Search results for ""Author Matthias Harder""

Berlin and Chicago-based photographer Andrea Wilmsen challenges our perception of interiors in her photographs of the Bode Museum in Berlin, Germany. Her focus varies from fragmented views of architectural details to carefully composed close-up details of empty walls, creating unique portraits of the museum. Wilmsen is inspired by the American philosopher and art critic Arthur C. Danto and his book titled The Transfiguration of the Commonplace, which questions what makes an object a work of art. Yet, she takes the question further and is driven to uncover what makes art spaces special stages for prestigious artworks. Wilmsen is driven by how we prioritise certain works of art over others, and further, where the boundaries lie between what we consider art and what is visible outside of the works that are established as art in a museum. Text in English and German.

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"Some people's photography is an art. Mine is not. If they happen to be exhibited in a gallery or a museum, that's fine. But that's not why I do them. I'm a gun for hire," Helmut Newton told Newsweek in 2004. This prosaic proclamation from one of the 20th century's most celebrated photographers may be perceived as surprising. Still it firmly positions Newton as the no-frills image-maker that he was. His work is so powerful and striking, that it defies categorization. In refusing to call his work "art," Newton leaves us free to do so. Judging from the amount of museum and gallery shows that have featured his work, it is clear that the option has been widely exercised. A Gun for Hire brings together a selection of Newton's fashion catalog work from the early 1960s to 2003 including campaigns for BiBA (the first fashion catalog in 1962), Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Versace, Thierry Mugler, Blumarine, Villeroy & Boch and Absolut Vodka, as well as his last editorial photographs for US and Italian Vogue—encompassing the body of work he made as a "gun for hire." With an introduction by Matthias Harder and statements by Pierre Bergé, Tom Ford, Josephine Hart, June Newton, and Anna Wintour.

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This is a photographic love story tracing the fifty-five years of collaboration, partnership and history of Helmut and June Newton. First published in 1998, their legendary joint project Us and Them was presented in book form and accompanying exhibitions. The book‘s first part – Us – features personal portraits of each other and self-portraits taken over several decades, revealing affection and intimacy behind each image and bringing forth nostalgia of the time. It is a photographic diary that records the life Helmut and June Newton shared away from the public eye.  The second part of the book – Them – is a sumptuous journey through time, where the lens of the master brings forth images of stunning portraits of an array of jet set, celebrities, important cultural figures, and some of the most famous faces of the time. From Catherine Deneuve, Anjelica Huston, David Hockney, and Timothy Leary to Peter Beard, Yves Saint Laurent, Thierry Mugler, Jane Birkin, and Charlotte Rampling, among others. The portraits taken by Helmut and June Newton in various sittings are presented side by side in pairs, thus revealing two facets of the same personality. This volume unmistakably highlights that the life and work of Helmut and June Newton were inexplicably linked in every way. One was never possible without the other.

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Helmut Newton was in his sixties and already a well-established photographer when he and his wife moved to the French Riviera. At an age when many people would consider retirement, Newton instead plunged headfirst into one of the most prolific and liberating stages of his career. The city of Monaco was the perfect backdrop for his fashion photography, and it also provided him with a wealth of subjects for his famous portraits, including the stars of the Ballet de Monte-Carlo and the Princely Family. And it was in Monaco that Newton finally tried his hand at landscapes. While this volume focuses primarily on the years 1981 to 2004, it also looks at Newton’s historic links with the Côte d’Azur and the area around Bordighera, Italy. There are essays by a range of experts in photography, film, and art and three interviews, including one with Paloma Picasso. In these remarkable photographs readers will discover the French Riviera through Newton’s fascinated, slightly ironic lens: a way of life characterized by ease and elegance; a world dominated by appearance and superficiality; and a veritable living theater, in which he was both actor and privileged member of the audience.

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