Bill Wood’s Business Exhibited at International Center for Photography
By Ryan • May 28th, 2008 • Category: News for Creatives (archives)“NEW YORK.- Bill Wood’s business was photography—and he produced tens of thousands of images over the course of his career. The variety of subjects and situations he captured provide an in-depth photographic record of life in a post-World War II American city just hitting its stride.
Bill Wood (1913-1973), a tall, slender, hard-working family man with a penchant for bow ties, was born, lived, and died in and around Fort Worth, Texas. An image maker and a businessman, Wood photographed Fort Worth during a remarkable period of transformation. His photography played a central role in how his clients chose to see and portray themselves and their city.
From 1937 (the tail end of the Great Depression) through the boom years that followed World War II, the Bill Wood Photo Company supplied local snap shooters and amateur photographers with cameras, flash bulbs, accessories, and quality photo finishing. In addition, the business provided commercial photographic services. Using large format cameras, and shooting mostly black-and-white film, Wood offered studio portraits and professional photographs, taken on location. His job was to create crisp, shadowless visual documents of whomever and whatever people felt the need to picture and remember—and the images in this exhibition show how good he was at doing this. They also celebrate photography’s inherent and uncanny ability to turn reality into something quite special, to present (as Susan Sontag described it) “everyday life apotheosized.”
Bill Wood took pictures for the businessmen, community organizations, and residents of Fort Worth. His photography was driven, for the most part, by his fellow citizens’ desire to record, use, and leave behind a visual record of their actions and accomplishments. He shot portraits of proud executives and small-business owners engaged in all aspects of their work, and recorded a variety of public relations events. Wood’s photographs also functioned as marketing tools—raw materials used to meet his clients’ communication needs and strategies in an increasingly visual culture. He captured exuberant window displays, shiny new cars in showrooms, and the modern buildings going up all around town. His images became integral components of signage, advertising, and illustrated reportage in the local media.
In addition to his business clients, Wood was hired by individuals to provide portraits of loved ones and lasting records of the benchmarks in their lives: anniversaries, baptisms, family reunions, holidays, parties, recitals, and weddings. The citizens of Fort Worth commissioned him to record their participation in and support of the many local civic, social, and charitable organizations. We see the city’s movers and shakers celebrating their traditions, politics, faith, and largesse at functions ranging from luncheons and cocktail parties to award ceremonies and fundraisers.”
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