'Guy Bourdin: Image Maker' at Somerset House

Charles Jourdan, Spring 1979 © The Guy Bourdin Estate, 2014/Courtesy A+C

Guy Bourdin: Image Maker has entered its final week at Somerset House and if you love fashion photography this is one exhibition you don't want to miss. Frequently hailed as one of the greatest fashion photographers of all time, this protégé of the great Man Ray was certainly one of the most fascinating.

The exhibition features over 200 works, including previously unseen material from Bourdin's estate. Exhibition prints, layouts, polaroids, contact sheets, transparencies, paintings, sketches, notebooks and even film, are combined to offer a comprehensive look at the work of one of the 20th century's most iconic photographers.

Alongside Helmut Newton, Bourdin's work graced the pages of French Vogue for several decades, heavily influencing the generations of fashion photographers who would follow in his footsteps. Bourdin was formerly a painter and his photography skills were entirely self-taught, allowing a freedom when shooting fashion products that perhaps explains how he took the genre and turned it on its head. Where the product and its promotion were previously at the heart of fashion photography, for Bourdin they were of less importance than his own vision and the image as a whole.

Bourdin created something new. His photographs were amongst the first to capture a brief moment of a more complex narrative, then place the product within that moment. These narratives range from the provocative and glamorous to the surreal and mysterious. The most memorable are dark and disturbing, often hinting at something sexual and violent. The women in his images frequently appear to be dead or injured, resulting in criticism and claims that he objectified women.

Pentax Calendar, 1980 © The Guy Bourdin Estate, 2014/Courtesy A+C

French fashion designer Charles Jourdan worked with Bourdin on his advertising campaigns for many years, and it is some these images (and an accompanying film), that you see first when you enter the exhibition. In 1979 Bourdin shot a campaign called 'Walking Legs', which entailed driving around quintessentially English landscapes and shooting Jourdan's shoes on two mannequin legs in various poses. It is incredible how just the lower legs and shoes can hint at a much bigger story, allowing the viewer to interpret each image in their own way. It is also interesting to see how well Jourdan's designs have withstood the test of time. In some images the quintessentially seventies cars in the background look as dated as you would expect, while the shoes have lost none of their appeal!

Charles Jourdan, Autumn 1979 © The Guy Bourdin Estate, 2014/Courtesy A+C

Bourdin was a perfectionist and subsequently he was heavily involved in his layouts for French Vogue. It speaks volumes of the regard in which he was held that the editors allowed him to see his work through from conception to completion in the magazine. Despite his strong vision and need for editorial control, it is interesting that he had little desire to preserve his work, even reportedly once requesting that it all be destroyed upon his death. He rejected the Grand Prix National de la Photographie and refused various exhibition and book offers. The first book of his work wasn't published until a decade after his death.

Vogue Paris, May 1970 © The Guy Bourdin Estate, 2014/Courtesy A+C

It is Bourdin's unwavering vision and limitless creativity that makes his work so appealing and memorable. He was an artist and a storyteller and the reason that he succeeded in fashion photography is because his stories were strong enough to sell products. Most impressive is the fact that he was successful in this field despite an apparent disregard for conventional notions of beauty, good taste and the traditional portrayal of products.

Many of the images in the exhibition are difficult to decode and open to personal interpretation. It is impossible to view Bourdin's work without attempting to fill in the blanks, asking 'who is the girl in the picture and what is her story?' These images are compelling; some are overwhelming in their beauty, while others they are so uncomfortable that you have to walk away.

Bourdin has inspired many of today's great fashion photographers including my personal favourite, Tim Walker, whose images are equally fuelled by stories that take priority over the product being sold. However if viewing Walker's most memorable work feels like you are entering a dreamland, Bourdin's feels more like a nightmare. Dark, foreboding yet equally impossible to forget.

Charles Jourdan, Autumn 1970 © The Guy Bourdin Estate, 2014/Courtesy A+C

See Guy Bourdin: Image Maker at the Embankment Galleries, Somerset House, until Sunday 15th March. £9, daily 10.00-18-00 (last admission 17.15) and until 21.00 Thursday (last admission 20.15). For more information and tickets visit www.somersethouse.org.uk

Time: Tattoo Art Today at Somerset House

I made the most of Saturday morning's beautiful weather by getting up early and heading to Somerset House to see Time: Tattoo Art Today – yet another fantastic exhibition with free admission. It comprises work by 70 of the world's most influential tattoo artists, each commissioned to create a unique piece of work on the theme of 'Time', using any medium they liked apart from their usual canvas – skin.

Tattoo art has a fascinating history, reportedly dating back to Neolithic times. In western society it has evolved from something that was typically associated with the lower and even criminal classes, to an integral part of contemporary culture, so it's great to see some of the tattoo world's finest being recognised in this way.

© Kurt Wiscombe

I was immediately struck by just how incredibly talented these artists are. It’s easy to forget that first and foremost they are just that, artists. Tattooing is their chosen profession but, while they might spend the majority of their time creating art on the human body, they can also produce oil paintings to rival those in the National Gallery and interpret a brief like 'Time' with unrivalled creativity.

Naturally the theme lends itself to ideas of life and death, and many iconic symbols prevalent in the tattoo world are utilised, from skulls and clocks, to flower blossoms and the female form. The materials used are diverse and include various types of painting, bronze sculpture and mixed media pieces.

Many well-known names have contributed to the exhibition, including Don Ed Hardy, Mr Cartoon and my personal favourites Ami James and Chris Garver (Miami Ink anyone?), and while it would be hard to pick out favourites, here are a few I particularly wanted to mention.

© Rose Hardy

Rouge by Rose Hardy

This is such a beautiful interpretation of the theme, with the constant life-cycle of flowers represented in acrylic and watercolour, from buds and blossoms to the wilted petals. I love how the vibrant colours in the roses contrast with the monochrome shades of the classic pin-up girl’s eye makeup. The composition and execution are equally impressive.

© Chris Garver

Indigo Dragons by Chris Garver

The body is a natural canvas for a tattoo artist and I love that Chris Garver chose to illustrate a mannequin in this way. The use of blue on white for Chinese dragons is very reminiscent of the country's traditional blue and white porcelain, dating back to the 9th century.

© Shawn Barber

Kim Saigh at work, with Jamie Kompon by Shawn Barber

Kim Saigh chose to illustrate girlfriend (and fellow tattoo artist) Kim Saigh at work on former professional hockey player Jamie Kompon. Barber spent years documenting contemporary tattoo culture before picking up the tattoo machine himself, and he taught drawing and painting at art schools for over a decade. The multiple representations of Kim and Jamie illustrate the passing of time in what, as anyone with a tattoo will know, can often be a very lengthy process!

© Alex Binnie

Self Portrait by Alex Binnie

Tattoo artist and printmaker, Alex Binnie, has been tattooing since the 80s and established one of the first custom tattoo shops in London. I love this graphic self portrait showing both the inside and outside of himself in two distinct halves. Such a simple but effective piece.

Time: Tattoo Art Today is a fantastic exhibition and well worth a visit. I would have liked a bit of information about the thought process behind each piece, because it's something that always interests me, however, as I have come to expect from Somerset House, it is an incredibly well thought out exhibition. Tattoos tend to divide opinion (possibly because like all art forms, their creators range considerably in terms of talent), so an exhibition like this is a fantastic reminder of the abilities of the cream of the crop – creative, innovative and bound to leave an impression.

Time: Tattoo Art Today is at the Embankment Galleries, South Wing at Somerset House until 5 October 2014. For more information visit www.somersethouse.org.uk

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A beautiful sunny morning at Somerset House

Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! At Somerset House

The Isabella Blow exhibition at Somerset House is only open for one more week and, if you haven't already done so, I would definitely recommend stopping by. There are certain characters in the colourful history of fashion who are as intriguing as they are influential and Isabella was certainly one of those. Not only did she bring her unique sense of style to countless photo shoots for the likes of British Vogue and Tatler, but she was also a fashion magpie – collecting the bright stars of the future and helping them to shine.

Isabella Blow, 1997 © Mario Testino

Having begun her career as Anna Wintour's assistant at US Vogue, Isabella returned to London where she worked for numerous high profile magazines. She had an eye for emerging talent and bought the entire graduate collection by the then unknown Lee McQueen. Philip Treacy was another of her protegees and she soon became synonymous with his outrageous headwear.

Coming from an aristocratic background filled with colourful characters, she knew what it was like to both have money and to have lost it. She developed a taste for glamour at a young age and it was something she constantly strived for, reportedly cleaning her desk at Vogue each night with Perrier water! I recently read a quote by Oscar Wilde – "Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination" – and I immediately thought of Isabella. She paid for McQueen's graduate collection in installments and in return received one new garment a month.

Alexander McQueen and Isabella Blow: Burning Down The House, 1996, London © David LaChapelle Studio, Inc.

This stylish, creative woman was, like so many, the protagonist of a story with as much darkness as light. I recommend reading her biography Blow by Blow which charts her rise to success, the abandonment she felt by those who she helped achieve success, her tumultuous love life, marriage to Detmar Blow and the depression that resulted in several suicide attempts, culminating in her eventual death in 2007.

This remarkable woman led a remarkable life and I was intrigued to see how Somerset House would do justice to such a character. The answer is with some carefully considered curation and the utmost respect for her work and the garments that she collected. I can honestly say that I felt goosebumps as I stood inches away from McQueen's Autumn Winter 1996 collection, able to see every stitch.

McQueen's AW96 collection Dante, which he dedicated to Isabella and received international acclaim

Isabella's extensive collection is now owned by Daphne Guinness and more than a hundred pieces are included in the exhibition by McQueen, Philip Treacy, Hussein Chalayan, Julien MacDonald, Manolo Blahnik and more.

Some of the clothes are in perfect condition but others bear the scars of the wild life that Isabella led. She was a woman who loved to wear couture but who wasn't afraid to run and drink and party and tear hems and break heels. She was no show pony but a living breathing lover of fashion.

These satin shoes show the damage inflicted by such a daring ankle bracelet!

It's an astonishing collection but for me it is the little details that make it such a touching tribute; the mannequins made up with just a smear of red lipstick or the quirky display cases with limbs wearing her shoes. Beautifully reproduced photos by the likes of Steven Meisel and David LaChapelle are included too, from the many shoots that she styled, featuring models such as Sophie Dahl and Stella Tennant – yet more talent that she had discovered.

This is a truly three-dimensional exhibition and includes videos of several runway shows, most notably the final section with La Dame Bleue, the Spring Summer 2008 collection that McQueen and Treacy collaborated on and dedicated to Isabella after her death – a poignant ending.

Fashion Galore! is a fascinating, comprehensive and touching tribute to a woman who had a profound effect on the world of fashion. Says Daphne Guinness, "This exhibition is, to me, a bittersweet event. Isabella Blow made our world more vivid, trailing colour with every pace she took. It is a sorrier place for her absence."

Isabella Blow and Philip Treacy, 2003 for Vanity Fair © Donald McPherson

Exhibition continues at Somerset House until 2 March, 10am–6pm daily, late night until 9pm Thursdays.
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Miles Aldridge: I Only Want You To Love Me at Somerset House

Once again I’ve been at Somerset House checking out another highly recommended exhibition: Miles Aldridge: I Only Want You To Love Me. This major retrospective is the largest exhibition to date of the renowned fashion photographer’s work, and will be at the Embankment East Galleries until 29 September.

A Drop Of Red  #2 © Miles Aldridge 2001

Son of graphic designer Alan Aldridge, Miles travelled to New York in the mid-nineties and was soon shooting for publications such as W, Teen Vogue, GQ and The Face. He has established an enduring relationship with Vogue Italia and shot advertising campaigns for many of fashion’s biggest names, including Karl Lagerfeld, Giorgio Armani and Yves Saint Laurent.

Miles’ images appeal to me for very similar reasons to Tim Walker’s  – he has an incredibly distinctive style, and he treats his shoots in a highly cinematic way, often story-boarding them beforehand and never compromising his creativity for commercial gain.

I Only Want You To Love Me  #1 © Miles Aldridge 2011

Miles’ work is immediately identifiable through his use of colour and depiction of women. His images are bold and bright, filled with high octane glamour and incredible beauty, but the often blank looks on the models’ faces or the slightly uneasy situations they find themselves in, suggest something a little darker beneath the surface. For example a beautiful woman’s face resting on a pillow would be serene if it weren’t for the mysterious hand that holds it there.

This slightly uncomfortable, darker aesthetic is unsurprising considering Miles cites filmmakers such as David Lynch and Federico Fellini as influences. His ability to produce something so detailed and theatrical may also be testament to his background in illustration, which he studied at Central St Martins, and a brief stint directing music videos.

Actress  #6 © Miles Aldridge 2012

His photographs are glamorous, captivating and in glorious technicolour, from the woman on a kitchen floor poised emotionless behind a dropped dinner tray and smashed plates, to the ‘actress’ in bed, apparently having a diva tantrum over a grapefruit. In both instances the uneasy subject matter is depicted with extraordinary skill and an incredible use of colour. This is the reason I was particularly excited about the exhibition, because although Miles’ work looks phenomenal on the pages of Vogue Italia (copies of which are included in the exhibition), to see large-scale prints displayed in Somerset House’s typically understated yet effective way is a real treat.

There is something mesmerising about Miles’ photographs – that dreamlike quality and cinematic aesthetic – you just want to reach out and touch them. They draw you into an enviable world of glamour that seems distinctly unattainable, before throwing you sideways when you realise that behind the smoke and mirrors, as in every walk of life, beauty is very rarely what it seems.

The Pure Wonder  © Miles Aldridge 2005

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Miles Aldridge: I Only Want You to Love Me is at the Embankment East Galleries, Somerset House until 29 September. Admission is £6. The exhibition is accompanied by a book of the same name, published by Rizzoli and available at the exhibition.

A simultaneous exhibition at Brancolini Grimaldi, features Miles Aldridge's first exhibition, Short Breaths, alongside recent work and a new limited edition portfolio. For more information visit www.brancolinigrimaldi.com

Erwin Blumenfeld exhibition at Somerset House

One of the great things about London is that there is always something you can do for free, and one of my personal favourite freebies is the East Wing Galleries at Somerset House. From the Rolling Stones to Tim Walker, it has played host to some fantastic, diverse exhibitions.

Blumenfeld Studio: New York 1941-1960 features work by Erwin Blumenfeld, one of the most influential photographers of the 20th Century, in particular the work he produced in America during and after WWII from his Central Park studio. Over 90 original modern prints have been fully restored in colour and are displayed alongside original publication clippings.

Spring Fashion 1953 for Vogue ©The Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld

Born in Berlin in 1897, Blumenfeld originally worked as an apprentice dressmaker. It wasn’t until he left for Paris in 1936 that his photography career began to take shape. In a twist of fate, his work was seen and admired by the great Cecil Beaton which led to a commission for French Vogue.

Blumenfeld left for America in 1941 and his career quickly snowballed, with subsequent commissions for Harper’s Bazaar, Seventeen and House & Garden. His work between 1941 and 1960 is the focus of this exhibition and includes fashion photography, portraits, personal work, ‘war effort’ propaganda posters and advertising work for clients such as Max Factor and Helena Rubenstein.

The East Wing Galleries is a really nice exhibition space, with white walls and small intersecting rooms which provide an ideal blank canvas and an interesting way of organising groups of images as you progress through the space.

My favourite aspect of this particular exhibition is the addition of display cases featuring original copies of publications like Vogue and Harpers Bazaar, allowing you to see the context in which the images were used. As a magazine journalist I found it fascinating to see his large prints on the wall and to then see how they were manipulated for use on a magazine cover.

Like many photographers, Blumenfeld wanted total control over the way his images were reproduced wherever possible, and he forged strong relationships with Art Directors in order to achieve this. His enduring relationship with Alexander Liberman and US Vogue saw him shoot over fifty covers, and I was immediately struck by how creatively his images were used for this purpose. They appear much more experimental than the mostly formulaic covers you see today and I was left wondering if editors had more artistic freedom half a century ago or if they were equally pressured by external constraints.

Certainly Blumenfeld is an experimental photographer, embracing photomontage, solarisation and colour slides to create his distinctive images. He viewed his photography as art, even if it was created for commercial purposes, and like all great artists he pushed bounderies and challenged conventions.

For fans of photography, fashion and the history of magazines, I thoroughly recommend this exhibition. A trip to Somerset House is always a pleasure and a visit to the East Wing Galleries won’t cost you a penny. You can’t really argue with that can you!

Blumenfeld Studio: New York 1941-1960 is at the East Wing Galleries until 1 September 2013. For more information visit www.somersethouse.org.uk

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Grace Kelly 1955 for Cosmopolitan ©The Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld

Lilian Macusson for the cover of American Vogue January 1951 ©The Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld

Tim Walker: Story Teller at Somerset House

With Christmas, flu and all manner of other inconveniences well out of the way, I’m officially back to work, and I’m aware this blog’s balance has tipped heavily in the favour of ‘rock’ in recent months, so I fully intend to give ‘runway’ the space it deserves. First up is the Tim Walker exhibition in the East Wing Galleries at Somerset House, that I promised to review way back in September when I unsuccessfully stalked him at The RPS Awards.

Giant doll kicks Lindsey Wixson Eglingham Hall, Northumberland, 2011 © Tim Walker

In a world where creativity is increasingly computer generated, there is something refreshing, and indeed magical, about the fantasy world that Walker captures using a spectacular array of other-worldly props. From an elegant swan boat to a giant doll with blonde ringlets, he conjures up a dream world where anything is possible, and if a prop looks real, then that is probably because it is.

My obsession with Walker’s work began many years ago whilst writing my university dissertation, an exploration into the relationship between fashion magazines and body image in women. It was more specifically a defence of the fashion magazines that I love so dearly, and an attempt to demonstrate that fashion is such an elaborate myth that it cannot possibly have a negative effect on a woman’s body image unless there is an underlying issue already.

Walker’s work was the perfect example. The beautiful shoots that I would pore over in Vogue often showed little of the clothes, or even the female form, focussing instead on telling a rather stylish yet fantastical story or capturing a beautifully lit scene. I had discovered a true artist and not someone whose primary focus was the hard sell (although there is no denying that the end product was, and still is, always very desirable.)

Tim Walker: Story Teller is a celebration of some of his most memorable work to date. It is an incredible well-curated exhibition, with a selection of prints displayed alongside installations and some of his most iconic props that bring the images to life. Almost as soon as you enter you are greeted by the near life-size Spitfire thats tail can be seen bursting through a door behind which stands an immaculate Lily Donaldson.

Lily Donaldson and Blue Spitfire Glemham Hall, Suffolk, 2009 © Tim Walker

The Blue Spitfire in place at Somerset House

What struck me the most whilst wandering through the gallery is a fact that I already knew but that became clearer than ever when standing face to face with such a beautiful collection – that Walker is the complete package. He is not simply a technically gifted photographer who can take the best possible shot of a given subject, he is a visionary, someone with the ability to conceive an amazing idea in preliminary sketches, turn it into a reality then capture perfectly the original story that he wanted to convey.

If I sound a little obsessed with Tim Walker it’s because I am, and have been ever since his work first jumped out at me from the pages of Vogue. He doesn’t just take a picture, he quite literally creates it, and in the glossy world of fashion his work always stands out thanks to his ability to consistently create something colourful and new. There are only a few weeks left of the exhibition, so if you are interested in either fashion or photography, I recommend you take a trip and see for yourself exactly why, for me, Walker is the most distinctive fashion photographer of his era.

Tim Walker: Story Teller, until 27 January at Somerset House, free admission

www.somersethouse.org.uk

Karlie Kloss and broken Humpty Dumpty Rye, East Sussex, 2010 © Tim Walker

A fabulous installation featuring giant snails used in a shoot

Alexander McQueen with skull and cigarettes Clerkenwell, London, 2009 © Tim Walker

The Rolling Stones: 50 exhibition

For fans of the Rolling Stones, I thoroughly recommend a trip to Somerset House for The Rolling Stones: 50 exhibition currently in its East Wing Galleries. It’s free to visit but only running until Monday 27th August, so get in quick!

The exhibition features a selection of fabulous photos that span the band’s impressive 50 year career, from a baby-faced group on their very first trip to New York, to their epic halftime show at the 2006 Super Bowl – and plenty in between. It’s nicely curated with each image showcased in a simple frame, some classic Stones music playing in the background and even a pop-up shop.

There’s not a lot more I can say really, except that fans of the Rolling Stones really shouldn’t miss this opportunity to see so many great photos exhibited together – a fabulous tribute to an absolutely seminal band.

Check out the video below to see Mick and Keith wandering around the gallery.