Back in college I did a talk to the class about Richard Avedon, one of the greatest fashion photographers of all time. Looking back on the images, I can say that I still love his photographic style.
Richard Avedon was born in New York in 1923 and when he was 21 he found a job as a photographer in a department store. Within 2 years he had been discovered by an art director at Harper's Bazaar and was also producing images for Vogue and a number of other fashion magazines. Not bad for a 23 year old! In these first years he made his living in advertising but his real passion was portraiture.
His style was sophisticated and famed for it's minimalism. Well lit and in front of white backdrops it wouldn't look out of place in today's portrait studios.In fact, while researching the photographs which I chose for this post, I didn't realise how modern the image to the right is.
Taken in about 1993 for Versace, it still has the same quality as Avedon's earlier fashion shoots. They all appear timeless.
This photograph of Dovima in a Dior dress, with elephants from 1955 is definitely the most famous fashion photograph of all time. Dovima was Avedon's favourite model at the time. She was truly a supermodel, being the most highly paid model of her era.
The black evening gown was the first dress designed for Dior by his new assistant Yves Saint Laurent. It makes you wonder how his career would have gone if another photographer had been commissioned?
This was one of my favourite images but after seeing the elephant image at the top, I prefer that one. I love the repitition of Dovima's arm with the shape of the trunks. So clever and elegant. It seems to give cohesion to the photograph instead of wondering why a beautifully dressed model is posing with elephants.
This image with the umbrella was a homage to a photographer called Martin Munkacsi.
He was a Hungarian sports photographer who went to New York to work for Harper's Bazaar. He often left the studio to shoot outdoors, perhaps an influence from the sports photography days.
Avedon said that he "Brought a taste for happiness and honesty and a love of women to what was, before him, a joyless, loveless, lying art." This is certainly reflected in this photograph.
This is one of my favouite Avedon photographs. Stylish and simple. I love the profile of the model with her curling eyelashes.
When I came across this image, I suddenly recognised it as being a painting which I had done to put in my room during college. I obviously loved it then and certainly love it now!
That gives me another idea...a watercolour image of this photograph. It would be fun to put colours to it although it looks stunning in black and white.
Watch this space!
If you'd like to explore more of Richard Avedon's fabulous photogaphs please visit the Richard Avedon foundation website.
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