I decided on a photo that was created for Pentax Calendar in 1980. It interested me as the only fashion garment was a pair of stockings and the colour palette is extremely minimal.
The exhibition has been on my agenda for months but with work commitments I couldn't find the time so started my essay using aid of books and the internet. When I finally went to Somerset House, it was totally worth it! One of the best exhibitions I've ever visited and I would even say that without using it for research purposes.
The first part of the exhibition focused on Bourdin's work for shoe retailer Charles Jourdan and a particular campaign in 1979 where Bourdin didn't bother hiring a model, but instead purchased mannequins legs which he photographed in interesting compositions against day-to-day locations, which I later learnt he relied on his Polaroid camera to originally capture and store for future photo shoots. I learnt that he was commissioned to take 24 photos for Charles Jourdan between 1967 and 1981. These and unpublished photos were amongst the exhibition walls.
A factor I loved about the exhibition was the original drawings and sketches that were laid out throughout. Bourdin planned all of his photoshoots, sketching the compositions and taking polaroid photos beforehand. The exhibition also featured his paintings as he was known as an artist before he took up photography when he joined the French Air Force in 1948 for a year. His paintings demonstrated his time in the air force, with a large use of militant symbols throughout. My favourite painting was one which was placed way up high, near the ceiling, of a aircraft. I almost didn't notice it.
I learnt loads from this exhibition as well as enjoying the photography, I hope to be able to use it to benefit my essay.
[…] have a specific fashion photographer exhibition like Guy Bourdin’s that I visited last month (read about it here), whereas this was a […]
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