In the 1930s, Photography was seldom considered to be "art," and art historians certainly didn't deem it worthy of their attention, much less their study. But a Harvard-trained art historian - who had nearly become a medievalist decided that photographs did merit such attention, and he went on to change the way we look at art.In Focus: Memoirs of a Life in Photography, Beaumont Newhall looks back on a life of exploration and discovery in the world of art. His early days in Massachusetts with a photographer mother, his art history studies with Paul Sachs, and his first trip to Europe all positioned him to become the first curator of the Department of Photography at New York's Museum of Modern Art. A stint in the photoreconnaissance wing of the U.S. Army in wartime North Africa and Europe - while his wife, Nancy, took his place at the museum - was followed by turbulent times stateside as clashes of politics and personalities brought Edward Steichen into place as director of the department. What looked like bad news quickly turned to the Newhalls' advantage, however, and led to Beaumont's development of his world-renowned History of Photography and to his becoming founding curator of the International Museum of Photography at George Eastman House.But Focus is anything but a dry recitation of events. It is a warm, witty, and wise look back at a life rich with experiences and friends. The list of people who worked with and cared about Newhall reads like a who's who of twentieth-century photography: Ansel Adams, Margaret Bourke-White, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Dorothy Norman, Alfred Stieglitz, Paul Strand, Edward Weston, and Minor White are just a few of the people who were part of Newhall's life and play their part in this book. Many are represented by photographs taken by Beaumont or Nancy Newhall or by works of their own, some previously unpublished.As a look at the development of the practice and appreciation of photography in this century, Focus is unequaled; as a glimpse into the formation of a connoisseur it is remarkable; and as a work of eloquent, warm prose it will take its place among the great autobiographies of our times. Read Less