William Eggleston: Five Things to Know

William Eggleston, who was born in Memphis in 1939 where he still lives, is the artist who has done more than anyone to elevate the status of color photography in the eyes of curators and collectors. An exhibition of his ground-breaking images, first presented in LA, is now on view at David Zwirner in New York.

1 - Turning point: meeting curator Walter Hopps, which led to Eggleston’s MoMA solo show in 1976, which overturned the domination of black-and-white photography on museum walls.

2 - Shortly after it opened to the public, Eggleston was invited to photograph Graceland. Typically, he took his time to record Elvis Presley’s Memphis mansion in all its fading glory.

3 - Steve Martin is a fan. The actor has several Eggleston prints in his collection as did the musician David Bowie.

4 - Record sale: the complete portfolio of Los Alamos, dating from 1965–74, sold for $1.9m at Phillips in March 2025, a new auction record for the artist.

5 - William Eggleston: The Last Dyes is on view at David Zwirner New York, January 15 - March 7.