Preserving legacy of a forgotten lensman

IF not for Jacqueline Kennedy's death in 1994, the late photographer Mark Shaw's archive of fashion and celebrity shots from the 1950s to 1960s might have continued to languish in cold storage.

As it turned out, one of Shaw's signature collections was of the Kennedy Family, taken for Life magazine, even though he was primarily a fashion and advertising photographer. When Mrs Kennedy died, there were numerous requests for her images from his collection, which spurred Shaw's only son David and his wife Juliet Cuming to consolidate the photographer's negatives that had been split between his two ex-wives.

Shaw, who began his career in 1946 at Harper's Bazaar, photographed for Life in the 1950s and 1960s. He shot 27 covers and more than 100 stories for the magazine. He was one of the first photographers to use colour when shooting runway shows and backstage of couture shows. He died unexpectedly at age 47 and his files and photos were put into storage.