Lee Friedlander: Letters from the People

Friedlander’s photographs capture dispatches and communiques in public spaces—including in graffiti, advertising, and street signs. His wittily composed images range from singular letters that seem to contain a rich story within a single character to full sentences that vary in topic and tone.

black and white photograph of a wooden fence with painted text

Black and white photograph of a detail of a hand painted sign of the letter 'A' painted onto a wall

Black and white photograph of a sign that says cash with products in the background

Black and white photograph of a detail of a hand painted sign of the letter 'L' painted onto a wall, shadow of some leaves

Black and white photograph with graffiti in the foreground a boat and a city skyline in the background

Black and white photograph of a detail of a hand painted sign

Black and white photograph looking out an airport window with the number 8 on it

Black and white photograph of a detail of text in a tile floor

Black and white photograph of a detail of the letter S with water around it and a stamp in the bottom right corner

Black and white photograph of a storefront window with graffiti

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Lee Friedlander: Letters from the People

Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1986

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Orleans

1979

gelatin silver print, 20 x 16 inches (sheet) [50.8 x 40.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1984

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderVenice

1979

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderHong Kong

1987

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1979

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderLa Guardia Airport, New York City

1986

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderBoston

1979

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Orleans

1979

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1983

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Related Portfolios

Black and white photographs of two women in sunglasses taking photographs on a city street

Lee Friedlander: The People’s Pictures

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Lee Friedlander: The People’s Pictures

Black and white photograph of a person taking a family photograph in front of a life-size dinosaur statue — Lee Friedlander, Rapid City, South Dakota, 1969

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of two women taking photographs on a city sidewalk — Lee Friedlander, Paris, France, 1964

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of tourists having their photograph taken in front of a valley — Lee Friedlander, Canadian Rockies, Canada, 1974

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of a young girl taking a photograph in a living room — Lee Friedlander, Fort Lee, New Jersey, 1971

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

Black and white photograph of a man in a crowd holding a camera to his eye — Lee Friedlander, New Orleans, Louisiana, 1991

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of three young women in front of a stone memorial taking a photograph — Lee Friedlander, Washington, D.C., 1988

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of a man holding a camera in an art gallery — Lee Friedlander, David Hockney, New York City, 1974

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of a woman taking a photograph of a man performing on a city corner — Lee Friedlander, New Orleans, Louisiana, 1970

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Lee FriedlanderNew Orleans

1970

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderRapid City, South Dakota

1969

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderParis, France

1964

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderCanadian Rockies, Canada

1974

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderFort Lee, New Jersey

1971

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Orleans, Louisiana

1991

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderWashington, D.C.

1988

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderDavid Hockney, New York City

1974

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Orleans, Louisiana

1970

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Black and white photograph of a rural two story building with the word 'eat' in large white letters on its roof.

Lee Friedlander: Signs

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Lee Friedlander: Signs

Since the early 1960s, Friedlander has focused on the signs that inscribe the American landscape, from hand-lettered ads to storefront windows to massive billboards. Depicting these texts with precision and sly humor, Friedlander’s approach to America transcribes a sort of found poetry of commerce and desire.

Black-and-white photograph showing detail of a sign with the text open pizza — Lee Friedlander, New Haven, Connecticut, 1980

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a man and a monkey sitting in front of a store with advertisements in the background — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 1963

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black and white photograph of a hand painted sign with the text reading "dancing" — Lee Friedlander, Dallas, 1976

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a Coca Cola sign and paintings of Jesus — Lee Friedlander, New Mexico, 2008

gelatin silver print, 20 x 16 inches (sheet) [50.8 x 40.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of two women standing in a doorway of a building covered in boxing advertisements — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 1963

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a street sign and a building with the text camera man painted on the side — Lee Friedlander, Western Canada, 1974

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a basket ball playing chicken attraction — Lee Friedlander, Atlantic City, New Jersey, 1969

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of an old weathered neon sign shaped like a cowboy hat with an arrow pointing right — Lee Friedlander, Montana, 1970

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a storefront with all caps text everything must go! — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 2013

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a man walking in in front of a storefront covered in hand painted signs advertising the prices of products — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 1960

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of roadside sign missing letters with a police car speeding in the background and a cloudy sky — Lee Friedlander, New Mexico, 1990

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of the side of a building with a hand painted sign of a woman holding a cocktail — Lee Friedlander, California, 1965

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

Lee FriedlanderStanzel, Iowa

1961

gelatin silver print, 16 x 20 inches (sheet) [40.64 x 50.8 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Haven, Connecticut

1980

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1963

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderDallas

1976

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Mexico

2008

gelatin silver print, 20 x 16 inches (sheet) [50.8 x 40.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1963

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderWestern Canada

1974

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderAtlantic City, New Jersey

1969

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderMontana

1970

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

2013

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1960

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew Mexico

1990

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderCalifornia

1965

gelatin silver print, 14 x 11 inches (sheet) [35.6 x 27.9 cm]

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Black-and-white photograph of a man and woman entering and exiting a building with their faces obscured by doors

Lee Friedlander: The Street

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Lee Friedlander: The Street

Friedlander’s street is a metaphor for the American social landscape. Flattening a dynamic space into a photographic image, people and objects are reflected in windows and mirrors, framed by lamp posts and doors, creating new relationships and narratives.

Black-and-white photograph of a man in a suit standing in the street in front of a. building with a question mark painted on it — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 1962

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a city street with a telephone pole in the center — Lee Friedlander, Kansas City, Missouri, 1965

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of cut outs of a man and woman taped in a window with palm trees in the reflection — Lee Friedlander, Los Angeles, 1965

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a man with laying his head on a table through the window of a storefront — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 1964

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a woman standing behind a glass door — Lee Friedlander, Baltimore, 1968

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a man and woman looking out of the frame with binoculars with reflections in the glass wall behind them — Lee Friedlander, Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota, 1969

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of JFK on screen at a drive in theater — Lee Friedlander, Monsey, N.Y., 1963

gelatin silver print, 16 x 20 inches (sheet) [40.6 x 50.8 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of a man looking out the window of an ice cream parlour — Lee Friedlander, Newark, N.J., 1962

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Black-and-white photograph of the shadow of a persons head on the back of a woman — Lee Friedlander, New York City, 1966

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1963

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1962

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderKansas City, Missouri

1965

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderLos Angeles

1965

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1964

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderBaltimore

1968

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderMt. Rushmore, South Dakota

1969

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderMonsey, N.Y.

1963

gelatin silver print, 16 x 20 inches (sheet) [40.6 x 50.8 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNewark, N.J.

1962

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Lee FriedlanderNew York City

1966

gelatin silver print, 11 x 14 inches (sheet) [27.9 x 35.6 cm]

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Black-and-white photograph of a television with a woman's face onscreen on top of a bureau

Lee Friedlander: The Little Screens

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Lee Friedlander: The Little Screens

Friedlander’s 1960s photographs show television screens in motel rooms and other anonymous spaces, transmitting images of pop icons, political figures, or minor celebrities. Called by Walker Evans “deft, witty, spanking little poems of hate,” the images reveal an emerging reality—the omnipresence of screens and the drone of television voices in an increasingly isolationist culture.