Melvin Sokolsky was born and raised in New York City where he started his distinguished career as a stills photographer. At the age of twenty-one he was invited to join the staff of Harper's Bazaar. Within the next few years he worked as a major contributor to four prestigious magazines: Esquire, McCall's Newsweek, and Show. His photographs of internationally famous personalities have appeared in many of the major museums and magazines worldwide.
In 1962, Sokolsky photographed the entire editorial content of McCall's Magazine, a first in its time. Two years later, Sokolsky was invited by the School of Visual Arts in New York to teach a special class at his studio in New York.
In 1969, Sokolsky embarked on a new career in television commercials as director/cameraman. Sokolsky has been honored with twenty-five Clio Awards, and is the recipient of every major television commercial award including the coveted "Directors Guild" nomination. Many of Sokolsky's commercials are in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
In 1972, Sokolsky versed in all phases of special effects and cinematography, presented a computerized zoom lens that he designed to the Academy of Arts and Sciences. The system was subsequently nominated for an Academy Award.
In 1986, the Victoria & Albert Museum installed an exhibition of photographs called "Shots of Style," a retrospective of the world’s major fashion photographers, including Melvin Sokolsky. The Victoria & Albert subsequently placed many of Melvin Sokolsky’s photographs in their permanent collection. Five years later, the museum hosted an exhibition and catalogue entitled, "Appearances," which was slated to exhibit internationally.
Melvin Sokolsky is represented in New York by Staley-Wise Gallery, and in Los Angeles by Fahey/Klein Gallery. He has had major recent exhibitions of his iconic 1965 “Bubble” series, and 1965 “Fly” series at both galleries. Most recently, in September, 2008, and in conjunction with his 472 page self published retrospective publication, “ARCHIVE”, the Fahey/Klein Gallery hosted an exhibition, “Melvin Sokolsky: New Work”.
Mr. Sokolsky lectures internationally. As one of Canon Cameras Explorer's of Light, Mr. Sokolsky is an Ambassador for Canon Camera internationally. His work is included in numerous private collections throughout Europe and the United States. Melvin Sokolsky currently lives and works in Los Angeles.