WE HAD JAZZ
Photography by Carl Henninger of the Portland jazz scene
Shop Prints
Timeless black-and-white jazz photography for music lovers and fine art collectors.
Printed from original negatives using museum-quality archival inks on fine art paper. Available in multiple sizes as open and limited edition prints.
Portland’s golden age of Jazz peaked between 1948 and 1956. During those years national and West Coast jazz tours always stopped in Portland. Carl Henniger photographed many of the leading jazz performers as a stringer for Down Beat Magazine. He left an archive of 385 images, the most complete photo record of this time known. This historic and artistic tour de force has been rediscovered after 60 years.
With the financial support of The Regional Arts and Cultural Council (RAAC), 30 of these images were presented in the We Had Jazz exhibit in Portland, OR. Now all 385 photos are available for purchase and collection domestically and internationally.
About Carl Henninger
Carl Henniger (1920–2009) was a Portland, OR photographer whose passion for jazz and mastery of the 4x5 Speed Graphic camera led him to moonlight as a photographer for Down Beat between 1953 and 1955, during Portland’s vibrant postwar jazz boom.Carl photographed nearly every major jazz artist who toured through the city, capturing candid backstage moments and live performances of legends like Duke Ellington, Chet Baker, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nat King Cole, among many others.In just three years, Carl created an extraordinary visual record of the golden age of jazz. His collection of nearly 385 striking black-and-white photographs—later rediscovered by his son Michael—preserves the spirit, energy, and intimacy of the era.