Harold Eugene Edgerton

(American, 1903–1990)

Harold Eugene Edgerton was an American electrical engineer and photographer. His invention of a repeatable electronic flash allowed for the photography of split-second events, such as a bursting balloon or a bullet passing through an apple. “Don’t make me out to be an artist. I am an engineer. I am after the facts, only the facts,” he once said of himself. Born on April 6, 1903 in Fremont, NE, he studied electrical engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and later earned a Doctor of Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1931. While at MIT, Edgerton began experimenting with strobes in an effort to advance their technological utility. Edgerton studied alongside fellow photographer and engineer Gjon Mili, who shared his interest in photography. Technology that Edgerton helped pioneer was used to capture atomic explosions and by the undersea explorer Jacques Cousteau. He retired from his position as professor emeritus in 1968, but continued working in the MIT Stroboscope Light Laboratory and teaching a freshman course in photography. Notably, in 1973, he was awarded the National Medal of Science. Edgerton died on January 4, 1990 in Cambridge, MA. Today, the photographer’s works are held in the collections of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, among others.

Harold Eugene Edgerton Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Harold Eugene Edgerton (769 results)
Tennis-Forehand Drive, Jenny Tuckey, 1938

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Tennis-Forehand Drive, Jenny Tuckey, 1938

Sale Date: March 8, 2024

Auction Closed

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957, 1957

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957, 1957

Sale Date: February 27, 2024

Auction Closed

Mechanical Kangaroo, Multiflash, 1987

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Mechanical Kangaroo, Multiflash, 1987

Sale Date: January 31, 2024

Auction Closed

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957

Sale Date: January 31, 2024

Auction Closed

Three Photographs including: Bobby..., 1933–1960

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Three Photographs including: Bobby..., 1933–1960

Sale Date: January 31, 2024

Auction Closed

Golf Swing, 1930

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Golf Swing, 1930

Sale Date: January 31, 2024

Auction Closed

Child Running, alternatively titled Bob..., 1939

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Child Running, alternatively titled Bob..., 1939

Sale Date: January 31, 2024

Auction Closed

Eight press prints

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Eight press prints

Sale Date: December 12, 2023

Auction Closed

Lamp bulb (smashed by hammer)

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Lamp bulb (smashed by hammer)

Sale Date: December 12, 2023

Auction Closed

Nancy C dancing

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Nancy C dancing

Sale Date: December 12, 2023

Auction Closed

Tennis forehand drive, Jenny Tuckey

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Tennis forehand drive, Jenny Tuckey

Sale Date: December 12, 2023

Auction Closed

The Bat Bends [Baseball bat]

Harold Eugene Edgerton

The Bat Bends [Baseball bat]

Sale Date: December 12, 2023

Auction Closed

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957

Sale Date: November 28, 2023

Auction Closed

Explosion of the Atomic Bomb, 1945

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Explosion of the Atomic Bomb, 1945

Sale Date: November 28, 2023

Auction Closed

Swirls and Eddies of a Tennis stroke, 1939

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Swirls and Eddies of a Tennis stroke, 1939

Sale Date: November 10, 2023

Auction Closed

Ten Dye Transfer Photographs Portfolio (10 works)

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Ten Dye Transfer Photographs Portfolio (10 works)

Sale Date: October 17, 2023

Auction Closed

Indian Club Exercises, 1938

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Indian Club Exercises, 1938

Sale Date: October 6, 2023

Auction Closed

Seeing the Unseen, 1977

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Seeing the Unseen, 1977

Sale Date: September 21, 2023

Auction Closed

Papa Zacchini Shoots His Daughter Victoria..., 1940

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Papa Zacchini Shoots His Daughter Victoria..., 1940

Sale Date: September 21, 2023

Auction Closed

Stopping Time: The Photographs of Harold..., 1988

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Stopping Time: The Photographs of Harold..., 1988

Sale Date: August 2, 2023

Auction Closed

Child Running (Bob Edgerton), 1939

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Child Running (Bob Edgerton), 1939

Sale Date: August 2, 2023

Auction Closed

Harold Edgerton: Ten Dye Transfer Photographs, 1985

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Harold Edgerton: Ten Dye Transfer Photographs, 1985

Sale Date: August 2, 2023

Auction Closed

Eight works, 1995

After Harold Eugene Edgerton

Eight works, 1995

Sale Date: August 2, 2023

Auction Closed

Bullet Through Apple, 1964, 1964

Harold Eugene Edgerton

Bullet Through Apple, 1964, 1964

Sale Date: May 25, 2023

Auction Closed

English (US)

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