11

Portrait of bodybuilder Eugen Sandow (1867-1925). Circa 1900.

Platinum print
the image 11 1/4 x 9 1/8 in. (28.6 x 23.2 cm.)

  • Provenance: Eugen Sandow (né Friedrich Müller) was a muse, an inspiration, and a pioneer who got his start in bodybuilding around the late 1880s at a small gym in Belgium. Here Sandow was introduced to Ludwig Durlacher or "Attila," as he was known, who pledged to make this new student the strongest man out of his pupils. After the two had been training together for some time, they set off on a European tour to show off their hard work. Sandow performing in these new bodybuilding competitions showed the public that they can look like him too, on stage with the crowd below him and muscles glistening turned Sandow into a godlike figure, an inspiration for the average joe.

    After competing for a while, Sandow broke off from his mentor, Attila, and started taking solo gigs for competitions and even modeling. Sandow, without Attila, continued to grow his image, went to bigger competitions to win against the titans of bodybuilding at the time, authored books on bodybuilding and even opened a gym of his own. Positioning himself as the posterchild for bodybuilding paid off, as many of the traits of bodybuilding we know and follow today can be attributed to Sandow. Most people consider Sandow the "Father of Modern Bodybuilding," even if he had some tremendous help along the way. Sandow's image, though, has managed to influence bodybuilders all the way through to the 21st century, where we still value this specific body type and integrate his ideas of fitness and health into everyday life.
  • Condition:
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    Condition reports and additional images are provided as a courtesy and should be used by you to aid in the formation of your own opinion regarding condition. All material is sold subject to Swann's standard Terms and Conditions of Sale as published in our catalogues and posted on our website, and include the following terms: (1) all property is sold "as-is"; and (2) works cannot be returned on the basis of condition.

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August 21, 2025 10:30 AM EDT
New York, NY, US

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