image:VishniacFlowers.jpg|thumb|''The Only Flowers of her Youth'', [[Warsaw]], 1938 by Roman Vishniac, one of his most famous]]
These pictures, all in black and white, were done with available light or sometimes a lantern,<ref name=weiner /> yet they are still, "amazingly crisp with surprising depth of field".<ref name=keppler /> Indeed, "There is a grainy realism to Vishniac's photographic style. We can almost finger the coarse textures of coats and shawls; the layers of fabric worn by the people seem more related to tree bark than to the well-pressed wool suit worn by an occasional elegant passerby."<ref name=fenyvesi />
====Impact====
Vishniac's photographs from this period are widely commended and on permanent display in many [[museum]]s. [[Edward Steichen]] places Roman Vishniac's pre-[[The Holocaust|Holocaust]] photographs, "among photography's finest documents of a time and place."'<ref name=schumach /> However, there has been criticism of Vishniac's work, focusing on the lack of diversity of his subjects in his work from Eastern Europe and quality of his composition. It has been argued that he should have also photographed wealthier Jews, in addition to the poor Jews in ghettos. Thornton criticized his photographs for their unprofessional qualities, citing "errors of focus and accidents of design, as when an unexplained third leg and foot protrudes from the long coat of a hurrying scholar."<ref name=thornton />
Vishniac's photographs have had a profound effect on Holocaust literature and have illustrated [[#Publications|many books]] about the Jewish ghettos and Holocaust. In the case of ''The Only Flowers of her Youth'', the drama of the photograph inspired [[Miriam Nerlove]] to write a fictional novel based on the story of the girl in the picture.<ref>All Readers.com (2005). [http://www.allreaders.com/Topics/Info_22255.asp Review Summary of ''Flowers on the Wall'']. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
For this work, Roman Vishniac has received the Memorial Award of the [[American Society of Media Photographers|American Society of Magazine Photographers]] in 1956. He was also the winner of the [[visual arts]] category of awards of the [[Jewish Book Council]] in 1984; ''The Only Flowers of her Youth'' was deemed "most impressive" at the [[Singapore International Salon of Photography|International Photographic Exhibition]] in [[Lucerne]] in 1952; and the Grand Prize for Art in Photography, [[New York Coliseum]].<ref name=roman /><ref name="concern" />
===Photomicroscopy and biology===
[[Image:VishniacFirefly.gif|thumb|135px|Vishniac's daughter Mara, through the eye of a [[firefly]]: an achievement in photography and biology]]
In addition to the candid photography for which he is best known, Vishniac worked heavily in the field of [[Micrograph|photomicroscopy]], (specifically [[interference microscopy]] and [[cinemicroscopy]]). He specialized in photographing live subjects, rather than the usual dead ones and had a knack for arranging the moving specimens in "just the right poses", according to [[Philippe Halsman]], former president of the [[American Society of Magazine Photographers]]. On the subject of Vishniac's skill in photomicroscopy, Halsman said he was, "a special kind of genius".<ref name=roman /> He worked with all sorts of specimens, from [[protozoa]], to [[firefly|fireflies]] to [[amino acid]]s. Vishniac's work in photomicroscopy is and was highly regarded in the field. For three consecutive years, beginning in 1952, he won the Best-of-the-Show Award of the [[Biological Photographic Association]] in New York.<ref name=roman />
One of Roman Vishniac's most famous endeavors in the field of photomicroscopy was his revolutionary photographs from the inside of a firefly's eye, behind 4,600 tiny [[ommatidia]], complexly arranged. In addition, there were the images taken at the medical school of [[Boston University]] of the circulating [[blood]] inside a [[hamster]]'s cheek pouch. Vishniac invented new methods for light-interruption photography and color photomicroscopy.<ref name=columbia /> His method of colorization, (developed in the 1960s and early 1970s) uses [[polarized light]] to penetrate certain formations of [[cell structure]] and may greatly improve the detail of an image.<ref name=roman />
In the field of biology, Vishniac specialized in [[marine microbiology]], the [[physiology]] of [[ciliate]]s, [[circulatory system]]s in [[unicellular plant]]s and [[endocrinology]] (from his work in Berlin) and metamorphosis.<ref name=columbia /> Despite his aptitude and accomplishments in the field, most of his work in biology was secondary to his photography: Vishniac studied the [[anatomy]] of an organism primarily to better photograph it. Besides experimenting with the metamorphosis of [[axolotl]], he also researched the [[morphology (biology)|morphology]] of [[chromosome]]s in 1920: both in Berlin. As a biologist and philosopher in 1950, he hypothesized [[polyphyletic origin]], a theory that life arose from multiple, independent [[biochemistry|biochemical]] reactions, spawning multicellular life. As a philosopher, he "developed principles of [[rationalistic philosophy]]" in the '50s.<ref name=roman />
===Other photography===
Vishniac is notable for his photographs of [[insect]]s mating, [[sea bass]] feasting and other living creatures in full animation. Skillfully and patiently, Vishniac would stalk insects or other such creatures for hours in the [[suburb]]s around New York City. Before beginning the hunt, he would lie for over an hour in the grass, rubbing himself with proximate flora to make himself smell less artificial. Vishniac would then gracefully swoop close to his prey and patiently frame the scene with an [[single-lens reflex camera|SLR]] equipped with an [[extension tube]]. He had even trained himself to hold his breath for up to two minutes, so that he could take his time and not disturb slowly exposing images.<ref name="roman" />
Roman's subjects varied throughout his life. At times, he would focus on documenting everyday life, as in Berlin, and later [[portraiture]], doing famous portraits of [[Albert Einstein]] and [[Marc Chagall]]. He was also a pioneer in [[time-lapse|time-lapse photography]], on which he worked from 1915 to 1918,<ref name="roman" /><ref name="wilson" /> and again later in life.
==Religion and philosophy==
[[Image:VishniacMara.jpg|thumb|right|Vishniac's daughter, Mara, as a young girl, poses in front of a store selling devices for differentiating between [[Aryan race|Aryan]] and Non-Aryan head shapes. [[Berlin]], 1933]]
Roman Vishniac always had strong ties with his ancestry, especially the [[Judaism|Jewish]] aspect of it, "From earliest childhood, my main interest was my ancestors". He was a [[Zionism|Zionist]]<ref name=mitgang /><ref name=weiner /> and a strong sympathizer with Jews who had suffered because of [[anti-Semitism]], "Oh yes, I could be a professor of anti-Semitism", also stating then that he had one hundred and one relatives who died during the Holocaust. A famous photo of his (''pictured right'') of a store in Berlin selling devices for separating Jews and non-Jews by skull shape was used by him to criticize the [[pseudoscience]] of German anti-Semites.<ref name=mitgang />
Vishniac associated much of his work with [[religion]], though not specifically [[Judaism]]. "Nature, [[God]], or whatever you want to call the creator of the [[Universe]] comes through the microscope clearly and strongly," he remarked in his laboratory one day.
Living with the memory of hardship, Vishniac was, "an absolute [[optimism|optimist]] filled with tragedy. His [[humanism]] is not just for Jews, but for every living thing."<ref name=schumach /> While he was alive, Roman probably believed in God or some similar concept, but he was non-denominational and did not adhere strictly to the principles of any religion. He even clashed with [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodox Jew]]s in one well-known instance: The religious Jews he met on his trek around Europe would not let themselves be photographed, quoting the [[Bible]] and its prohibition of making of [[idolatry|graven image]]s. Vishniac's famous response was, "the [[Torah]] existed for thousands of years before the camera had been invented."<ref name=mitgang />
Roman Vishniac was known for having great respect for all living creatures. Whenever possible, he returned a specimen to its precise home before it was captured<ref name=roman /> and one time lent, "his bathtub to [[tadpole]]s for weeks until he could return them to their pond". In accordance with this philosophy, he photographed almost exclusively living subjects.<ref name=saved>"The saved faces of Roman Vishniac." (Photography) (Currents) (obituary) U.S. News & World Report, [[February 5]] [[1990]] v108 n5 p11(1). Science Resource Center. Thomson Gale. [http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/SciRC?ste=1&docNum=A8311167]. Accessed [[January 3]] [[2006]].</ref>
<!-- some really good quotes are necessary here: 'just because they're small doesn't mean they don't deserve respect'; 'how would you like to be taken away from your house. he puts them in exact pond'-->
==Publications==
{| class="wikitable" width=90%
|- bgcolor="#efefef
! width="6%" | Year
! width="27%" | Title
! width="45%" | Notes
! width="4%" | Source
|- valign=top
|'''1947'''
|''Polish Jews: A Pictorial Record''
|''Polish Jews'' showcased 31 images of the life and character of these people ''"stressing the spiritual side of the subjects' lives and [...] it did not include any of the pictures [Roman Vishniac] took to emphasize the economic struggle in which the Jews were engaged."''<ref name="roman" />; Essay by [[Abraham Joshua Heschel]].
|<ref name="polish" />
|-
|'''1947'''
|*''Die Farshvundene Velt: Idishe shtet, Idishe mentshn.''
''*The Vanished World: Jewish Cities, Jewish People''
|Edited by [[Rafeal Abramovitch]]; title, text and captions in [[English language|English]] and [[Yiddish]]; includes photographs by R. Vishniac, A. Kacyzna, M. Kipnis and others. First edition of the earliest and most comprehensive graphic pictorial history of Jewish life at the beginning of the Nazi era.
|<ref> [[McGill University]] Digital Collections Program. [http://digital.library.mcgill.ca/fishstein/search/fullrecord.php?id=2090 ''Di farshvundene velt'']. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref><ref> Farber's Rarities (2003). [http://www.farbersrarities.com/prod02.htm ''A Vanished World'']. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|-
|'''1955'''
|''Spider, Egg and Microcosm: Three Men and Three Worlds of Science''
|Published by [[Eugene Kinkead]]; The three men were [[Petrunkevitch]], [[Romanoff]] and Vishniac
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1956'''
|''This Living Earth (Nature Program)''
|Published by N. [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]
|<ref> Amazon.com (2006). [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007F2CP4 ''This living earth (National Audubon Society nature program) (National Audubon Society nature program) (Unknown Binding)'']. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|-
|'''1957'''
|''Mushrooms (Nature Program)''
|Prepared with the cooperation of the National Audubon Society; Published by N. [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]; Library of Congress Control #: 57003046 and 66006050
|<ref> Amazon.com (2006). [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007EE29E/ ''Mushrooms (Nature program) (Nature program) (Unknown Binding)'']. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|-
|'''1959'''
|''Living Earth''
|Drawings by [[Louise Katz]]; Subject: [[Soil biology]]
|<ref> [[Library of Congress]] Online Catalogue. Control #79000366</ref>
|-
|'''1969'''
|''A Day of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw''
|Written by [[Isaac Bashevis Singer]]
|<ref> Find in a Library with [[WorldCat]] (2006). [http://www.worldcatlibraries.org/wcpa/oclc/59403&tab=holdings A day of pleasure; stories of a boy growing up in Warsaw.]. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|-
|'''1971'''
|''Building Blocks of Life: Proteins, Vitamins, and Hormones Seen Through the Microscope''
|Published by [[Charles Scribner's Sons]]
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1972'''
|''The Concerned Photographer 2''
|[[Grossman Publishers]]; Edited by [[Cornell Capa]], text by [[Michael Edelson]]; In cooperation with [[International Center of Photography|ICP]]
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1974'''
|''Roman Vishniac''
|of the [[International Center of Photography|ICP Library of Photographers]]
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1983'''
|''A Vanished World''
|Foreword by [[Elie Wiesel]]; This version is significantly different from the original version, 1947, being completely redone and with many fewer photographs. This is probably the best-known collection of Vishniac's and has independently contributed most to his popularity.
|<ref name=vanish>Roman Vishniac. ''A Vanished World''. Penguin Books Ltd. London. 1983. ISBN 0-7139-1635-4</ref>
|-
|'''1985'''
|''Roman Vishniac''
|by [[Darilyn Rowan]], published at [[Arizona State University]] School of Art.
|<ref> Andrew Cahan: Bookseller, Ltd. [http://www.cahanbooks.com/cgi-bin/cahan/25209.html [VISHNIAC]. ROMAN VISHNIAC]. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|-
|'''1993'''
|''To Give them Light: The Legacy of Roman Vishniac''
|Biographical note by Mara Vishniac Kohn, , edited by [[Marion Wiesel]]
|<ref name="bionote" />
|-
|'''1999'''
|''Children of a Vanished World''
|Edited by Mara Vishniac Kohn and Hartman Flacks
|<ref name="children" />
|-
|'''2005'''
|''Roman Vishniac's Berlin''
|Edited by James Howard Fraser, Mara Vishniac Kohn and Aubrey Pomerance for [[Jewish Museum Berlin]]
|<ref> Jewish Museum Berlin. [http://www.juedisches-museum-berlin.de/site/EN/05-Publications/02-Pertaining-to-Special-Exhibitions/2005-vishniac/vishniac.php Publications: Roman Vishniac's Berlin]. Accessed [[March 9]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|}
:''For a complete list of publications by and about Roman Vishniac, see pages 94 and 95 of ''Roman Vishniac'' published by [[International Center of Photography|ICP]]<ref name="roman" /> and the Library of Congress archive.''
==Major exhibitions==
{| class="wikitable" width=90%
|- bgcolor="#efefef
! width="6%" | Year
! width="33%" | Location
! width="36%" | Notes
! width="8%" | Source
|- valign=top
|'''1943'''
|[[Teacher's College]], [[Columbia University]], [[New York]]
|One-man show of photographs of impoverished Eastern European Jews
|<ref name="roman" /><ref name="misery" />
|-
|'''1962'''
|[[IBM Gallery]], New York
|One-man show; "Through the Looking Glass"
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1971'''
|[[Jewish Museum (New York)|The Jewish Museum]], New York
| "The Concerns of Roman Vishniac"; The first comprehensive showing of Vishniac's work, produced by [[International Center for Photography|ICP]]
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1972–1973'''
|Art Gallery of the [[University at Albany, The State University of New York]]; The [[Corcoran Gallery of Art]], [[Washington D.C.]]; [[New Jersey Public Library]], [[Fair Lawn, New Jersey|Fair Lawn]]; [[Kol Ami Museum]], [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]]; [[Judaica Museum]], [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]]
| "The Concerns of Roman Vishniac" circulated around the [[United States|U.S.A.]] by ICP. Note that this exhibit was probably a continuation of the last one at the Jewish Museum; however, it is listed as a separate production in ''Roman Vishniac''
|<ref name="roman" />
|-
|'''1993'''
|[[International Center of Photography]], [[New York]]
|"Man, Nature, and Science, 1930–1985"
|<ref name="wilson" />
|-
|'''2001'''
|[[Spertus Museum]], [[Chicago, Illinois|Chicago]]
| 50 of Vishniac’s photographs from ''Roman Vishniac Children of a Vanished World''; Mara Vishniac Kohn guest speaker
|<ref name="absart" />
|-
|'''2005'''
|[[Jewish Museum Berlin]]
|Title: "Roman Vishniac's Berlin"; exhibiting 90 images, some never before seen by the public.
|<ref name="jewish" /><ref>Marsh, Sarah (2005). redOrbit.com "Source: [[Reuters]]". [http://www.redorbit.com/news/entertainment/295651/berlins_prewar_jewish_life_captured_at_exhibit/ Berlin's pre-war Jewish life captured at exhibit]. Accessed [[February 25]] [[2006]]. </ref>
|}
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
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==Further reading==
<div class="references-small">
*Fisher, Craig. "Roman's Legions"
*Kinkead, Eugene. "The Tiny Landscape". ''The New Yorker'' [[July 2]] and [[July 9]] [[1955]].
*"Dr. Vishniac and the Beauty of the Real". ''Kodak International Review'' - No. 9
*ICP Library of Photographers. ''Roman Vishniac''. Grossman Publishers, New York. 1974.
</div>
==See also==
[[Image:Rolleiflex camera.jpg|thumb|upright|Later model of the [[Rolleiflex]] camera such as was used by Vishniac in Eastern Europe]]
===Organizations===
* [[International Center of Photography]] — Owner of the copyrights of Roman's works.
* [[American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee]] — Originally commissioned Vishniac's trips to Eastern Europe.
===Photography===
* [[Time-lapse]] — Technique pioneered by Vishniac.
* [[Documentary photography]]
===People===
* [[Wolf V. Vishniac]] — Son of Roman, eminent [[microbiology|microbiologist]], died in 1973 during an [[Antarctica|Antarctic]] expedition.
* [[Ethan Vishniac|Ethan T. Vishniac]] — Grandson of Roman, son of Wolf, editor of the [[Astrophysical Journal]].
* [[Cornell Capa]] — Founder of ICP.
* [[Alter Kacyzne]] — A well-known contemporary of Roman Vishniac's; photographed similar subjects, but died in a [[concentration camp]] in 1941.
<!--
* [[Henri Cartier-Bresson]]
* [[Semyon An-sky]]
* [[Solomon Yudovin]]
* [[Lawrence Salzman]]
* [[Edward Serotta]]
* [[Frederic Brenner]]
* [[Szymon Zajczyk]]
* [[Loszlo Regos]]
-->
==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* [http://www.vishniac.com/ephraim/vishniac.html Every Vishniac] — Webpage of Ephraim Vishniac, Roman's grandson, detailing the family tree of the Vishniacs'.
* [http://www.singergallery.com/gallery.cfm?artistID=249 The Barry Singer Gallery] — Catalogue of six of Roman Vishniac photographs from ''A Vanished World''.
* [http://www.howardgreenberg.com/ The Howard Greenberg Gallery] — Includes gallery of 31 of Roman Vishniac's photographs.
* [http://www.luminous-lint.com/_switchbox.php?action=ACT_SING_PH&p1=Roman__Vishniac&p2=ABCDEFGHIJKLN Luminous-Lint page]
* [http://www.geh.org/fm/mismis/htmlsrc18/vishniac_sld00001.html George Eastman House Still Photograph Archive]
* [http://www.sc.edu/library/digital/collections/vishniac.html University of South Carolina Newsfilm Library Collection of Roman Vishniac's Scientific Imaging: 100 images]
* [http://www.jewishhamilton.org/page.html?ArticleID=161873 Interview with Roman's grandson]
{{featured article}}
<!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]] -->
{{Persondata
|NAME= Vishniac, Roman
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= Russian-American photographer
|DATE OF BIRTH=19 August 1897
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[Pavlovsk]]
|DATE OF DEATH=22 January 1990
|PLACE OF DEATH=[[New York City]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vishniac, Roman}}
[[Category:1897 births]]
[[Category:1990 deaths]]
[[Category:American biologists]]
[[Category:American photographers]]
[[Category:Case Western Reserve University faculty]]
[[Category:Jewish photographers]]
[[Category:Russian biologists]]
[[Category:Russian photographers]]
[[Category:Russian-American Jews]]
[[Category:Zionists]]
[[de:Roman Vishniac]]
[[fr:Roman Vishniac]]
[[gl:Roman Vishniac]]
[[he:רומן וישניאק]]
[[pt:Roman Vishniac]]
[[simple:Roman Vishniac]]