In the late 1940’s, Herman Leonard’s passion for jazz brought him to the swinging clubs of NYC.  With the camera as his free ticket, he photographed and developed friendships with some of the greats of jazz history including Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, and many more.

            A year’s apprenticeship with Yousuf Karsh provided invaluable experience photographing the likes of Albert Einstein and Harry S. Truman.  In 1956 Leonard was chosen to be Marlon Brando’s personal photographer.  In the late 1950’s Leonard headed for Paris where he worked in fashion and advertising and served as the European photographer for Playboy Magazine.  In the 1980’s he left Paris to raise a family in Ibiza. 

            In 1988, his first ever jazz exhibition in London was a huge success.  Since then, over 100 exhibitions have been held around the world.  The Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. honored him by housing his entire collection in the permanent archives of musical history.

            Leonard’s work has become a ubiquitous presence in contemporary culture.  Whatever the medium, whether print, documentary or popular film, the jazz photographs of Herman Leonard appear as companion to the great musicians who created the unique sounds of America’s original art form.