Stephan Glass, more commonly known as Stephen Glass, was a Hungarian-British photographer best known for his nude studies.[1]
Stephen Glass | |
|---|---|
| Born | Budapest, Hungary |
| Died | 23 August 1990 Paddington, London, England |
| Nationality | British / Hungarian |
| Known for | Nude photography |
Early career
He was born in Hungary to Jewish parents. After three years of intensive study in commercial art schools in Budapest, he earned his living as a designer, cartoonist, and painter. At the end of the First World War, he left Hungary for Germany,[2] where he worked as art editor for the leading evening newspaper in Berlin[3] His younger brother Zoltán, who moved to Berlin in 1925,[4] founded the advertising photography agency, Reclaphot, and the Autophot agency, which specialised in automotive photography. Together with Peter Petersen, they took photographs for such firms as Daimler-Benz, Fiat and Auto Union. As Hungarian Jews, however, Stephen and Zoltán found working in Germany increasingly problematic and they eventually emigrated to England,[5] where they shared a photography studio, in London.[6]
Life in London
In the 1940s and 1950s, Stephen specialised in photographing nudes for such magazines as Health and Efficiency and The Naturist.[7] In addition, his work regularly featured in continental magazines such as Paris Hollywood, Femina and Modelstudier making him one of the most prominent photographers of the nude at the time.[citation needed] The models, June Palmer and Pamela Green both posed for him, and he frequently used Spielplatz nudist camp in Bricket Wood as a location. In 1950 he photographed the first Miss Venus contest at Spielplatz. It was the year Pamela Green won.[8]
Glass would often use his flat as a studio. It was on Old Church Street, less than a ten-minute walk from his brother's studio on the King's Road, London.[9][10]
In addition to magazines, his work appeared in a series of books published by The Naturist, such as Pool of Enchantment (1950), Beauty and Naturism, and Sussex Maidens (1949).[11] Stephen Glass died 23 April 1990.[12]
The National Portrait Gallery holds one of his works, a 1930s photo of "Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Bt".[13]
Books published by The Naturist
Books published by The Naturist for which Stephen Glass provided the photography.
- Rosemary Andre, My Life Story, The Naturist Ltd, 1945
- Michael Rutherford, British Naturism, The Naturist Ltd, 1946
- Roy Wyatt, Sussex Maidens, The Naturist Ltd, 1949
- Anne Seton, Pool of Enchantment, The Naturist Ltd, 1950
- Charles Sennet, Nudist Life in Spielplatz, The Naturist Ltd, 1956
- Melvyn Oakdale, The Mystery of Naturism, The Naturist Ltd, 1956
- Stewart Douglas, Beauty and Naturism, The Naturist Ltd,
- Ronald Mason, Eve in the Sun, The Naturist Ltd,
- Douglas Stewart, Ideal Manhood, The Naturist Ltd