Artist: Herman Leonard

Herman Leonard was born and raised in Allentown, PA.  His interest in photography began in 1923, at age 9.  Herman witnessed an image being processed in his bothers darkroom and became enthralled with the magic of photography.  Throughout school, Hermans shyness was always holding him back, but not when he had a camera in his hand.  As the official school photographer for his high school, he was able to capture many great images of his classmates and the events that they went to.  Herman went to college at Ohio University because it was the only school at the time to offer a degree in Photography. In 1943, he took a break from college to serve with the United States Army in Burma.  He returned to college and graduated in 1947 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree.


Hermans passion for Jazz brought him to New York City in 1949.  He quickly established a studio at 220 Sullivan Street and captured the jazz clubs of Broadway, 52nd Street and Harlem.  He photographed and forged friendships with some of the worlds greats, such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and many more.  In the late 50's Herman moved to London where he continued to shoot jazz, while also being the European photographer for Playboy Magazine.  In 1980, Herman moved from Paris to the Island of Ibiza, where he lived until 1988.  He then moved to New Orleans in 1991 and fell in love with the cities lively jazz scene and exhibited his work around the world in numerous solo shows.  In 1995, Herman released his second book, Jazz Memories, published by Editions Filipacchi and in that same year was awarded an Honorary Masters of Science in Photography from The Brooks Institute of Photography. Other awards include the "Milt Hinton Award for Excellence in Jazz Photography," from Jazz Photographer's Association in 1999, the "Excellence in Photography Award" from the Jazz Journalists Association in 2000 and a "Lifetime Achievement Award" from Downbeat Magazine in 2004.


Herman's jazz photographs are a unique record of the jazz scene of the 1940s, 50s and 60s. The Smithsonian claims 130 original Herman Leonard photographic prints in its permanent collection, where they are considered as essential to American music history as Benny Goodman's clarinet or Louis Armstrong's horn. Herman's work is also represented in numerous public collections including, Jazz at Lincoln Center, NY, Ogden Museum of Southern Art, LA, and the George Eastman House, NY, as well as the private collections of Sir Elton John, Bruce Bernard and His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand.