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==Life and work==
==Life and work==
Gee was born Helen Charlotte Wimmer in [[Jersey City, New Jersey]], to father Peter who had been trained as a church decorator before he migrated from Austro-Hungary. Gee's mother died during her infancy. She moved to New York City when she was sixteen to live with renowned modernist painter, [[Yun Gee]].<ref name="LAT">Staff, [http://articles.latimes.com/2004/oct/14/local/me-passings14.3 "Helen Gee, 85; Her Gallery Pioneered Sales of Photographs as Art"], ''Los Angeles Times'', 14 October 2004, accessed on 21 November 2013</ref> They were married in 1942. They had a daughter, artist Li-lan, in 1943 and were subsequently divorced in 1947<ref name="NYT"/><ref name="LAT"/> after Yun Gee's incarceration due to his mental illness. She later married Kevin Sullivan, but that ended in divorce.<ref name="NYT"/>
Gee was born Helen Charlotte Wimmer in [[Jersey City, New Jersey]], to father Peter who had been trained as a church decorator before he migrated from Austro-Hungary. Gee's mother died during her infancy. She moved to New York City when she was sixteen to live with renowned modernist painter, [[Yun Gee]].<ref name="LAT">Staff, [http://articles.latimes.com/2004/oct/14/local/me-passings14.3 "Helen Gee, 85; Her Gallery Pioneered Sales of Photographs as Art"], ''Los Angeles Times'', 14 October 2004, accessed on 21 November 2013</ref> They were married in 1942. They had a daughter, artist Li-lan, in 1943 and were subsequently divorced in 1947<ref name="NYT"/><ref name="LAT"/> after Yun Gee's incarceration due to his mental illness.<ref name=":1" /> She later married Kevin Sullivan, but that ended in divorce.<ref name="NYT"/>


Gee taught herself [[Reversal film|transparency]] [[Photo manipulation|retouching]] for a living.<ref name="NYT"/> In the 1950s, she came across a photography show at the [[Museum of Modern Art]], which inspired her interest in photography.<ref name="NYT"/>
Gee taught herself [[Reversal film|transparency]] [[Photo manipulation|retouching]] for a living.<ref name="NYT"/> In the 1950s, she came across a photography show at the [[Museum of Modern Art]], which inspired her interest in photography.<ref name="NYT"/>


== Limelight Gallery 1954-61 ==
== Limelight Gallery 1954-61 ==
In 1954 she opened New York City's first important post-war photography gallery along with her sister and brother in-law, the Limelight, on [[Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)|Seventh Avenue]] South and Barrow Street.<ref name="VV"/> Although the gallery closed in 1961 due to financial and union pressure,<ref name=":1" /> it had pioneered sales of photographs as art, showing the works of artists such as [[Berenice Abbott]], [[Ansel Adams]], [[W. Eugene Smith]], [[Imogen Cunningham]], [[Josef Breitenbach]], [[Robert Frank]], [[Paul Strand]], and [[Minor White]].<ref name="VV"/> <ref name=":0">Helen Gee / Limelight Gallery archive, 1919-2004. AG 74. Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ. https://ccp.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/finding-aid-pdfs/ag74_gee_limelight_0.pdf</ref> While Limelight was open, Gee helped curate and hang sixty-one exhibitions.<ref name=":0" />
In 1954 she opened New York City's first important post-war photography gallery along with her sister and brother in-law, the Limelight, on [[Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)|Seventh Avenue]] South and Barrow Street.<ref name="VV"/> Limelight was also a coffee shop, and ''[[The Village Voice]]'''s first [[Obie Awards]] ceremony was held at the café.<ref name="VV" /> Although the gallery closed in 1961 due to financial and union pressure,<ref name=":1" /> it had pioneered sales of photographs as art, showing the works of artists such as [[Berenice Abbott]], [[Ansel Adams]], [[W. Eugene Smith]], [[Imogen Cunningham]], [[Josef Breitenbach]], [[Robert Frank]], [[Paul Strand]], and [[Minor White]].<ref name="VV"/> <ref name=":0">Helen Gee / Limelight Gallery archive, 1919-2004. AG 74. Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ. https://ccp.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/finding-aid-pdfs/ag74_gee_limelight_0.pdf</ref> While Limelight was open, Gee helped curate and hang sixty-one exhibitions.<ref name=":0" />

In the late 1970s, Gee worked as a photography [[curator]], lecturer and writer.<ref name="NYT"/>


== ''Limelight: A Memoir'' ==
== ''Limelight: A Memoir'' ==
In 1997, Gee published her autobiography, itself titled ''Limelight: A Memoir''.<ref name=":1">{{Citation | author1=Gee, Helen | title=Limelight : a Greenwich Village photography gallery and coffeehouse in the fifties : a memoir | publication-date=1997 | publisher=University of New Mexico Press | edition=1st ed | isbn=978-0-8263-1817-6 }}</ref><ref name="VV"/><ref>Tallmer, Jerry, [http://thevillager.com/villager_77/helengee85.html "Helen Gee, 85, proprietor of famed Limelight cafe"], ''The Villager'' (New York City), 20–26 October 2004, accessed on 12 November 2013</ref>. Covering mostly her creation and running of Limelight Gallery, the book provides contemporary insights about the society of Greenwich Village of the period, into the lives and personalities of a number of important photographers including [[Lisette Model]] and [[Robert Frank]], and provides a balanced appraisal of [[Edward Steichen]]'s ''[[The Family of Man]]'' which launched at the [[Museum of Modern Art]] the year following Limelight's opening, and increased attention to the medium. The Limelight was also a coffee shop, and ''[[The Village Voice]]'''s first [[Obie Awards]] ceremony was held at the café.<ref name="VV"/>
In 1997, Gee published her autobiography, itself titled ''Limelight: A Memoir''.<ref name=":1">{{Citation | author1=Gee, Helen | title=Limelight : a Greenwich Village photography gallery and coffeehouse in the fifties : a memoir | publication-date=1997 | publisher=University of New Mexico Press | edition=1st ed | isbn=978-0-8263-1817-6 }}</ref><ref name="VV"/><ref>Tallmer, Jerry, [http://thevillager.com/villager_77/helengee85.html "Helen Gee, 85, proprietor of famed Limelight cafe"], ''The Villager'' (New York City), 20–26 October 2004, accessed on 12 November 2013</ref>. Covering mostly her creation and running of Limelight Gallery, the book provides contemporary insights—and gossip—about the society of Greenwich Village of the period, into the lives and personalities of a number of important photographers including [[Lisette Model]] and [[Robert Frank]], and provides a balanced appraisal of [[Edward Steichen]]'s ''[[The Family of Man]]'' which launched at the [[Museum of Modern Art]] the year following Limelight's opening, and increased attention to the medium.

== Later life ==
Having committed all her own funds to the gallery, Gee closed Limelight on January 31, 1961 after a show of the work of [[Julia Margaret Cameron]].

In the late 1970s, Gee worked as a photography teacher, [[curator]], lecturer and writer.<ref name="NYT" /> In 1979 she curated ''Steiglitz and the Photo Secession'' for the New Jersey State Museum and the touring ''Photography of the Fifties: An American Perspective'' for the Center for Creative Photography.


==Publications==
==Publications==

Revision as of 01:04, 13 June 2019

Helen Gee (1919–2004) was an American photography gallery owner, co-owner of the Limelight in New York City, New York from 1954 to 1961.[1][2] It was New York City's first important post-war photography gallery, pioneering sales of photographs as art. Gee's archive of her work and records pertaining to the Limelight Gallery are located at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona.

In the late 1970s, Gee worked as a photography curator, lecturer and writer.

Life and work

Gee was born Helen Charlotte Wimmer in Jersey City, New Jersey, to father Peter who had been trained as a church decorator before he migrated from Austro-Hungary. Gee's mother died during her infancy. She moved to New York City when she was sixteen to live with renowned modernist painter, Yun Gee.[3] They were married in 1942. They had a daughter, artist Li-lan, in 1943 and were subsequently divorced in 1947[1][3] after Yun Gee's incarceration due to his mental illness.[4] She later married Kevin Sullivan, but that ended in divorce.[1]

Gee taught herself transparency retouching for a living.[1] In the 1950s, she came across a photography show at the Museum of Modern Art, which inspired her interest in photography.[1]

Limelight Gallery 1954-61

In 1954 she opened New York City's first important post-war photography gallery along with her sister and brother in-law, the Limelight, on Seventh Avenue South and Barrow Street.[2] Limelight was also a coffee shop, and The Village Voice's first Obie Awards ceremony was held at the café.[2] Although the gallery closed in 1961 due to financial and union pressure,[4] it had pioneered sales of photographs as art, showing the works of artists such as Berenice Abbott, Ansel Adams, W. Eugene Smith, Imogen Cunningham, Josef Breitenbach, Robert Frank, Paul Strand, and Minor White.[2] [5] While Limelight was open, Gee helped curate and hang sixty-one exhibitions.[5]

Limelight: A Memoir

In 1997, Gee published her autobiography, itself titled Limelight: A Memoir.[4][2][6]. Covering mostly her creation and running of Limelight Gallery, the book provides contemporary insights—and gossip—about the society of Greenwich Village of the period, into the lives and personalities of a number of important photographers including Lisette Model and Robert Frank, and provides a balanced appraisal of Edward Steichen's The Family of Man which launched at the Museum of Modern Art the year following Limelight's opening, and increased attention to the medium.

Later life

Having committed all her own funds to the gallery, Gee closed Limelight on January 31, 1961 after a show of the work of Julia Margaret Cameron.

In the late 1970s, Gee worked as a photography teacher, curator, lecturer and writer.[1] In 1979 she curated Steiglitz and the Photo Secession for the New Jersey State Museum and the touring Photography of the Fifties: An American Perspective for the Center for Creative Photography.

Publications

  • Limelight: a Greenwich Village Photography Gallery and Coffeehouse in the Fifties: A Memoir. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico, 1997. ISBN 978-0826318176.
    • Limelight: a Greenwich Village Photography Gallery and Coffeehouse in the 1950s. New York: Aperture, 2016. ISBN 9781597113687. With an introduction by Denise Bethel.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Loke, Margaret, "Helen Gee, Pioneer in Sales of Photos as Art, Dies at 85", The New York Times, 13 October 2004, accessed on 21 November 2013
  2. ^ a b c d e Aletti, Vince, "Helen Gee 1919–2004", Village Voice (New York City), 12 October 2004, accessed on 21 November 2013
  3. ^ a b Staff, "Helen Gee, 85; Her Gallery Pioneered Sales of Photographs as Art", Los Angeles Times, 14 October 2004, accessed on 21 November 2013
  4. ^ a b c Gee, Helen (1997), Limelight : a Greenwich Village photography gallery and coffeehouse in the fifties : a memoir (1st ed ed.), University of New Mexico Press, ISBN 978-0-8263-1817-6 {{citation}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
  5. ^ a b Helen Gee / Limelight Gallery archive, 1919-2004. AG 74. Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ. https://ccp.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/finding-aid-pdfs/ag74_gee_limelight_0.pdf
  6. ^ Tallmer, Jerry, "Helen Gee, 85, proprietor of famed Limelight cafe", The Villager (New York City), 20–26 October 2004, accessed on 12 November 2013
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