Duncan, Kenn

Considered by many to be one of the foremost dance photographers of the late twentieth century, Kenneth Duncan, Jr. was born on September 22, 1928 in New Jersey. Duncan came by both photography and dancing in an indirect way. His initial interest in movement came about through his study of ballet which he undertook in order to perfect his form as a roller-skating champion. Duncan achieved the highest honors in the sport, but eventually he abandoned skating for a career as a dancer, which gained him much recognition. Sometime in the 1960s, however, he injured his leg badly enough that he had to abandon his career as a dancer. He became an assistant to a fashion photographer and learned how to use a camera, eventually taking over the studio in the late 1960s, moving into dance photography.

Duncan sought to capture the sense of movement in his photography while revealing, according to one critic, an "outer beauty and inner essence" of his subjects with a technique that garnered him international acclaim. While he photographed a wide range of performers and personalities including, among others, Maxwell Caulfield, Dick Cavett, Eartha Kitt, Angela Lansbury, Marcel Marceau and Bette Midler, it was through his work in photographing dancers and dance companies that he first gained recognition. Over the course of his career he photographed the top dancers in the world during the mid to late twentieth century, recording their virtuosity in a way that revealed great sensitivity on his part. Duncan's subjects included Mikhail Baryshnikov, Natalia Makarova, Rudolf Nureyev, Cynthia Gregory, Fernando Bujones, Judith Jamison, Gelsey Kirkland, Alicia Alonso and numerous company dancers. He also photographed nearly every principal dance company in the world. The American companies include: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, American Ballet Theatre, Ballet West, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Joffrey Ballet, New York City Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Pilobolus, San Francisco Ballet, Murray Louis Dance Company and the Alwin Nikolais, Paul Taylor and Twyla Tharp companies. Among the foreign companies are: the Australian Ballet, Maurice Bejart's Ballet of the 20th Century, Bolshoi Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Netherlands Dance Theatre, and the Royal Ballet. He also photographed the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and was invited to Cuba to photograph their 8th International Dance Festival.

In 1984 he published a collection of photographs entitled Red Shoes, a collection that was inspired by the motion picture The Wizard of Oz . In the collection Duncan features celebrities in various poses with white costumes and complementary red shoes, boots, sandals, sneakers, toe shoes or ballet slippers. He also published two other books: Nudes (1970) and More Nudes (1971), featuring discreet and artistic arrangements of his subjects. He was a highly regarded photographer of male nudes. Mr. Duncan was also the featured photographer on numerous other publications.

In addition to his dance work and books, Duncan photographed numerous theatrical productions including the Broadway shows The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, The Elephant Man, La Cage aux Folles, My One and Only and Sophisticated Ladies, among others. He also had numerous commercial clients, including a long stint as photographer for the 1970s entertainment and culture magazine After Dark . His work is represented in many collections of museums and libraries throughout the world including The Brooklyn Museum, the Chicago Historical Society, the Dance Library of Israel, the Harvard Libraries, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the International Center of Photography, the Parsons School of Design, the Smithsonian Institution and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam in addition to The New Public Library for the Performing Arts.

Mr. Duncan also garnered recognition in the form of a National Endowment for the Arts Grant and the International Brotherhood and Peace Award. He had a brief stint in the United States Army from 1950-1956, with the last four years in the Army Reserve. He died on July 27, 1986.

From the guide to the Kenn Duncan photograph archive, circa 1960-1986, (The New York Public Library. Billy Rose Theatre Division.)