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Walter Lehrman Beat Generation photograph collection, 1953-1956
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Lehrman, Walter
- Title
- Walter Lehrman Beat Generation photograph collection
- Dates
- 1953-1956 (inclusive)19531956
- Quantity
- 5 boxes, (2.5 linear feet)
- Collection Number
- UUS_P0577
- Summary
- This small but significant collection includes original negatives and photographs of Beat Generation poets Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Philip Whalen, Gary Snyder, Michael McClure, Kenneth Rexroth, Robert Creeley, and friends, made by Walter Lehrman from November 1955 through June 1956.
- Repository
-
Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections and Archives Division
Special Collections & Archives
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
Logan, UT
84322-3000
Telephone: 4357978248
Fax: 4357972880
scweb@usu.edu - Access Restrictions
-
No online items. Not available through interlibrary loan. Negatives have been removed from this collection and placed in cold storage box 74. Because of their fragility, these negatives are restricted. For "use copies" of the negatives, researchers are directed to the unretouched master digital scans of these negatives.
For other research, low-resolution hard copies for research purposes may be obtained from the Special Collections photograph curator or the Special Collections Department Head, in accordance with specific copying policies of the Walter Lehrman Photograph Collection. Please note: Except where specified, all materials in the Walter Lehrman Photograph Collection are copyrighted and may not be reproduced for publication in any media, including on-line display, without the express written permission of the copyright holder. Photocopies will be supplied for research use only. No digital scans, and no photographs by any kind of camera in the collection are permitted.
- Languages
- English
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Walter Lehrman was born and raised in the Bronx, the son of Eastern European Jewish immigrants. During WWII he was in the Army Air Force, a radio operator on a B-29. He was at Okinawa, preparing for the invasion of Japan's home islands, when the war ended.
Back home in New York, he received both his Bachelors and Masters degrees from Columbia. In 1951, he married Jinny Baker, a Greenwich Village art student and model, and together they moved to Berkeley, where Walter, having been offered a teaching assistantship, took up graduate studies in the University of California English department.
In Berkeley, the Lehrmans became friends with Allen Ginsberg (also at the UC Berkeley English department), Gary Snyder, Philip Whalen, and Jack Kerouac. Walter was on hand for the Six Gallery poetry reading in 1955, and, inspired by the performances of his friends, began photographing them at subsequent events, parties, and impromptu portrait sessions.
In 1956, the Lehrmans left Berkeley for Ohio when Walter took an English instructor's position at the University of Akron. At the same time, Gary Snyder left Berkeley for Japan; Jack Kerouac headed for Desolation Peak; Allen Ginsberg shipped out as a merchant seaman; and Philip Whalen departed for Newport, Oregon. It was the end of "the Dharma Bums" period, but Lehrman had managed to capture several of the main characters on film.
Walter Lehrman taught English at the University of Akron until 1986, retiring as an Associate Professor. During his academic career, his photographs remained in storage, only resurfacing in the 1990s with the resurgence of popular interest in the Beats.
Mr. Lehrman lives in Akron, Ohio, with his daughter, Elizabeth Raptis.
John Suiter is a writer and photographer currently (2015) living in Chicago. He first became acquainted with Walter Lehrman and his work during production on A Jack Kerouac CD-ROMnibus, a 1995 multi-media project which highlighted several of Lehrman’s photographs, and on which Suiter was Associate Producer. In 2002, Suiter used Lehrman’s portrait of Jack Kerouac, with permission, in his book Poets on the Peaks: Gary Snyder, Philip Whalen & Jack Kerouac in the North Cascades. In 2009 Suiter became Lehrman’s agent and printer. He began having high resolution digital master scans of Lehrman’s original negatives made, and created a series of inkjet digital prints of Lehrman’s images that were exhibited at USU’s Nora Eccles Harrison Museum in 2014.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Of particular note are Lehrman’s historic images of Allen Ginsberg reading his famous poem "Howl" at readings in November 1955 in San Francisco and March 1956 in Berkeley. Also of interest are photographs made at the 3-day "Going-Away-to-Japan" party for the poet Gary Snyder in May 1956 when Snyder departed for Kyoto to pursue Zen training. That party is treated fictively in Kerouac’s book, The Dharma Bums, and many of Lehrman’s portraits are of people who were the life-models for Kerouac’s characters.
The Walter Lehrman Collection is in six parts.
The collection also includes unretouched, high-resolution master digital scans of Lehrman’s original negatives; a set of retouched, exhibition-grade digital files from the masters; and oversized, exhibition-grade prints of Lehrman’s images by photographer John Suiter.
In addition, the collection has audio recordings made by Mr. Lehrman at the Town Hall poetry reading of March 18, 1956 in Berkeley, California, featuring Allen Ginsberg, Gary Snyder, Philip Whalen, Michael McClure, and Kenneth Rexroth.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Except where noted, all photographs in the Walter Lehrman Photograph Collection are copyrighted by Walter Lehrman and may not be reproduced in any manner without his express written permission. Requests should first be directed to the Special Collections Photograph Curator and/or the Associate Dean, Special Collections & Archives
Preferred Citation
Initial Citation: USU_P0577; Walter Lehrman photograph collection; Photograph Collections Special Collections and Archives. Utah State University Merrill-Cazier Library. Logan, Utah.
Following Citations:USU_P0577, USUSCA.
Alternative Forms Available
Audio recordings.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
Part I: Original negatives by Walter Lehrman, exposures made in 1955 and ‘56. Due to extensive damage to the emulsions, these negatives are in Cold Storage Box 74.
Part II: Silver halide photographs from the original negatives, printed by Walter Lehrman in 1955-‘56. These are cropped versions of the full negative frames and appear to be preliminary "work prints."
Part III: Unretouched, exact digital "masters" made from high-resolution scans of the original negatives.
Part IV: Retouched, high-resolution digital files made from the digital masters.
Part V: Inkjet prints made by John Suiter from the retouched digital files in Part IV.
Part VI: Audio recordings made by Walter Lehrman at the Town Hall Theater poetry reading in Berkeley, California, March 18, 1956, (featuring Allen Ginsberg, Gary Snyder, Philip Whalen, Michael McClure & Kenneth Rexroth).
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
I.: WALTER LEHRMAN ORIGINAL 2¼" NEGATIVES, 1955-1956Return to Top
All Lehrman negatives are on 2¼" Kodak Safety Film and were shot using a medium-format twin-reflex Rolleicord camera.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
Allen Ginsberg |
1955 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | ID#1: Allen Ginsberg reading, San Francisco |
1955 November |
| 1 | 1 | ID#2: Allen Ginsberg speaking at San Francisco State
Note: ID#2 is bottom image of a 2-frame strip of negative film.
Note: In addition to ID#1 and ID#2, there are 10 additional similar negatives of Allen Ginsberg at San Francisco State, from the same event and from the same roll of film. These similar negatives (no ID#s) have never been scanned.
|
1955 November |
| 1 | 1 | ID#3: Allen Ginsberg in profile, sitting at window at Lehrman's apartment |
1955 Fall |
Town Hall Poetry Reading, Berkeley (Historic first reading of "Howl" in three complete parts)
|
1956 March 18 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 2 | ID# 7: "Allen Ginsberg at Town Hall" #1, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#17: "Poets on Stage" (Ginsberg, Whalen, McClure, Snyder), Town Hall Theater, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#18: Michael McClure, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#19: Michael McClure & Gary Snyder, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#20: Michael McClure & Gary Snyder, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#21: Kenneth Rexroth #2, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#22: Gary Snyder #1, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#23: Gary Snyder #2, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#24: Philip Whalen #1, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
| 1 | 2 | ID#25: Philip Whalen #2, Town Hall, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 |
Gary Snyder’s Going-to-Japan Party, Mill Valley (Gary Snyder sailed for Kobe, Japan, on May 7)
|
1956 May 4-6 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 3 | ID#12: Philip Whalen & Jack Kerouac, Mill Valley Note: ID#12 is one negative of a 2-frame film strip cut from the film roll. Other image (unscanned) is of homes in Mill Valley.
|
1956 |
| 1 | 3 | ID#14: Jack Kerouac, Mill Valley #2 Note: Also includes a negative of a similar image, but Kerouac is looking down.
|
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#26: Robert Creeley, Mill Valley |
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#27: Gary Snyder, Mill Valley |
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#31: Locke McCorkle, Mill Valley Note: Gary Snyder lived in a cabin in Locke McCorkle’s backyard in Mill Valley for 3 months in early 1956. McCorkle is called "Sean Monahan" in The Dharma Bums.
|
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#32: Locke McCorkle, Mill Valley #2 |
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#33: Valerie McCorkle, Mill Valley Note: 1-33a and 1-33b are similar but slightly different versions of 1-33. Valerie McCorkle was Locke McCorkle’s wife. Called "Christine McCorkle" in The Dharma Bums.
|
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#36: Sally ‘Shandel’ Parks Note: Sally Parks was a girlfriend of Gary Snyder’s during the mid-1950s. See his poem "Shandel" in Danger on Peaks. Called "Polly Whitmore" in The Dharma Bums.
|
1956 May |
| 1 | 3 | ID#37: John Montgomery, Mill Valley Note: John Montgomery was a hiking friend of Gary Snyder’s. Called "Henry Morley" in The Dharma Bums.
|
1956 May |
Mary Sullivan’s Party, Berkeley |
1956 May 12 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 4 | ID#11: Jack Kerouac, Berkeley, #1 |
1956 May 12 |
| 1 | 4 | ID#13: Kerouac, Orlovsky & Ginsberg, Berkeley |
1956 May 12 |
| 1 | 4 | ID#15: Jack Kerouac, Berkeley, #2 |
1956 May 12 |
| 1 | 4 | ID#16: Jack Kerouac, Berkeley, #3 |
1956 May 12 |
| 1 | 4 | ID#29: Peter Orlovsky, Berkeley, #1 |
1956 May 12 |
| 1 | 4 | ID#30: Peter Orlovsky, Berkeley, #2 |
1956 May 12 |
| 1 | 4 | ID#38: Mary Sullivan and Philip Whalen, Berkeley |
1956 May 12 |
Marilyn "Neuri" Arnold, Berkeley Note: Marilyn "Neuri" Arnold was a girlfriend of Gary Snyder’s. See his poem "For a Far-Out Friend" in his collection Riprap. "Neuri" was called "Psyche" Kerouac’s The Dharma Bums.
|
1955, 1956 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 5 | ID#34: Marilyn "Neuri" Arnold, Berkeley, #1 Note: ID#34a-c are unscanned "similars" of ID#34, from the same portrait session and from the same roll of negative film.
|
1956 |
| 1 | 5 | ID#35: Marilyn "Neuri" Arnold, Berkeley, #2 Note: ID#35a-g are unscanned "similars" of #ID35, from the same portrait session and from the same roll of negative film.
|
1956 |
Miscellaneous |
1956 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 6 | ID#28: Gary Snyder, Point Reyes |
1956 April |
Unscanned Negatives |
1956 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 7 | ID#27a: Unidentified girl, Mill Valley Note: Probably the daughter of one of the guests at the party.
|
1956 May |
| 1 | 7 | ID#44: Unidentified girl, Mill Valley Note: Same girl as in ID#27a
|
1956 May |
| 1 | 7 | ID#45: Philip Whalen, Mill Valley |
1956 May |
II.: PRINTS BY WALTER LEHRMAN, 1955-1956Return to Top
These are silver halide prints processed by Walter Lehrman in 1955 & 1956 in his darkroom in Berkeley. The original negatives for the prints in Folders 1 & 2 have been lost, so these prints are the "masters" for these images. The negatives from which the prints in Folder 3 were made are indicated with ID#s.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
Portraits of Allen Ginsberg |
1955-1956 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 1 | ID#4: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Note: 3½" x 4¾" silver halide print
|
1955 Fall |
| 2 | 1 | ID#5: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Note: 5¾" x 7¼" silver halide print.
|
1955 Fall |
| 2 | 1 | ID#6: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Note: 3½" x 4¾" silver halide print
|
1955 Fall |
| 2 | 1 | ID#8: Allen Ginsberg Town Hall #2, Berkeley Note: No Negative
|
1956 March 18 |
| 2 | 1 | ID#9: Allen Ginsberg ("White Shirt Portrait"), Berkeley Note: 4½" x 6½" silver halide print
|
1956 May 12 |
Lehrman Self-Portraits |
1953 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 2 | ID#42: Walter Lehrman, Self-portrait, Berkeley Note: 7¼" x 10½" Silver halide print, approx. 5" x 7"
|
1953 |
| 2 | 2 | ID#43: Jinny & Walter Lehrman, Berkeley Note: Silver halide print, approx. 5" x 7"
|
1953 |
Town Hall Poetry Reading, Berkeley |
1956 March 18 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 3 | Item 39: Kenneth Rexroth #1, Town Hall, Berkeley Note: Cropped version, printed from negative ID#20. Silver halide print, approx. 5" x 7"
|
1956 |
| 2 | 3 | Item 40: Philip Whalen #1, Town Hall, Berkeley Note: Cropped version, printed from negative ID#24. Silver halide print, approx. 5" x 7"
|
1956 |
| 2 | 3 | Item 41: Philip Whalen #2, Town Hall, Berkeley Note: Cropped version, printed from negative ID#25. Silver halide print, approx. 5" x 7"
|
1956 |
III.: UNRETOUCHED DIGITAL MASTERS , 1955-1956Return to Top
These are TIFF format files from high-resolution scans of Walter Lehrman’s original negatives and prints. Fifteen of these (1, 3, 7, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28) were scanned at Jonathan Singer Editions in Boston in 2009, on a very high-resolution CreoScitex flatbed film scanner. All other negatives were "drum scanned" at Print Lab in Chicago in 2013-14, on a Heidelberg Tango XL scanner. Nos. 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 39-43 are print-masters (negatives lost or destroyed) that were scanned on a Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner at Print Lab.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
Unretouched Digital Masters on DVD #I (15 TIFF files)
|
1955-1956 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 4 | 1: Allen Ginsberg Reading Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#1; Dimensions: 9768 x 9707; File Size: 94.9 MB; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
1955 November |
| 2 | 4 | 2: Allen Ginsberg Speaking Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#2;Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
1955 November |
| 2 | 4 | 3: Allen Ginsberg Profile Master Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#3; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
1955 November |
| 2 | 4 | 4: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley,[aka "Triptych Left"] Source: Silver halide print II.4 (ID#4); Dimensions: 4911 × 6102; File Size: 30.1 MB; Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
1955 Fall |
| 2 | 4 | 5: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Source: Silver halide print II.5 (ID#5); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
1955 Fall |
| 2 | 4 | 6: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Source: Silver halide print II.5 (ID#6); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 7: Allen Ginsberg, Town Hall #1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#7; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 8: Allen Ginsberg, Town Hall #2 Source: Silver halide print II.8 (ID#8); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 9: Allen Ginsberg White Shirt Source: Silver halide print II.9 (ID#9); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 10: Jack Kerouac Mill Valley 1 Note: Master file for ID#10 was scanned from Walter Lehrman’s original negative at a photo lab in Akron, Ohio, and provided to John Suiter by Lehrman in 2002. The negative has since been lost. (No further information available).
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 11: Jack Kerouac Berkeley,1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#11; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
1956 June |
| 2 | 4 | 12: Philip Whalen & Jack Kerouac Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#12; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 13: Kerouac Orlovsky Ginsberg Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#13; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 14: Jack Kerouac Mill Valley 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#14; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 4 | 15: Jack Kerouac Berkeley, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#15; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
1956 |
Unretouched Digital Masters on DVD #II |
1956 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 5 | 16: Jack Kerouac Berkeley, 3 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#16; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
1956 |
| 2 | 5 | 17: Poets on Stage (Ginsberg, Whalen, McClure & Snyder) Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#17; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 18: Michael McClure Town Hall Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#18; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 19: McClure & Snyder Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#19; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 20: Kenneth Rexroth Town Hall, 1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#20; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 21: Kenneth Rexroth Town Hall, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#22;Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 22: Gary Snyder Town Hall, 1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#22; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 23: Gary Snyder Town Hall, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#23; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 24: Philip Whalen Town Hall, 1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#24; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 25: Philip Whalen Town Hall, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#25, Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 26: Robert Creeley Mill Valley, 56 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#26; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 27: Gary Snyder Mill Valley, 56 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#27; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 28: Gary Snyder Point Reyes Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#28; Scanned at: Singer Editions, CreoScitex Eversmart Select scanner
|
1956 |
| 2 | 5 | 29: Peter Orlovsky, 1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#29; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 5 | 30: Peter Orlovsky, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#30; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
1956 |
Unretouched Digital Masters on DVD #III |
Undated | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 6 | 31: Locke McCorkle, 1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#31; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 32: Locke McCorkle, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#32;Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 33: Valerie McCorkle Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#33; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 34: Neuri Arnold, 1 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#34; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 35: Neuri Arnold, 2 Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#35; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 36: Shandel Parks Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#36; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 37: John Montgomery Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#37; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 38: Mary Sullivan & Philip Whalen Source: Original 2¼" film negative ID#38; Scanned at: Print Lab, Heidelberg Tango XL drum scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 39: Rexroth by Walter Source: Silver halide print II.39 (ID#39); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 40: Whalen 1 by Walter Source: Silver halide print II.40 (ID#40); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 41: Whalen 2 by Walter Source: Silver halide print II.41 (ID#41); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 42: Walter Lehrman Self-Portrait Source: Silver halide print II.42 (ID#42); Scanned: Print Lab, Epson V750 Pro flatbed scanner
|
undated |
| 2 | 6 | 43: Jinny & Walter Lehrman Source: Silver halide print II.43 (ID#43); Scanned: John Suiter, HP Deskjet flatbed scanner
|
undated |
IV.: RETOUCHED, EXHIBITION-GRADE DIGITAL FILES, 1955-1956Return to Top
From 2009 to 2014, John Suiter made copies of Lehrman’s digital masters in Photoshop format and began "imaging" the files—cropping, retouching, adjusting contrast, etc.—in order to create a series of exhibition-grade prints.
"The files I printed from were all retouched to varying degrees. Some required little more than routine elimination of the kind of dust spots and mini-scratches one would expect to find on even "clean" negatives in the darkroom—dust-spot artifacts and small micro-nicks in the film emulsion that one would "spot out" on prints with a triple-zero brush in days past. The extreme high-resolution of the CreoScitex scans brought these imperfections out even more. Some of this clean-up work required many thousands of mouse-clicks. I know there are some of these files that I clicked on more than 10,000 times.
Other changes were more interpretive. I’ve left some of the more complex Photoshop files in layers for people to track the work, if interested. Some files I worked on slowly, an hour here and there, for weeks…" John Suiter.
The Photoshop folders contain varying numbers of files for each image. Those titled "Final" are the files from which Suiter made the prints in Section V. Other files are titled "v1," "v2," "v3," indicating working versions leading up to the printed file. Some of the files have been left in Photoshop "layers" to show the progression of the changes to the unretouched file or for the convenience of some future printer who may want to make further (or fewer) adjustments to the files. Finally, many of the folders contain text files for interpretive panels to accompany the images.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
Exhibit Grade Digital Files on DVD Disk I |
1955 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 7 | 1: Allen Ginsberg Reading (4 files)
V1, V2, Final & Text
|
1955 November |
| 2 | 7 | 2: Allen Ginsberg at SF State Class (4 files)
V1, V2, V3 (Layers), Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 3: Allen Ginsberg Profile Berkeley (3 files)
V1, Final, Text
|
1955 |
| 2 | 7 | 4: Allen Ginsberg Portrait (3 files)
V1, V2, Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 5: Allen Ginsberg Portrait (2 files)
V1, Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 6: Allen Ginsberg Portrait (1 file)
Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 7: Allen Ginsberg Town Hall (8 files)
"Original," "Detail," V1, V2, Final & 3 Text files
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 8: Allen Ginsberg Town Hall, 2 (1 file)
Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 9: Allen Ginsberg "White Shirt Portrait" (2 files)
V1, Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 10: Jack Kerouac Mill Valley, 1 (4 files)
V2, V3, Final & Text file. The digital file is the sole property of Merrill-Cazier Library Special Collections & Archives. For reproduction, consult the Curator of Photographs.
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 11: Jack Kerouac Berkeley (3 files)
V1, Final, Text
|
1956 May |
| 2 | 7 | 12: Philip Whalen & Jack Kerouac (3 files)
V1, V2, Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 13: Kerouac Orlovsky Ginsberg (5 files)
V1, V2, V3, Final & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | Note: Negatives 14, 15, 16 & 21 were never retouched for printing |
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 17: Poets on Stage (Ginsberg, Whalen, McClure & Snyder) (3 files)
V1, Final & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 18: Michael McClure Town Hall (4 files)
V1, V2, Final & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 19: McClure & Snyder (4 files)
V1, V2, Final & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 20: Rexroth Town Hall, 1 (3 files)
V1, Final & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 7 | 22: Gary Snyder Town Hall 1 (2 files)
Unretouched masters sized and contrast-adjusted to print
|
undated |
Exhibit Grade Digital Files on DVD Disk II 14 Photoshop folders
|
1955 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 8 | 23: Gary Snyder Town Hall, 2 (3 files)
V1, Final, Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 24: Philip Whalen Town Hall, 1 (4 files)
V1, V2, Final, Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 25: Philip Whalen Town Hall, 2 (2 files)
V1, Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 26: Robert Creeley Mill Valley (2 files)
V1, Final
|
1956 |
| 2 | 8 | 27: Gary Snyder Mill Valley (2 files)
V1, Final
|
1956 |
| 2 | 8 | 28: Gary Snyder Point Reyes V1, Final. Note: RESTRICTED until 2020. No photocopies.
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 29: Peter Orlovsky #1 (3 files)
V1, Final & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 30: Peter Orlovsky #2 (2 files)
V1, Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 31: Locke McCorkle Mill Valley (3 files)
V1, Final & Text
|
1956 |
Note: 32, 35, 36, 37, 38 were never retouched for printing.
39, 40, 41 are cropped versions of 20, 24 & 25 respectively. |
undated | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 8 | 33: Valerie McCorkle Mill Valley (3 files)
V1, Final & Text
|
1956 |
| 2 | 8 | 34: Marilyn "Neuri" Arnold Berkeley (3 files)
V1, Final & Text
|
1956 |
| 2 | 8 | 42: Walter Lehrman Self-Portrait (4 files)
"Self Portrait," Final, Signature & Text
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | 43: Jinny & Walter Lehrman (1 file)
Final
|
undated |
| 2 | 8 | "Ginsberg Triptych." A triptych combining Allen Ginsberg Nos. 4, 5 & 6 V1, Final
|
undated |
V.: PRINTS OF WALTER LEHRMAN’s IMAGES by JOHN SUITER, 1955-1956Return to Top
Prints collected in two boxes. Box 3 contains 27 17” x 22” prints. Box 4 contains 7 prints of varying sizes, some of which have been removed from the Suiter Collection in order to consolidate the Walter Lehrman Collection.
Prints in Box 3 were all made with Epson inks on Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper, an ink-paper combination that is estimated to remain archivally stable for 100+ years according to Wilhelm Imaging Research print permanence tests. The prints were all produced on an Epson Stylus 3880 Pro inkjet printer, from PSD format (Photoshop) files.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
Prints |
1956 | ||
| Box | |||
| 3 | Item 1: Allen Ginsberg reading, San Francisco Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.1. Includes interpretive text panel
|
1955 November | |
| 3 | Item 2: Allen Ginsberg speaking at San Francisco State Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.2
|
1955 November | |
| 3 | Item 3: Allen Ginsberg in Profile, Lehrman’s Apt Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.3
|
1955 Fall | |
| 3 | Item 4: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Inkjet print; 14” x 18” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.4
|
1955 Fall | |
| 3 | Item 5: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 19” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.5. This print remains the sole property of Merrill-Cazier Special Collections & Archives. For reproduction, inquire with curator of Special Collections.
|
1955 Fall | |
| 3 | Item 6: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Inkjet print; 14” x 18” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.6
|
1955 Fall | |
| 3 | Item 6a: Allen Ginsberg Triptych, Berkeley Inkjet print; 8¾” x 20” image age on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from Section IV, Disk II, “Ginsberg Triptych
|
1955 Fall | |
| 3 | Item 7: Allen Ginsberg at Town Hall #1, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15¾” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.7
|
1956 March 18 | |
| 3 | Item 8: Allen Ginsberg at Town Hall #2, Berkeley Inkjet print; 13¼” x 19½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.8
|
1956 March 18 | |
| Box | |||
| 3 | 3 | Item 9: Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Inkjet print; 14 x 19½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: “White Shirt Portrait,” printed from IV.9
|
1956 March 18 |
| 3 | Item 10: “Jack Kerouac, Mill Valley, #1 Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.10
|
1956 May | |
| 3 | Item 11: Jack Kerouac, Berkeley, #1 Inkjet print; 15” 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte; paper
Note: Printed from IV.11
|
1956 June | |
| 3 | Item 12: Philip Whalen & Jack Kerouac, Mill Valley Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
|
1956 | |
| 3 | Item 13: Kerouac, Orlovsky and Ginsberg, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.13. Includes interpretive text panel
|
1956 | |
| 3 | Item 14: Poets on Stage” (Ginsberg, Whalen, McClure & Snyder) at Town Hall theater, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.14. Includes interpretive text panel
|
1956 March 18 | |
| 3 | Item 15: Michael McClure, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.18
|
1956 March 18 | |
| 3 | Item 16: Michael McClure & Gary Snyder, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.19
|
1956 March 18 | |
| 3 | Item 17: Kenneth Rexroth #1, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.20
|
1956 March 18 | |
| 3 | Item 18: Gary Snyder, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15 ¼” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.23
|
1956 March 18 | |
| 3 | Item 19: Gary Snyder, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print
|
undated | |
| 3 | Item 20: Robert Creeley, Mill Valley Inkjet print: 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.27
|
1956 May | |
| 3 | Item 21: Gary Snyder, Mill Valley Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.27
|
1956 May | |
| 3 | Item 22: Gary Snyder, Point Reyes Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.28
|
1956 April | |
| 3 | Item 23: Peter Orlovsky, Berkeley, #1 Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.29
|
1956 June | |
| 3 | Item 24: Peter Orlovsky, Berkeley, #2 Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.30
|
1956 June | |
| 3 | Item 25: Locke McCorkle, Mill Valley Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.31. Locke McCorkle was a friend of Gary Snyder’s. Called “Sean Monahan” in Kerouac’s The Dharma Bums.
|
1956 May | |
| 3 | Item 26: Valerie McCorkle, Mill Valley Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.33. Note: Valerie McCorkle was Locke McCorkle’s wife. Called “Christine Monahan” in The Dharma Bums.
|
1956 May | |
| 3 | Item 27: Marilyn "Neuri" Arnold, Berkeley Inkjet print; 15” x 15½” image area on 17” x 22” matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.34
|
1956 | |
Oversized Prints of Lehrman Images by John Suiter |
1953 | ||
| Box | |||
| 4 | Item 1: Jack Kerouac at Marin-An Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.10. Note: Removed from John Suiter Collection, P0375 10:02
|
1956 May | |
| 4 | Item 2: Philip Whalen and Jack Kerouac at Gary Snyder's Cabin, Mill Valley Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.12. Note: Removed from John Suiter Collection, P0375 10:01
|
1956 May | |
| 4 | Item 3: Philip Whalen and Jack Kerouac at Gary Snyder's Cabin, Mill Valley Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.12. Note: Removed from John Suiter Collection, P0375 10:25
|
1956 | |
| 4 | Item 4: Jack Kerouac, Peter Orlovsky and Allen Ginsberg, Berkeley Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.13
|
undated | |
| 4 | Item 5: Gary Snyder #1, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.23
|
undated | |
| 4 | Item 6: Philip Whalen #1, Town Hall, Berkeley Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.24
|
undated | |
| 4 | Item 7: Walter Lehrman, Self-portrait, Berkeley Inkjet print; matte paper
Note: Printed from IV.42. Note: Walter Lehrman’s signature is scanned, not signed by hand
|
1953 | |
VI.: AUDIO MATERIALS, 1956Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 5 | 1 | Berkeley Poetry Reading, CD-Disk I 20 Tracks; 1 hour, 16 minutes. (incl. Snyder, Whalen, McClure & Rexroth)
Note: 1992 Digital copy of Lehrman’s original 1956 reel-to-ree' recordings
|
1956 March 18 |
| 5 | 2 | Berkeley Poetry Reading,CD-Disk II 11 Tracks; 57 mins. (all Ginsberg)
Note: 1992 Digital copy of Lehrman’s original 1956 reel-to-reel recordings
|
1956 March 18 |
| 5 | 3 | Berkeley Reading DC Edits” [“DC” = Daniel R. Collins] 15 Tracks; 51 minutes
Note: Digital re-masters from the 1994 digital files, produced by Daniel R. Collins of Media, Pennsylvania, for Merrill-Cazier Special Collections & Archives in 2013-14. These are individual audio files excerpted from the 1994 digital copies. The remastered files were presented at “listening stations” at the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum in March 2014 in connection with the exhibition, “Nobody Goes Home Sad: Portraits of the Six Gallery Poets, 1956-2000, by Walter Lehrman & John Suiter.
|
undated |
| 5 | 4 | Playlists for CDs |
undated |
| 5 | 5 | Complete transcript of poetry reading, including ancillary remarks.
Annotated by John Suiter |
undated |
| 5 | 6 | Correspondence: Daniel R. Collins – John Suiter (35 pieces)
Note: E-mails containing detailed instructions and discussions of sound issues for remasterings of Lehrman’s original recordings.
|
undated |
| 5 | 7 | Document: Descriptive comparison of USU’s Lehrman audios with those in other archives and commercially-available versions |
undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Beats (Persons)--Photographs.
Finding aid/Register created by Daniel Davis & John Suiter
2015
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
