of the image supports the importance of Plank’s eyes. The motif of the dugout roof behind the subject’s headwas one that Conlonwould use over and over again throughout his career. Those simple geometric shapes found within the frame juxtapose nicely against Plank’s head and shoulders, the latter of which are captured with the detail that became synonymous with the Conlon aesthetic. And as a result, Eddie’s eyes become the star of this image. By 1913, Plank was in his mid-to-late 30s, with his skin showing signs of being much older. Witness the crow’s feet and bags underneath those weary eyes., no doubt a result of long hours in the sun with those short-brimmed Deadball Era caps. It was that kind of detail – along with the expressions from these rough men - that Conlon became a master at
colored dirt of the grounds. The following season, Doyle would win the Chalmers award as the league’s most valuable
Lot 631: 1920s Original Type 1 Photo Pair by Charles Conlon incl Johnny
Frederick & Ed Brown Minimum Bid: $75.00
player. Interestingly enough, that award – a Chalmers automobile – would prove harmful. Doyle crashed the car into a tree a week before the season’s end, the injuries perhaps helping contribute to the three errors he would commit in the Giants’ loss. Charles Conlon never attempted to be flashy – what he saw through his lens was what he gave us. Treating his then ‘hobby’ like a visual documentarian, he kept that quality to his work for almost 40 years. His first photographs of Babe Ruth in the late 1910s show us a young kid only years removed from the ballfields in Baltimore, and his last ones, views of an overweight has-been whose final years in the sport were relegated to nothing more than attracting good gate. We see similar arcs from hundreds of other ballplayers throughout Conlon’s entire oeuvre, all of which are illustrated with the same impeccable attention. In that complete body of work, we are blessed with those uncompromised windows to the sport throughout its
capturing, almost as a way of injecting a bit of a narrative into his portraits. This nuanced treatment of subject matter wasn’t only relegated to future Hall of Famers. Take the photo of Larry Doyle of the New York Giants from 1911, also found in this auction. Doyle played in the bigs for 14 seasons with two different
teams, a former coal digger who was scouted by Hall of Famer Dan Brouthers. The mid-day, spring sun shines in front of the man, illuminating a crisp jersey that is surrounded by the advertisements of Hilltop Park in Washington Heights (The Giants played there towards the beginning of the season due to their own park, the Polo Grounds, burning down almost
Lot 632: 1927 Jim Bottomley (HOF) Original Type 1 Photo by Charles Conlon (PSA/DNA) Minimum Bid: $200.00
completely.). The viewer can almost feel the warm cream of those togs vibrating against the lush green grass and clay-
Fall 2018 Premier Auction – Closes November 24, 2018
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