‘Vera’ in 1930 – John Vanderpant of Vancouver
Toronto. Members of a certain age group (old coots like me) remember the movie Laura and the haunting song of the same name. Nearly a century ago, John Vanderpant of Vancouver took this then fashionably soft focus portrait of a young lady simply known as ‘Vera’.
The photo is a cover shot for issue 18-2 and introduces the article on John Vanderpant (1884-1939) by Brodie Whitelaw. Brodie was a friend of Everett (journal editor) as well as a professional photographer in his own right and had actually met Vanderpant.
Brodie begins, “I had been a photography hobbyist in Vancouver, having acquired my first camera (Kodak folding V.P.) at age 12. Later I tried my hand at portraiture and found I could make a dollar or two doing home portraits of friends and acquaintances, and gradually built up a small business on the side, seek ing advice and constructive criticism from some local professionals.
“By far the most impressive of these was John Vanderpant, a native of the Netherlands, a man thoroughly grounded in design and composition, with a flare for the unusual. Whenever I had enough new material in my portfolio I would use this as an excuse for a visit to the “Master”.
“A cultured man, John made his home in Western Canada after leaving Alkmaar, Holland, bringing with him an approach to art, and photography, quite different to the North American fashions of the time. …”
You know the drill … members got the members-only DVD with included issue18-2 in pdf format. See above and at right to join and read the entire article (I still use one of the late Mr Whitelaw’s tripods). Any Questions, just give Lilianne a shout at member@phsc.ca.
