Morton Bartlett
was a private man whose passion was creating a fantasy family - a superlative
group of perfectly sculpted children, aged mainly 6 -16, wearing meticulously
hand-made clothes and specially constructed wigs. Dressed and posed, they were
then photographed in staged scenarios, at once both quotidian and dramatic: reading
in bed, at ballet class, scolding a toy dog, smiling sweetly, crying in disappointment,
simply sitting at home or playing on the beach.
This fantasy world
crossed over into reality in 1963 when it became public, fleetingly, in a Yankee
Magazine article. Although authorized by Bartlett himself, the attention and
praise which followed surprised him, and led to this remarkable body of work being
packed away, each child in its own container, to remain unseen for the next thirty
years.
Still wrapped in 1963 newspapers, it was discovered by Marion
Harris who made the work public again in 1993 with an exhibit and accompanying
catalogue, FAMILY FOUND. Since then Bartlett's work has received wide acclaim,
and with his work in major museums and private collections, the story seemed to
be as complete as his family.
A group of original color slides by Morton
Bartlett, was discovered by a Californian collector who has produced the images
as contemporary prints. These prints along with three of the sculptures and a
selection of vintage black and white prints were included in The Sweethearts of
Mr. Bartlett in 2007. Subsequently, Bartlett's work has reached a much wider audience
through his first monographic exhibition held in 2012 at the Hamburger Bahnhof
in Berlin and the Musee d'art Brut in Lausanne, as well as being prominently featured
in the Rosemary Trockel retrospective at the New Museum in 2012.
Modern prints 1955-2006 [view
images]