Saint John the Baptist Preaching by David Finn

David Finn (August 30, 1921 – October 18, 2021) was an American

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

executive, photographer, and historian of sculpture. He is known in public relations as a co-founder of the

Ruder Finn Ruder Finn is a public relations firm with headquarters in the United States and China. It is a large privately owned communications agency, serving corporations, governments, and non-profits. It also has offices in San Francisco, London, Washin ...

firm. In addition to his career in public relations, Finn was a lifelong historian and photographer of sculpture.

Early life

Finn was born David Finkelstein in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

on August 30, 1921. His father, Jonathan, worked as a writer; his mother, Sadie (Borgenicht), created dresses for children. His father, who employed Finn as his pen name, changed the family name when David was in high school. Finn enrolled in the City College of New York in 1939 and graduated with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

four years later. He then served briefly in the Army Air Forces during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Career

Finn co-founded the

public relations agency in 1948 along with Bill Ruder. Over the years, his clients included Perry Como,

John D. Rockefeller III John Davison Rockefeller III (March 21, 1906 – July 10, 1978) was an American philanthropist. Rockefeller was the eldest son and second child of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller as well as a grandson of Standard Oil co-found ...

, and

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

, among many others. Ruder Finn has also represented many Fortune 500 companies, universities, not-for-profit organizations, and foreign governments.

Historian of sculpture

Finn was also an influential historian, author and photographer of sculpture. Besides contributing his photography to books by art historians, he wrote articles about sculpture for the Congressional newspaper ''

Roll Call ''Roll Call'' is a newspaper and website published in Washington, D.C., United States, when the United States Congress is in session, reporting news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of ...

'' and the

National Sculpture Society Founded in 1893, the National Sculpture Society (NSS) was the first organization of professional sculptors formed in the United States. The purpose of the organization was to promote the welfare of American sculptors, although its founding members ...

's quarterly journal ''

Sculpture Review ''Sculpture Review'' is the official illustrated publication of the National Sculpture Society (NSS). It is concerned with figurative sculpture. It features articles about the history of figurative sculpture and sculptors as well as current arti ...

'', which he headed as editor-in-chief during the 1990s. His photographs have appeared in over 100 books on the

history of sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

, many of which he authored. Finn's photographs of sculpture have been exhibited at the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

, the Italian Academy for Advanced Studies in America at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, L'Orangerie in Paris, the American Cultural Center in Madrid, the

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; french: Musée des beaux-arts de l'Ontario) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The museum is located in the Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, on Dundas Street West between McCaul and Bev ...

, and the Municipal Art Society in New York. Finn applied an artistic style to his photographs of sculpture. He employed

raking light Raking light, the illumination of objects from a light source at an oblique angle or almost parallel to the surface, provides information on the surface topography and relief of the artefact thus lit. It is widely used in the examination of wor ...

and high-contrast black and white to emphasize the drama and three-dimensionality of sculpture. In addition to overall shots, he often focused on close-ups and details, which allowed him to isolate and abstract small sections of his subjects. This idiosyncratic style earned him favor with contemporary sculptors like Henry Moore, whose work Finn photographed extensively.

David Finn Archive

Finn donated his archive of photographs to the Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC in 2016, where it contributes to the department's goal of providing a visual record for the study of art. The David Finn Archive includes over 140,000 images in various forms, including photographic prints, negatives, and transparencies. The subjects represented in the archive span the

and range from figural to abstract. Finn photographed both

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

and

non-Western The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.

sculpture, including major works from the European canon from the 12th to the 21st centuries, and examples of sculpture from

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area in southern North America and most of Central America. It extends from approximately central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica ...

Oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...

, and many other traditions. Finn photographed the works of important contemporary sculptors, such as Henry Moore and

Eduardo Chillida Eduardo Chillida Juantegui, or Eduardo Txillida Juantegi in Basque (10 January 1924 – 19 August 2002), was a Spanish Basque sculptor notable for his monumental abstract works. Early life and career Born in San Sebastián (Donostia) to P ...

. He was noted for capturing well-known sculptures from novel angles, like many of his ''in situ'' photographs of monumental sculpture. The collection includes many of the original photographs that Finn used for his publications on various topics related to sculptural history. Much of the collection is digitized and available for viewing at the Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library website.

Personal life

Finn married Laura Zeisler in 1945. She was classmates at Hunter College with his younger sister, Helen. They remained married until his death. Together, they had four children: Kathy, Dena, Amy, and Peter. Finn died at the age of 100 on October 18, 2021, at his home in New Rochelle, New York.

Gallery

Photographs by David Finn in the David Finn Archive, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC. File:David with the Head of Goliath by David Finn.jpg,

Donatello Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi ( – 13 December 1466), better known as Donatello ( ), was a Florentine sculptor of the Renaissance period. Born in Florence, he studied classical sculpture and used this to develop a complete Renaissance s ...

, detail of ''David with the Head of Goliath'', c. 1408–1409 File:Equestrian Monument to Charles III by David Finn.jpg, Antonio Canova, ''Equestrian Monument to Charles III'', c. 1807–1819 File:Donatello, Pazzi Madonna.jpg, Donatello, ''

Pazzi Madonna The ''Pazzi Madonna '' is a rectangular "stiacciato" marble relief sculpture by Donatello, since 1886 in the sculpture collections of the Bode-Museum in Berlin. Dating to around 1420 and 1425 at the beginning of Donatello's collaboration with Mic ...

'', c. 1422, Bode-Museum, Berlin File:Ecstasy of Saint Theresa.jpg, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, ''

Ecstasy of Saint Theresa The ''Ecstasy of Saint Teresa'' (also known as ''Saint Teresa in Ecstasy'' or the ''Transverberation of Saint Teresa''; it, L'Estasi di Santa Teresa or ) is a sculptural group in white marble set in an elevated aedicule in the Cornaro Chapel o ...

'', c. 1644-52, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome File:Male Figure from Madang Province by Anonymous.jpg, Anonymous, detail of ''Male Figure'',

Madang Province Madang is a province of Papua New Guinea. The province is on the northern coast of mainland Papua New Guinea and has many of the country's highest peaks, active volcanoes and its biggest mix of languages. The capital is the town of Madang. ...

, Papua New Guinea File:Coiled Serpent dli 1605809724.jpg, alt=Anonymous Aztec, "Coiled Serpent," Late-Post Classic Period, British Museum, London, Anonymous

Aztec The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl ...

, ''Coiled Serpent'', Late-Post Classic Period,

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

, London File:Daphne by David Finn.jpg, Harriet Goodhue Hosmer, ''Daphne'', modeled 1853 File:Amor Caritas by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Finn.jpg,

Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. From a French-Irish family, Saint-Gaudens was raised in New York City, he trav ...

, ''Amor Caritas'', c.1880-1898,

Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park in Cornish, New Hampshire, preserves the home, gardens, and studios of Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848–1907), one of America's foremost sculptors. This was his summer residence from 1885 to 1897, his perma ...

File:George Washington by Jean-Antoine Houdon.jpg,

Jean-Antoine Houdon Jean-Antoine Houdon (; 20 March 1741 – 15 July 1828) was a French neoclassical sculptor. Houdon is famous for his portrait busts and statues of philosophers, inventors and political figures of the Enlightenment. Houdon's subjects included De ...

, ''George Washington'', modeled 1788, cast 1869, St. Louis, Missouri File:Socrates Trial by David Finn.jpg, Antonio Canova, detail of ''The Trial of Socrates'', c. 1790–1792 File:Creugas by David Finn.jpg, Antonio Canova, detail of ''Creugas'', c. 1795–1801 File:Brabender, Heinrich, Saint Thomas; .jpg, , ''Saint Thomas'', c. 1500, St. Dionysius Church, Rheine, Germany File:Assumption of the Virgin by David Finn.jpg, Donatello, detail of ''Assumption of the Virgin'', c. 1427–1428 File:Saint Louis of Toulouse by Donatello.jpg, Donatello, ''Saint Louis of Toulouse'', 1423–1425, Museo dell'Opera di Santa Croce, Florence File:Mary the Blessed Virgin by Heinrich Brabender.jpg, Heinrich Brabender, detail of ''Mary, the Blessed Virgin'', c.1500, Falkenhof Museum File:Rondanini Pietà by Michelangelo.jpg, Michelangelo, '' Rondanini Pieta'', 1564 File:Venus Italica by Canova.jpg, Antonio Canova, detail of '' Venus Italica'', 1804–1812 File:Gordon Parks next to piano by David Finn.jpg,

Gordon Parks Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks (November 30, 1912 – March 7, 2006) was an American photographer, composer, author, poet, and film director, who became prominent in U.S. documentary photojournalism in the 1940s through 1970s—particula ...

next to his piano, late 1980s File:Gordon Parks in his Study by David Finn.jpg, Gordon Parks in his study, late 1980s

Selected bibliography

* Hartt, Frederick. ''Michelangelo's three pietàs: photographic study.'' With photography by David Finn. New York: H. N. Abrams, 1975. * Finn, David. ''Henry Moore: sculpture and environment''. With photography by David Finn, foreword by Kenneth Clark and commentaries by Henry Moore. New York: H. N. Abrams, 1976. * Clark, Kenneth. ''The Florence Baptistry Doors''. With photography by David Finn. New York: A Studio Book from Viking Press, 1980. * Pieper, Paul. ''Heinrich Brabender: Ein Bildhauer der Spätgotik in Münster''. With photography by David Finn and an introduction by Henry Moore. Münster: Coppenrath, 1984. * Wilkinson, Burke. ''Uncommon clay: the life and works of Augustus Saint Gaudens''. With photography by David Finn. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. 1985. * Finn, David. ''How to Look at Sculpture''. With photography by David Finn. New York: Abrams, 1989. * Finn, David. ''How to Visit a Museum''. With photography by David Finn. New York: Abrams, 1985. * McCue, George. ''Sculpture City, St. Louis: public sculpture in the "Gateway to the West."'' With photography by David Finn and Amy Binder. New York: Hudson Hills Press, 1988. * Morand, Kathleen. ''Claus Sluter, artist at the Court of Burgundy''. With photography by David Finn. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1991. * Reynolds, Donald Martin. ''Masters of American sculpture: the figurative tradition from the American renaissance to the millennium''. With photography by David Finn. New York: Abbeville Press, 1993. * Finn, David. ''How to Look at Photographs''. With photography by David Finn. New York: Abrams, 1994. * Avery, Charles. ''Bernini: Genius of the Baroque''. With photography by David Finn. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1997. * Chillida, Eduardo, Giovanni Carandente and Dena Merriam. ''Eduardo Chillida''. With photography by David Finn and translations by Richard Lewis-Rees. Cologne, Germany: Könemann, 1999. * Finn, David. ''How to Look at Everything''. With photography by David Finn. New York: Abrams, 2000. * Finn, David. ''20th-century American sculpture in the White House garden''. With photography by David Finn, a foreword by Hillary Rodham Clinton, and an essay by Betty C. Monkman. New York: Abrams, 2000. * Finn, David, and Susan Joy Slack. ''Sculpture at the Corcoran''. With photography by David Finn, and foreword by David C. Levy. New York: Ruder-Finn Press, 2002. * Moskowitz, Anita Fiderer. ''The façade reliefs of Orvieto Cathedral''. With photography by David Finn. London: Harvey Miller, 2009.

Citations

External links

©David Finn Archive, Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC.The J. Paul Getty Museum's Collection of Finn photographs.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finn, David 1921 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American photographers 21st-century American photographers American art historians American centenarians United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II American public relations people Men centenarians