Lee Miller

About the Artist

Man Ray. Lee Miller. 1929. Gelatin silver print, 10 1/2 x 8 1/8" (26.7 x 20.6 cm). The Museum of Modern Art. Gift of James Thrall Soby. © 2014 Man Ray Trust/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris
Alternate Name(s) Elizabeth Miller (Birth Name)
Elizabeth Miller, Lady Penrose (Married Name)

Meeting Points

Cultural Hubs New York
Paris
Schools Levy Gallery, 1931–49
Man Ray Studio, 1920–35
Publications Vogue, 1892–1949

Artist Chronology

April 23, 1907	Born At location: Lee Miller	Poughkeepsie
May 1925–January 1926	Enrolls at l'Ecole Medgyès pour la Technique du Théâtre At location: Lee Miller	Paris
January 1926	Enrolls in the drama department of Vassar College At location: Lee Miller	Poughkeepsie
1926–27	Her father shoots a series of nude photographs of her at home At location: Lee Miller	Poughkeepsie
Summer 1926	Works as a dancer and lingerie model At location: Lee Miller	New York
Autumn 1926	Enrolls at the Art Students League At location: Lee Miller	New York
1927	Becomes acquainted with the New York artistic and literary set; dates Charles Chaplin At location: Lee Miller	New York
1927	Lee Miller models for Vogue photographers Georges Lepape, Edward Steichen, Arnold Genthe, and Nickolas Muray At location: Edward Steichen, Lee Miller	New York
1929–32	Lee Miller is Man Ray's assistant and lover At location: Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), Lee Miller	Paris
May 1929	Travels in Italy; draws lace and fabric patterns for a New York designer At location: Lee Miller	Italy
Late 1929	Lee Miller works at French Vogue as an assistant to and model for George Hoyningen-Huene At location: George Hoyningen-Huene, Lee Miller	Paris
1930–31	Establishes a studio in Montparnasse At location: Lee Miller	Paris
1930–59	Publishes in French, British, and American Vogue; London Bulletin; and Lilliput Affiliated: Lee Miller	New York Paris London
April–September 1930	Acts in Jean Cocteau's play Le Sang d'un poète At location: Lee Miller	Paris
July 1930	Man Ray publishes a portrait of Lee Miller in Le Surréalisme au service de la révolution Contributor: Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky) Affiliated: Lee Miller	Paris
1931	Groupe annuel des photographes at La Galerie de la Pléiade Participant: Lee Miller	Paris
February–July 1931	Works as a cameraperson and still photographer at Elstree Studios, a British film company At location: Lee Miller	London
November 28–December 29, 1931	La Publicité par la photographie at Galerie d'Art Contemporain Participant: Florence Henri, André Kertész, Germaine Krull, Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), Roger Parry, Maurice Tabard, Jacques-André Boiffard, Eli Lotar, Lee Miller, Jean Moral	Paris
December 15, 1931–January 15, 1932	Photographes d’aujourd’hui at Galerie de la Plume d'Or Participant: Florence Henri, André Kertész, Germaine Krull, Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), Roger Parry, Maurice Tabard, George Hoyningen-Huene, Eli Lotar, Lee Miller, Jean Moral	Paris
1932	Exposition internationale de la photographie et du cinéma at Palais des Beaux-Arts Participant: Germaine Krull, Roger Parry, Werner Rohde, Lee Miller	Brussels
1932	Solo exhibition of Man Ray's photographs at the Julien Levy Gallery; includes portraits of Lee Miller Participant: Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky) Affiliated: Lee Miller	New York
1932–34	Lives in New York At location: Lee Miller	New York
February 20–March 11, 1932	Modern European Photography at the Julien Levy Gallery Participant: Herbert Bayer, Florence Henri, André Kertész, László Moholy-Nagy, Roger Parry, Walter A. Peterhans, Maurice Tabard, Umbo (Otto Umbehr), Jacques-André Boiffard, Eli Lotar, Lee Miller	New York
July 2–31, 1932	Exposition internationale de la photographie at the Palais des Beaux-Arts Participant: Aenne Biermann, André Kertész, Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), Franz Roh, Lee Miller, Sasha Stone Organizer: Cami Stone	Brussels
October 15–November 5, 1932	Exhibition of Portrait Photography, Old and New at Julien Levy Gallery Participant: Lee Miller	New York
December 30, 1932–January 25, 1933	Solo exhibition at the Julien Levy Gallery Participant: Lee Miller	New York
January 1933	Exhibition of New York Beauty at Bergdorf Goodman Participant: Lee Miller	New York
1934	Exhibition at the Royal Photographic Society Participant: Lee Miller	London
January 1934	Makes first color photographs for Elizabeth Arden advertisements At location: Lee Miller	New York
May 1934	Included in Vanity Fair's list of the seven most distinguished photographers Contributor: Lee Miller	New York
1934–39	Lives in Cairo, where she studies archaeology, chemistry, and Arabic; travels and photographs in Egypt, North Africa, and the Middle East At location: Lee Miller	Cairo
Winter 1935	Experiments with Kodachrome At location: Lee Miller	Jerusalem
Summer 1937	Lee Miller travels to Mougins, where she socializes with Roland Penrose, Man Ray, and Pablo Picasso At location: Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), Lee Miller	Mougins
Summer 1938	Travels with Penrose and photographs in the Balkans and Romania At location: Lee Miller	Bucharest
1940–41	Lives in Hampstead with Penrose At location: Lee Miller	Hampstead
April 1940	Attends the English Surrealists group meeting with Penrose At location: Lee Miller	London
1942	Receives accreditation as a United States Forces War Correspondent At location: Lee Miller	London
Summer–Fall 1944	Photographs the liberation of Paris At location: Lee Miller	Paris
July 1944	Photographs the U.S. army casualty-evacuation hospital six weeks after D-Day At location: Lee Miller	Omaha Beach
1945	Publishes Wrens in Camera Contributor: Lee Miller	London
May 1945	Photographs Dachau concentration camp one day after it is liberated At location: Lee Miller	Dachau
May 1945	After Hitler's death, Miller and fellow photographer David Scherman spend a night in Hitler's apartment and take photographs in his bath At location: Lee Miller	Munich
December 1945	Photographs the execution of László Bardossy At location: Lee Miller	Budapest
August 1946	Lee Miller and Penrose visit Man Ray and his wife Julie At location: Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitzky), Lee Miller	Los Angeles
1949–77	Lives at Farley Farm At location: Lee Miller	East Sussex
July 27, 1977	Dies At location: Lee Miller	East Sussex

Walther Photographs

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About the Artist

Meeting Points

Artist Chronology

Walther Photographs