12th Oct, 2019 16:00

OstLicht Photo Auction Autumn 2019

 
  Lot 64
 

ANONYMOUS PHOTOGRAPHER
Studio Portrait of Che Guevara, Cuba c. 1960

Sold for €2,000


Lot details

Estimate: € 3.000–3.500

Vintage silver print, rare large format, framed

60 x 50 cm

This studio portrait was made two years after the Cuban revolutionaries around Fidel Castro had taken over power in the country. It was on March 5th of the same year, that Alberto Korda shot his famous Ché portrait Guerrillero Heroico. Shortly after, Guevara had his hair trimmed short and had this portrait taken at a photo studio. The photograph was assumedly meant for use on official documents and not as propaganda material, but found wider distribution later on. Negative retouching and soft-focus studio lighting let the 32-year old Ché appear younger. His look, the ironed shirt with turned out collar and his combed back hair in this image, is quite unusual for depictions of the revolutionary.

Start price: €2.000