Pinstriped Suited Man
Leon Levinstein, American, 1910 - 1988
20th century
Gelatin silver print
Image: 13 1/2 × 10 3/8 in. (34.3 × 26.4 cm)
Sheet: 14 × 10 7/8 in. (35.6 × 27.6 cm)
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth: Gift of Scott Osman, Class of 1980
© Estate of Leon Levinstein, Courtesy of Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York
PH.2002.31.3
Geography
Place Made: United States, North America
Period
20th century
Object Name
Photograph
Research Area
Photograph
Not on view
Inscriptions
Stamped, on reverse, in black ink, lower right: [in rectangle] LEON LEVINSTEIN; inscribed, in graphite, above stamp: SO-LL-10
Label
Levinstein’s Pinstriped Suited Man shines light on the inherent anonymity of city life. Known to us only by his dress, the photograph’s subject is about to cross a busy Manhattan street. Head down, hands in his pockets, he pays no mind to the approaching traffic; Levinstein thus captures him, midstride, in determined motion. His suit, tailored and refined, marks him as an urban professional, one of many suited men in the city. The use of black-and-white film further limits the viewer’s ability to distinguish this “pinstriped suited man” from other commuters. In this sense, his suit serves as an emblem of the elusiveness of individuality within modern society.
From the 2025 exhibition A Space for Dialogue 125, Chasing Modernity: Fleeting Moments and Elusive Urbanity, curated by Ellie Brown ’25, Conroy Intern
Provenance
Osman Family Partnership; Scott Osman; given to present collection, 2002.
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