Original glossy 8.5 x 11 contact sheet proof print containing 35 different images of Prince Rogers Nelson that were taken by photographer Robert Whitman in 1977 at the latter’s studio in the Kemp Ice Cream building in Minneapolis. Each image depicts Prince in a handsome up-close pose with a cross necklace, with 12 showing the then-unknown musician without a shirt; one of the images is circled in orange grease pencil, and the upper border is initialed in white grease pencil by Whitman, “RW.” Whitman’s copyright stamps are present on the front and reverse, which also bears “This Paper Manufactured by Kodak” watermarks and a felt tip notation identifying the proof as “C-1.” In fine condition, with a small scratch and a paperclip impression to the upper left edge.
Another proof of this contact sheet, and several of its images, can be found in Whitman’s 2017 limited edition photography book Prince: Pre Fame, a 40th-anniversary visual celebration of these iconic Minneapolis portrait sessions, which identifies these photos as deriving from ‘Roll 1.’
These images were captured during one of three separate photo shoots that photographer Robert Whitman made of Prince in 1977 for an introductory press kit aimed at potential record companies. The resulting photos, Prince’s first with a professional photographer, mark an instrumental moment in his career. Whitman photographed Prince in his Minneapolis studio, at manager Owen Husney’s Linden Hills Boulevard home, and on the streets of downtown Minneapolis, including in front of 'The Music Wall' mural painted on the side of the Schmitt Music store. Only 15 copies of the press kit were ever produced, and the photographs from these sessions have rarely been seen.
