PAJAMA (Paul Cadmus, Jared French and Margaret French)

an album comprising 107 mounted photographs of Paul Cadmus, Jared French, Margaret French, George Platt Lynes, George Tooker, Monroe Wheeler, Glenway Wescott, and others, many photographs dated and some annotated by Glenway Wescott in blue ink on the mounts, 1937-47. Folio, leatherette, the pages postbound

Gift of the photographers to Monroe Wheeler and Glenway Wescott

Gift of Glenway Wescott to the present owners, 1978-79

The prints in this album, on glossy- or matte-surface paper, are in generally very good to excellent condition. Overall, there are creases to a number of the prints that likely occurred when they were affixed onto the album pages. In raking light, faint silvering is visible, primarily on the matte-surface prints. The photographs are pasted one, two, or three prints to light green album leaves. The following annotations are below select images: 'KAP;' 'Jerry and Margaret 1946;' 'Siasconset 1946;' 'Kiko [Francis Burton Harrison] 1943;' and 'Mulhocaway' (indistinct).
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The painter Paul Cadmus (1904-1999) and husband and wife artists Jared (1902-1989) and Margaret French comprise the photographic collaborative trio known as PaJaMa.  Beginning in 1937, and over the course of nearly two decades, the three collectively composed photographs documenting their personal and artistic relationships.  Set against the backdrops of Fire Island, Provincetown, Nantucket, and Mulhocaway Farm, New Jersey, the psychologically and sexually charged images sometimes served as studies for subsequent paintings. 

As Cadmus years later recounted, 'After we'd been working most of the day, we'd go out late afternoons and take photographs when the light was best.  They were just playthings.  We would hand out these little photographs when we went to dinner parties, like playing cards' (Jerry Rosco, Glenway Wescott Personally: A Biography, p. 78). 

The album offered here was originally given to Monroe Wheeler, director of exhibitions and publishing at The Museum of Modern Art for more than 25 years, and his longtime partner, Glenway Wescott, acclaimed best-selling novelist and Harper Prize winner.

Extant photographs by PaJaMa are rare as they were printed and gifted sparingly.  An album of this magnitude has never before been offered at auction.