10 things to know about the American photographer Saul Leiter.

American photographer Saul Leiter is often described as a "pioneer of color photography." The timeless piece above, Purple Umbrella (1950s), which still fascinates people around the world, has joined the UT collection, marking the first time that it is printed on apparel. After making a name for himself as a fashion photographer in the 1950s, Leiter suddenly stepped out of the spotlight and continued to pursue his own creative activities. There are many unknowns behind his personal life and creative pursuits. We spoke with Margit Erb and Michael Parillo of the Saul Leiter Foundation to unravel the beauty of his work.

1. Painting hooked him for life

What inspired him to become a painter?

Margit Erb: For Saul, the inspiration to start painting struck him like love at first sight. It happened one day as a teenager. He was visiting a friend’s girlfriend in New York who had recently taken up painting. She showed him some of her works. Saul was immediately inspired, and he went out that very day and bought painting supplies. He painted in the attic of his parents’ house in Pittsburgh throughout his teenage years. He independently studied art history at the University of Pittsburgh library nearby and got an early exposure to French and Japanese art, which greatly influenced his paintings and later his photography. Saul was hooked for life. After that first exposure as a teenager, there was never a time when he stopped painting.

2. The difference between photography and painting

How did he start taking photographs and what was the difference between photography and painting from his perspective?

Michael Parillo: Although we can easily make certain connections between Saul’s painting and his photography—in terms of composition, for instance—Saul thought of the two as distinct from one another. “When I did photography, I wasn’t thinking of painting,” he said. “Photography is about finding things, and painting is different—it’s about making something.”

3. East 10th Street, New York

After moving to New York, Leiter lived in a small apartment on East 10th Street for the rest of his life. What did he like about the area?

Michael: Although it’s often said that Saul moved to New York to become a painter, he explained that the true reason was to escape the suffocating expectations of his family in Pittsburgh, where the intention was for Saul to become a rabbi like his father and most of the other men in his family. Saul envisioned something entirely different for himself.

Margit: Saul moved into his building in 1952. His apartment had a giant window that faced north and gave him a bright and diffused light to paint under. For an artist, there is nothing better. The neighborhood was known for apartments with cheap rents, which attracted young artists like Saul. Many well-known artists had studios in the area, like de Kooning and Pollock, so Saul must have been bumping into famous painters all the time. He had a studio a block away from his apartment behind the Tanager Gallery on East Tenth Street, where he was constantly meeting other people in the art world. He had two exhibitions at the Tanager in the ’50s. And just a short distance away was Fourth Avenue near Broadway, which had dozens of bookstores up and down the street. For Saul, this neighborhood had everything he needed.

Michael: It’s no coincidence that Saul took the majority of his photographs close to home. We think he liked shooting on First Avenue, where most of the buildings were no higher than three stories, allowing all the warm, glowing light to pour in unobstructed.

"In his lifetime, these rooms were flooded with books, prints, paintings, photography equipment, and painting supplies. Saul had a life full of interests. I always thought his crowded rooms reflected his endless curiosity in life,” Margit said.

4. As a fashion photographer

He was actively involved with fashion magazines such as Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, and British Vogue in the ’50s. What makes his work in fashion photography unique and alluring?

Michael: Saul liked showing beauty in his work and often wondered why so many artists were inclined to depict ugliness rather than beauty, and I think this trait helped him produce such powerful and lovely fashion photography. His fashion work shares many aspects of his street photography, including the use of reflection and blurred foreground surfaces, which helps him stand out among other photographers of the era. Saul also preferred working in the street, incorporating its spontaneous and unpredictable elements, as opposed to a more controlled studio environment. As much as possible, he liked to capture a real moment rather than control things.

5. Leiter and color films

Leiter is often described as a pioneer of color photography. Why did he become fascinated with color photography and what did he want to express through it?

Michael: As you’ll see on his Purple Umbrella UT, Saul said simply, “We live in a world of color. We’re surrounded by color.” In other words, why wouldn’t you use color if it’s available to you? Saul loved black and white, yes, and used it very effectively, but he never understood why color was looked down upon for decades in the photography world as being insubstantial or best suited to advertising and pursuits less serious than fine art. He was also a born experimenter with an open mind.

Margit: Saul used color in the 1950s prolifically, and he used it first and primarily for his personal work. He shot as a daily habit. Kodachrome film for the camera was widely available in the 1940s but was mostly used for commercial work. No one considered it as a platform for any serious kind of art. Saul ignored this bias. He also used color more like a painter than a photographer, and he used color like an impression, a representation of an emotion, or an abstraction of reality.

Michael: Saul didn’t like to talk about what he wanted to express; he preferred to allow the work to speak for itself. However, we can observe some general differences between his color and his black-and-white photography, namely that people are often the primary subjects of his black-and-white work, whereas his color images focus more on the overall scene itself, with any figures acting more as seasoning or punctuation.

6. The reason he moved away from commercial work

In 1981, he closed his studio on 5th Avenue and moved away from commercial work to concentrate solely on his own creative activities; why did he do this?

Margit: Saul had some fashion companies still commissioning him in the early ’80s. But Saul was accused of being too artsy, and the fashion world was becoming very corporate. Photographers had little say over their photographs. Then, it was the city tax officials that closed his studio down. He had neglected to pay his tax bill. His fashion career was winding down and money was becoming tight. It was not a deliberate choice. The officials gave him short notice, and he had to move his equipment and files out overnight. It was a tough time.

Things became very quiet. Saul painted with his watercolors and worked in his sketchbooks, while continuing to take photographs. His partner, Soames Bantry, was with him, but the two led very quiet lives. Saul started painting on some of his intimate black-and-white photographs and created a huge body of work that today we call his painted nudes. He had no gallery representation at the time, so his photographs and slides just sat in boxes.

7. What influenced his style

He had his own unique style and composition of work. What was his source of inspiration?

Michael: Saul liked to capture ordinary, everyday events, mostly during daily walks through his neighborhood. This was certainly influenced by his favorite painters, including Bonnard and Vuillard, who teased sublime scenes out of relatively routine settings. His sense of composition and use of blank space were more influenced by painters—including the Japanese ukiyo-e artists that he admired so much—than by other photographers.

8. Rain and snow

Rain and snow often appear as motifs in his works; what was his fascination with them?

Margit: I think rain and snow, and reflections too, allowed him to play with his painterly inclinations. He was a painter at heart, and these elements helped him diffuse or confuse reality and draw your attention to the essential elements of the image. He enjoyed the play of light and liked confusing the viewer just a little bit. I think he also just thought rain and snow were beautiful.

9. What kind of person Leiter was

Please tell us a story about Leiter that sheds light on his personality, which is little-known to the public.

Margit: Saul had many unique abilities. He was a genius in his art and thinking, but I also think he had unique brain power. He could write perfectly forward and backward, using his left or right hand. Maybe this is what led to the daring sense of composition in his paintings and photographs.

10. Appearing on T-shirts for the first time

As we launch the world's first T-shirt collection that features Leiter's work, we asked for their thoughts on it.

Michael: You know an artist has arrived when their work graces a T-shirt! In the back of our minds, I think Margit and I looked forward to one day seeing Saul’s images on a shirt. I remember that, when I was younger, I loved my Rembrandt and Miró and Dalí T-shirts. But it wasn’t until we met with Uniqlo that we decided to go for it. Knowing the company’s high standards of production and global reach, it was clear the time had come. I wish Saul could see these T-shirts.

©Saul Leiter Foundation