Category Archives: art and exhibits

Man Ray exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery, London

Another must see exhibit by one of my favorite Places in the world. And Man Ray should be a draw to anyone anyways, wherever he’s shown. And this is astonishingly the first major retrospective of his work.

I can’t wait to see it in person.

Here’s a great article in the Telegraph, discussing Catherine Deneuve’s last sitting with him.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/9821467/Catherine-Deneuve-interview-Man-Ray-and-me.html

‘Man Ray Portraits’ is at the National Portrait Gallery, London W1, from Feb 7 until May 27, 2013. More info at npg.org.uk

Faking it at the Met Museum, NYC

Great exhibit on photography and it’s manipulation over the decades. Nice to bring this back into peopels minds what was done prior to Photoshop.

One of the most prominent examples i recall seeing recently was a Christie’s auction a couple of years back, the retouching on the original print on the waist in Horst’s famous “Mainbocher Corset” image. Scrapped off waistline then repro-photographed and reprinted, classic. But unfortunately not in this show.

Looking at my own career, i have to say that i’m fortunate and thankful to have learned and worked on some multilayer composites in the darkroom/repro camera while starting out at Henner Prefi’s studio back in Frankfurt. Nobody was doing that kind of work that i ever seen before. We did a lot of comps for Deutsche Bank but also great projects like the Homage to Giorgio Morandi in 3-7 layered photographs and multilayered jewelry photography.

Anyways, a great quick visit to the Metropolitan Museeum is always fun and this exhibit a great standout, open till January 2013.

Unseen Amsel Adams prints at UC Berkley

Great story and as a fan of AA i can’t wait to see the whole lot. The published images are great and show the appliction of great photography in a commercial project and the commitment from such an outstanding instituon to use oustanding talent to get their image across.

Check out the article at the San Francisco Chronicle:

http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Ansel-Adams-prints-found-at-UC-Berkeley-3909179.php#photo-3521174

Avedon at Christie’s Fall Photo auction 2012

Here’s another classic:

A special section and auction of some genius work. And an entire set of the family portraits for Rolling Stone 1976.

It’s great to see the actual prints side by side, the presentation is great and interesting to note the shoot dates as well.

And besides 2 versions of the Stephanie Seymour in black see through dress, great to compare contrast and printing on both. Will we ever see this again in one room??

Time to collect some…

at Christie’s Rockefeller center on display Oct. 1-3 and sale on the 4th.

Herb Ritts – LA Style now at The Getty, LA

Herb, one of my favorite living photographers growing up!

That WAS the photo business in LA as far as i was concerned from my little german perspective.

The light, the locations, all exotic and yet very bare elements, and modern at the same time. It just amazed me working in a studio in grey rainy Germany that this world exists, Thank you HR.

I always loved the simplicity, reduction to the most significant element, that was basically the hallmark of his photography, and who can forget his music videos or ad movies…

Well, The Getty in LA took it on to mount a retrospective, so go see it till August 26, 2012. They’re closed Mondays, otherwise 10-5:30, stay for the view and have a bite.

Annie Leibovitz showing “Pilgrimage” at the Smithsonian, Washington DC

After a short preview in NY the “Pilgrimage” show of Annie’s recent still life book is opening today in Washington, DC. We’re just on the train going back to NYC after a great opening evening at the Smithsonian Art Museum and a later night at the Hay…

I highly recommend a visit, it’s free, open every day (till May 20, 2012), and most obvious a fantastic collection of mostly American Icons and pieces of history that sometimes just missed the spotlight. It’s really great to see the prints on the wall and i highly recommend collecting the prints if they become available…

One of my favorites, Sigmund Freud’s couch in London (a rare international artifact), ahh the days…

Carmen, a model portfolio in London

From the Telegraph, London:

Camen Dell’Orefice is showing her body of work as a model over the last decades at the London College of Fashion.

She’s such a great character and one of the most standout models i ever met and had the pleasure working with in Paris.

I can’t wait to see this and if you’re in London i highly recommend this treasure of fashion photography history.

Carmen: A Life In Fashion’ runs from Wednesday, November 16, 2011 to Saturday, January 14, 2012 at the Fashion Space Gallery, London College of Fashion, John Princes Street, London W1; fashion.arts.ac.uk

Sarah Moon exhibit in LA

If you find yourself in LA these weeks spend an hour at Fahey/Klein Gallery and see the Sarah Moon show (LaBrea and 1st ave.), till May 21, 2011.

Just exquisit photography that just seemes to me like it happened yesterday.

True genius is timeless and never goes away, it just gets neglected by the mainstream.

And the best part, you can actually own these pieces, beats the auction market.

Irving Penn at Sotheby’s

Spring auctions are on these days and the most intriguing piece i saw was the georgeous portrait of Cate Blanchett by Irving Penn, 2007.

Just brilliant and in the usual manner perfectly printed, mounted and signed, just oustanding.

Now i hope it gets the price it deserves, estimate is very fair considering the other IP’s for sale:

Malik Sidibé show at MB Gallery, LA

Always loved his work, straight forward that reminds me of August Sander great look at the Germans early 1930ties, just with african charm. The eye of Bamako is a great show in a great space, up till April 9, 2011 , so if you’re in LA you have to swing by

akick Sidibe

M+B
612 NORTH ALMONT DRIVE
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90069

Homework made it into Sundance

It’s official: Gavin Wiesen’s directorial debut made it in.

My first movie that i shot stills and portraits during the whole shoot.

With such a fantastic cast and crew we can only hope it makes it big next year, so stay tuned and come to Utah. But please don’t break a leg, as i did for our friend Steven Sebring and his doc about Patti Smith in 2008 (which worked by the way, but i still suffer today, so don’t don’t).

See you out West…

Sargent and the Sea

En Route pour la pêche

The Luminescent ocean view, the scenes on the beaches. Interesting how it can all remain in the vision of the sea in photographs. I felt very connected to the light and decisive play of light, shadow and clouds that create such a great pallet of colors. One can nearly smell the ocean and salt in the moist summer air.

Still up for a couple of days at the Royal Academy of Arts, London, just around the corner of our new favorite, the Brown’s Hotel on Albermarle.

Hipstamatic in the Wild

Shot with my little iPhone and the Hipstamatic app.

Great snapshot setup, back to the 50/60/70′ties i say.

Messed up colors, burned edges and nothing is controlable…

Love it

Hipstamatic and the new iPhone

Finally we’re moving into serious snapshot territory with the new iPhone. While it’s all nice and new (and quicker, with higher res. screen), the best part of this is that i finally discovered Hipstamatic.

I thought i have to move to Williamsburg to truly enjoy it, but the stuff i shot so far are dangerously fun by themselves. Thanks Steven for the intro on my birthday…

I promise i’ll post more snaps in the future

ICP: Atget and Miroslav Tichy show

What a great selection of photographs.

I always loved the Atget view of Paris. I still it believe it exists, those quite moments in a large city and especially in Paris. They make every city magical, otherworldly, quite; an emotion that’s very hard to comunicate. And Atget stands the test of time.

On the other hand the great self build camera and the resulting images that Miroslav Tichy creates, come straight out of his phantasy, well excuted with a handmade edge that seems to be disapperaing very rapidly these days.

Both are at the ICP in NY til May 09, 2010

McQueen, what a show

Again a great collection.

Unfortunately we’ll only ever see it photographed…

And obviously the themes are dark, as his perspective diminished.

I feel sorry for him and the art he so tragically left behind.

Irving Penn show at The National Portrait Gallery, London

I just got the book a couple of days ago and it’s a brilliant little gem. But i really urge everyone interested in the best photographical portrait work ever done, to see the show in person.

It’s up at the National Portrait Gallery in London until June 6, 2010 and then at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome from July 1st through September 19th, 2010.

website upgrade

Not so much new content went up, but the internal settings have been tweak quite a bit over the last couple of weeks.

I still have to work on some more fun and facts for the image descriptions….

Irving Penn’s small trades at the Getty, LA

I always loved that portfolio. It fits right between the Peru studio portraits early in his career and the tent/tribes shoots across the world in “Worlds in a small room”.

I just got back from the show at the Getty center in LA (where admission is free but parking $15, really) and was again impressed by the collection.

The prints had various qualities to them, from fiber based prints to variations in the platinum coatings, but it was a nice treat to see them all lined up for comparison. From the subjects, to the way they carried themselves and their tools, their facial expressions; all very intriguing.

The only disappointing part was that due to the sheer amount of prints some hang a little to high for closer review, but i guess that a nice problem to have with around 250 prints…

And i really enjoyed that the actual print size was not at such a monster scale that are shown i recent years, like this the photograph can be viewed as one whole image and the eye doesn’t have to wander.

“Learning from Light”, I. M. Pei documentary screening

The Hampton film festival, what a surprise. I have to go there more often. Besides the panel yesterday, I’m again very impressed with a movie.

“Learning from Light”, which photographer wouldn’t want to see this, is a documentary on the great architect I.M. Pei and the construction of the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar.

Besides the introduction to his creative process and research, the difficulties of the construction itself, it was a fantastic revelation of one of the greatest minds of our time. And I loved his devotion and observation of light, it’s quality; the appreciation of the singularity of sunlight and the usage of simplistic shapes, along with his humor and Great Spirit.

Mr. Pei himself being present for this world premiere topped all of this. What a treat on a Sunday morning…

Now if I could watch this in HD. Somebody has to pick this up for distribution.

And I would really like to photograph him…

Irving Penn passed….

We lost a giant.

He, of all the photographers in history, influenced me the most.

His attention to detail, the contrast and the simplification of subjects will always be inspiring.

His work was one of the first that really stood out for me as a teenager when I first got into photography and discovered “Passage” and later “Flowers”.

(And I read all the book on photography in our library; twice)

And today I’m still amazed on the broad subject matter he shot so exquisitely and was always excited finding another Penn photograph in Vogue over the years.

There is a very short list of photographers that I’m a true fan and he is on top of even this group.

This is truly one of the saddest days in the Photography world and words will never be enough.

His series “Petit métiers” shot for Vogue in the 50′s is on display at the Getty Center in LA till January 10, 2010

Shulman documentary screening

What a great subject. Obviously any documentary on a photo legend will impress me. But I really liked the revisit of some sites he photographed during his career and seeing what some owners did to it over the years.

Besides the breathtaking, epoch making photography itself the most fun were the little quips about the shoots and the architects. What a great man he was.

And After the reception we had to investigate the new Cooper Union campus:

Annie Leibovitz show in Berlin

It was like a sold out Rock show, traffic came to standstill, and after the place opened its doors to the public you couldn’t even walk or exit the building. But I finally met Veruschka, who moved from NY to Berlin and loves it. And the space, the old Postfuhramt, is just great. This is now the 3rd hanging of the show that we’ve seen (After Brooklyn and Paris) and they do feel very different. (Still open through May 24.)

And talking about Rock concerts, the Depeche Mode stayed in our Hotel (de Rome, go figure) and I worked out with David Gahan in the early morning…

And I got to stop at my favorite shop: “Manufactum“. I nearly forgot about those guys, but when we travelled to Berlin in 2007 to photograph Knut, the polar bear, for the Vanity Fair cover, we stopped by a coffee shop around the corner and ever since I was itching to go back. They also have a great website and a lot of their products are available for shipment to the US as well. Love it…

Washington and Avedon

Finally in Washington, DC, saw the Richard Avedon exhibit. It really puts a lot of things into perspective, especially some current photography that are so overly praised, but are just mediocre.

People tend to forget the true greatness and quality photography can and should have.

Makes me want to shoot with 8×10 and/or on white again.