Newly Discovered Photos Reveal Teen Photographer Stephen shore’s Intimate Access to Andy Warhol’s Factory
New York,NY – Previously unseen photographs by Stephen Shore,taken between 1965 and 1968,offer a rare glimpse into the world of Andy Warhol’s Factory during its most vibrant period. The images, collected in the new book Stephen Shore: Early Work, showcase a teenage Shore’s unprecedented access to Warhol and his circle, including Edie Sedgwick and the Velvet underground. The collection reveals a young artist honing his craft amidst a revolutionary cultural scene.
Shore, only a teenager at the time, spent three years photographing the Factory almost daily. He described Warhol as “always friendly and direct,” adding that the artist would “correct me, somewhat like an older relative giving guidance,” while otherwise treating him “as a friend.” Their shared taxi rides home after late nights in Little Italy or Chinatown fostered “totally unguarded conversations.” Despite the Factory’s largely gay milieu-including Warhol himself-Shore’s heterosexuality “was never an issue.”
While these Factory photos differ in style from Shore’s later, acclaimed street photography, they demonstrate the nascent talent that would define his career as one of postwar America’s most critically important photographers. “Painters start with a blank canvas and make marks to add complexity; photography is the opposite – you start with the whole world,” Shore explains. “I don’t no what to do with a blank paper - but put me on a street corner and my imagination goes off!”
Stephen Shore: Early Work is published by Mack on 1 September, priced at £55.
