Benny at the Stoplight, Cicero, Illinois
Artist:
Danny Lyon
(American, born 1942)
Place made:United States
Date: 1966, printed 2008
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Dimensions:
image: 13 x 8 3/4 in. (33 x 22.2 cm)
paper: 14 x 11 in. (35.6 x 27.9 cm)
Credit Line: San Antonio Museum of Art, gift of Ernest Pomerantz and Marie Brenner
Object number: 2013.17.40
Portfolio: The Bikeriders
Signed: Signature plus negative and print dates documented in graphite on verso.
Markings: Printer's stamp on verso
Copyright: © Danny Lyon / Magnum Photos
Label Text
"Well one thing we gotta say about Benny, he's the only guy that stood on his feet from the clubroom all the way out to the street without fallin' down. And there were guys hittin' him with stools and blackjacks and everything else... Benny doesn't give up. He sees a little blood, he don't pass out. They like him because he's a fighter. And that's just what they need in that club." - Kathy (Benny's wife)
Lyon's interview with Benny's wife Kathy contains several passages about Benny's violent tempter and propensity for getting into barroom brawls. Many of the club members found this attribute to be beneficial, in that Benny's presence meant added security in the face of adversity.
(David Rubin, 2013)
I feel totally responsible for what I see. I feel totally responsible for what I photograph.
—Danny Lyon
Building on Walker Evans’s documentary approach to distill the essence of American life from simple and ordinary scenes, Danny Lyon has forged a new style of photojournalism and documentary photography—immersive, participatory, and from the inside out. For five decades, his uncompromising approach to his subject matter—from Civil Rights (Memories of the Southern Civil Rights Movement) to a Chicago motorcycle club (The Bikeriders), to inmates in a Texas prison (Conversations with the Dead), to the demolition and redevelopment of lower Manhattan, and more recently, the Occupy Movement—has been motivated by his compassion for the struggles of humanity and a deep commitment to his artistic vision. Each project has been accompanied by a beautifully edited book, which in layout, design, and sequencing advanced the importance of the photo-book as an art object itself. Lyon has also made collages and produced a significant body of films.
(Suzanne Weaver, 2019)
Lyon's interview with Benny's wife Kathy contains several passages about Benny's violent tempter and propensity for getting into barroom brawls. Many of the club members found this attribute to be beneficial, in that Benny's presence meant added security in the face of adversity.
(David Rubin, 2013)
I feel totally responsible for what I see. I feel totally responsible for what I photograph.
—Danny Lyon
Building on Walker Evans’s documentary approach to distill the essence of American life from simple and ordinary scenes, Danny Lyon has forged a new style of photojournalism and documentary photography—immersive, participatory, and from the inside out. For five decades, his uncompromising approach to his subject matter—from Civil Rights (Memories of the Southern Civil Rights Movement) to a Chicago motorcycle club (The Bikeriders), to inmates in a Texas prison (Conversations with the Dead), to the demolition and redevelopment of lower Manhattan, and more recently, the Occupy Movement—has been motivated by his compassion for the struggles of humanity and a deep commitment to his artistic vision. Each project has been accompanied by a beautifully edited book, which in layout, design, and sequencing advanced the importance of the photo-book as an art object itself. Lyon has also made collages and produced a significant body of films.
(Suzanne Weaver, 2019)
Not on view
In Collection(s)
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
