On Friday the Smithsonian American Art Museum announced  that it had received 100 images by the 20th-century photographer as a gift from the Irving Penn Foundation, significantly broadening its collection of his work. The images span eight decades, and include iconic and previously unseen images ranging from his early street photography of the American South, snapshots of Europe after World War II, editorial and advertising photography for Vogue, pictures of still life, self-portraits, and well-known portraits of Truman Capote and Langston Hughes. The museum now has 161 of Penn’s images, which it will display at an exhibit in the fall of 2015.
“We were able to find and add a great many aspects that weren’t well known,†Elizabeth Broun, the Margaret and Terry Stent director of the museum, said in a telephone interview. “People will see the familiar Penn as well as a fuller, richer portrait of his achievements over his career.â€
The artist’s son, Tom Penn, who is executive director of his foundation, added in a telephone interview that they “felt that they should have additional work to fill out areas where they did not have any of his work. He was extremely remarkable in the diversity of his work,†he said in a telephone interview. “People will be surprised to see one person crossing all of those eras.â€
