b. 1868; d. 1946
Sometimes photographers of note become forgotten. De Meyer is one who does
not feature very often in the lists of pioneers, but who in his time had significant
influence on picture making.
His real name was Demeyer Watson, a wealthy man who was created Baron de Meyer
by the King of Saxony and who, with his wife, settled in London.
De Meyer was influenced by Stieglitz, but it has to be aid that his earliest work was pretty banal. Then his photography suddenly changed, as he began to experiment with soft-focus lenses and back-lighting, producing some truly exquisite pictures.
Some twenty of his photographs were reproduced in the influential quarterly Camera Work. His other most memorable photographs include a fine collection of the distinguished ballet dancer Nijinsky in his most famous roles.
De Meyer's lighting techniques had an influence in the early days of cinema. However, having switched allegiance from one publisher to another, returning to the first (Vogue) he was rejected, and he emigrated to California, where he died in poverty. The obituary in the Los Angeles Times was a measly two inches in length, and did not even mention his photography.
© Robert Leggat, 1999.