Michael Joseph (1941-) - Cadaques Dinghy Walker, authentic darkroom print from the nineties
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Selected by Elena Vaninetti
Has over ten years of experience in art, specialising in post-war photography and contemporary art.
Estimate € 400 - € 500
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Description from the seller
Cadaqués Dinghy Walker - Spain, Early 1990s
Unique Vintage Darkroom Print by Michael Joseph
Sometimes the most memorable photographs come not from a commission, but simply from having a camera handy.
While location scouting in Cadaqués, Spain, for a Pirelli shoot in the early 1990s, Michael Joseph spotted this wonderfully surreal passing moment: a man strolling along the waterfront almost entirely swallowed by an enormous inflatable dinghy, with another figure wandering casually alongside.
There is something delightfully absurd about it - seen, seized and immortalised in an instant. In Cadaqués, the Mediterranean town forever associated with Salvador Dalí and its long artistic history, even an inflatable boat seems capable of becoming a surrealist composition.
Michael’s instinct was not only to take the photograph, but to recognise its potential afterwards. Back in London, he returned to the negative and personally made this print in his darkroom, turning a fleeting visual joke into a finished photographic object.
The oversized oval dinghy, disappearing body, tiny legs and hard Mediterranean shadows make the scene playful, graphic and wonderfully peculiar.
Photographer: Michael Joseph
Location: Cadaqués, Spain
Date: Early 1990s
Context: Photographed while location scouting for Pirelli
Medium: Authentic vintage darkroom print, printed by Michael Joseph
Edition: Unique vintage print
Presentation: Mounted as shown
Signature: Signed and titled by Michael Joseph on the front
A charming example of Michael’s eye at work when he was supposedly doing something else — camera at hand, curiosity engaged, and a wonderfully odd instant given a permanent life on paper.
#MichaelJoseph #Cadaques #SalvadorDali #VintagePhotography #DarkroomPrint #AnaloguePhotography #StreetPhotography #SpanishPhotography #Pirelli #CandidPhotography #FineArtPhotography #PhotographicArchive #SurrealPhotography #OneOfAKind #MichaelJosephLondon
Seller's Story
My father, Michael Joseph, was a London-based advertising photographer from the mid-1960s to the early 1990s. Over those decades, he produced an extraordinary body of work—his most widely recognised image being the iconic Beggars Banquet gatefold for the Rolling Stones.
My ongoing mission is to share and celebrate what we call “the other photos”: the lesser-known but no less compelling images from his archive. These are the works that lived beyond the headlines—test prints, alternative frames from major shoots, and quieter, more personal photographs, all made with his characteristic intensity, discipline, and devotion to craft.
Much of their atmosphere comes from the darkroom itself. These are photographs shaped by light, timing, and handwork: intricate group compositions, sculptural still lifes, and moments that invite the viewer to linger and look again. Variety is central to the archive, and I frequently offer unique, one-off pieces that exist nowhere else.
I hope you enjoy discovering my father’s work as much as I enjoy sharing it, and that you find here not just an image, but a genuine piece of photographic history.
All works are dispatched carefully protected, and packed with devotion and care, appropriate to a one-off historical photographic print.
US purchasers please note: Customs and excise charges are paid at source and included in the postage fee. No further charges should be due on delivery, unless regulations change.
Cadaqués Dinghy Walker - Spain, Early 1990s
Unique Vintage Darkroom Print by Michael Joseph
Sometimes the most memorable photographs come not from a commission, but simply from having a camera handy.
While location scouting in Cadaqués, Spain, for a Pirelli shoot in the early 1990s, Michael Joseph spotted this wonderfully surreal passing moment: a man strolling along the waterfront almost entirely swallowed by an enormous inflatable dinghy, with another figure wandering casually alongside.
There is something delightfully absurd about it - seen, seized and immortalised in an instant. In Cadaqués, the Mediterranean town forever associated with Salvador Dalí and its long artistic history, even an inflatable boat seems capable of becoming a surrealist composition.
Michael’s instinct was not only to take the photograph, but to recognise its potential afterwards. Back in London, he returned to the negative and personally made this print in his darkroom, turning a fleeting visual joke into a finished photographic object.
The oversized oval dinghy, disappearing body, tiny legs and hard Mediterranean shadows make the scene playful, graphic and wonderfully peculiar.
Photographer: Michael Joseph
Location: Cadaqués, Spain
Date: Early 1990s
Context: Photographed while location scouting for Pirelli
Medium: Authentic vintage darkroom print, printed by Michael Joseph
Edition: Unique vintage print
Presentation: Mounted as shown
Signature: Signed and titled by Michael Joseph on the front
A charming example of Michael’s eye at work when he was supposedly doing something else — camera at hand, curiosity engaged, and a wonderfully odd instant given a permanent life on paper.
#MichaelJoseph #Cadaques #SalvadorDali #VintagePhotography #DarkroomPrint #AnaloguePhotography #StreetPhotography #SpanishPhotography #Pirelli #CandidPhotography #FineArtPhotography #PhotographicArchive #SurrealPhotography #OneOfAKind #MichaelJosephLondon
Seller's Story
My father, Michael Joseph, was a London-based advertising photographer from the mid-1960s to the early 1990s. Over those decades, he produced an extraordinary body of work—his most widely recognised image being the iconic Beggars Banquet gatefold for the Rolling Stones.
My ongoing mission is to share and celebrate what we call “the other photos”: the lesser-known but no less compelling images from his archive. These are the works that lived beyond the headlines—test prints, alternative frames from major shoots, and quieter, more personal photographs, all made with his characteristic intensity, discipline, and devotion to craft.
Much of their atmosphere comes from the darkroom itself. These are photographs shaped by light, timing, and handwork: intricate group compositions, sculptural still lifes, and moments that invite the viewer to linger and look again. Variety is central to the archive, and I frequently offer unique, one-off pieces that exist nowhere else.
I hope you enjoy discovering my father’s work as much as I enjoy sharing it, and that you find here not just an image, but a genuine piece of photographic history.
All works are dispatched carefully protected, and packed with devotion and care, appropriate to a one-off historical photographic print.
US purchasers please note: Customs and excise charges are paid at source and included in the postage fee. No further charges should be due on delivery, unless regulations change.
Details
Date of print
1965
Artist
Michael Joseph (1941-)
Sold by
Owner or reseller
Title of artwork
Cadaques Dinghy Walker, authentic darkroom print from the nineties
Condition
Original State
Technique
Gelatin-silver print
Height
21 cm
Edition
Unique print by the photographer
Width
31 cm
Signature
Hand signed
Genre
Fashion
Sold by
