David Sutton

David Sutton was a photographer since his early teens when he studied under such tutors as the famed Life photographers, Margaret Bourke-White, Eliot Elisofon and other notables. Listening to such "greats" added to the foundation for Sutton's vast knowledge of documentary photography and photojournalism. He recalled Margaret Bourke-White patting him on the head — making the prophetic remark, "Young man, you show great promise." World War II interrupted his college studies. He served as an Air Force combat photographer in the China-Burma-India (CBI) theatre in both the 10th and 14th Air Forces under the commands of Generals Davidson and Chenault of "Flying Tigers" fame. At war's end he returned to New York, enjoying a brief stint with Life Magazine before going West where he worked with top Hollywood photographer Gene Lester. Sutton soon hung out his own shingle and from his studio concentrated his efforts on commercial, publicity, industrial, fashion, advertising and other facets of photography. Sutton’s reputation as a photographer stems in part from being consistently published in top magazines around the world. He shot such celebrities as Paul Newman, John Wayne and Frank Sinatra. Sutton has the largest and certainly most formidable copyrighted file of photographs of John Wayne in the world — well over 100,000 color slides and negatives — plus a special David Sutton collection which the photo artist obtained from numerous sources over a period years. The Kodak Professional Forum said: "How he elicits interesting reactions is hard to pin down, but it certainly stems from an aggressive independence, tempered by confidence, concern, talent and ambition. Sutton seems like a man who can handle any situation."

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