Lot 262: HOWARD COSTER (1885-1959)

Alan Cobham, 1927
gelatin silver print
titled, dated in pencil and credit stamp (on the verso)
7 x 5in. (17.8 x 12.6cm.)

Estate of Louis Fleckenstein (see lot 28);
to the present owner

Howard Coster arrived in London in 1926, a self-styled 'photographer of men'. For the next 25 years, his photographs became a virtual 'Who's Who' of the leading figures in the arts. Although Coster was influenced by the work of Edward Steichen and other avant-garde contemporaries, such as German Expressionist film-makers, many features of his style are quite singular. While his use of minimal lighting in some compositions creates a dramatic effect, other portraits, such as this image of the pioneer aviator Sir Alan Cobham (lot 262), are distinguished by their powerful, uncompromising simplicity.