Anthony Friedkin (born 1949) is an American photographer whose works have chronicled California's landscapes, cities and people.
A historical set of photographs on "New York City Brothels," includes genuine studies of prostitutes in their work environment.
A special set of pictures on "California Prisons"and their inmates, includes sensitive portraits of incarcerated teenagers.
For most of his life he has been photographing "Los Angeles," creating an unparalleled body of images, which comes from his love of the diversely visual and cultural town.
[12] California Prisons includes sensitive portrait shots of incarcerated teenagers, as well as the many typical representations of machismo and gang affiliated men.
[16] In 2014, Friedkin released The Gay Essay, a book containing 75 portraits from the series, published by Yale University Press.
Friedkin began his work on the “Gay Essay,” when he was only nineteen years of age, and set out “to depict [the] struggles, humiliations, and [the] triumphs [of queer culture]".
Friedkin’s goal was to document what it meant to defy the grain when it is wrong, that is to show the courage it takes to define one’s own freedom and individuality.
[18] “The Gay Essay” was not shown in America for a long time due to the sensitivity of the images Friedkin produced and a less than receptive society whose mainstream was overwhelmingly homophobic, simply put, but was exhibited in Europe and East Asia and was received well.
[18] From June 2014 to January 2015, San Francisco's DeYoung Museum exhibited the 75 prints to coincide with the 45th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.