• JOSEPH BUEMI (1923-2007): A PHOTOGRAPHER'S EYE

    August 15 - September 19, 2025


    A selection of 1940’s through 1970’s works by New York photographer Joseph Buemi (1923-2007).

Close-up of smooth, textured gray sand with a small wave or ripple.

“To say my pictures are a personal diary of my sensitive feelings toward everyday life is a near accurate description.”

“Photographically speaking, I pause to admit there are sensations impossible to bring forth to full substance. What can a camera lens say of a landscape blurred by mist, or a walk in woods darkened by an approaching storm?”

Black and white portrait of a young man in a military uniform with a hat, tie, and various medals and insignia.

Joseph A. Buemi (1923 - 2007)

Buemi was born in Binghamton, New York. He served in the U.S. Army in WWII and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

An artist and internationally recognized photographer, his photographs are included in many museums and private collections in the United States and Europe. He taught photography, exhibited, and judged photo competitions. An extensive collection of his photographs and papers are in the collection of the Broome County Historical Society, in Binghamton, NY.

Buemi's work, mostly black-and-white photographs, have been shown in a number of private and public galleries, including France's Musée Réattu and Bibliothèque Nationale (The National Library of France), as well as at the Royal Library of Denmark.

The Musée Réattu exhibited Buemi’s work after a request from Lucien Clergue, a famous French photographer and lifelong friend of painter Pablo Picasso, whom he met during a trip to Europe in 1963.

Buemi wrote in his Personal Statement and Technical Notes, “Photographically speaking, I pause to admit there are sensations impossible to bring forth to full substance. What can a camera lens say of a landscape blurred by mist, or a walk in woods darkened by an approaching storm (…)?”

Black and white photo of a crowded street scene with bright neon signs, including the word "Motion" and other illuminated advertisements, likely from a city at night.

Joseph Buemi

Brute Force, 1947

photograph of the marquee display from the New York City Premiere of the seminal 1947 Film Noir

silver gelatin print

signed, titled, dated, and with Buemi’s Atelier stamp on back

paper size approx. 7.8 by 9.8 in. (ca. 20 by 25,2 cm)

private US collection

A black and white photograph of a narrow outdoor path with a chalk drawing of a winding line on the ground. Two children and an adult are walking along the path, with the adult leading. There is a fence on one side and a brick wall on the other.

Joseph Buemi

Hill Road, San Remo, Italy, 1963

silver gelatin print

mounted on foam core board

signed, titled, and dated on back

photograph size approx. 9.5 by 5.75 in. (ca. 24,1 by 14,6 cm)

private US collection

Black and white photograph of sand formations on Fanore Island from 1969, showing layered textured sand dunes.

Joseph Buemi

Sand Form, Fanø Island, Denmark, 1969

silver gelatin print

signed, titled, and dated on front

paper size approx. 7.8 by 9.8 in. (ca. 20 by 25,2 cm)

private US collection

Black and white close-up photo of a leaf resting on broad, striped leaves.

Joseph Buemi

False Helbro, 1971

silver gelatin print

titled, dated, and with Buemi’s Atelier stamp on back

paper size approx. 9.8 by 7.8 in. (ca. 25,2 by 20 cm)

private US collection

A photograph of a seashell on the sand, surrounded by soap bubbles.

Joseph Buemi

Shell - Nauset Beach, Cape Cod, 1974

silver gelatin print

mounted on 7 by 9 in. illustration board,

titled, dated, and with Buemi’s Atelier stamp on back

photograph size approx. 3.75 by 5.75 in. (ca. 9,5 by 14,6 cm)

private US collection

Sand photograph of a smiling face with concentric semi-circles to the right surrounded by several large, curved lines.

Joseph Buemi

Pattern on the Dunes, Cape Cod, 1977

silver gelatin print

titled, dated, and with Buemi’s Atelier stamp on back

paper size approx. 7.8 by 9.8 in. (ca. 20 by 25,2 cm)

private US collection

Black and white photograph of three leafless trees on a snow-covered landscape with tall, dried plants in the foreground.

Joseph Buemi

Winter, Binghampton, 1979

silver gelatin print

titled, dated, and with Buemi’s Atelier stamp on back

paper size approx. 9.8 by 7.8 in. (ca. 25,2 by 20 cm)

private US collection