This first retrospective of the works of Diane Arbus (1923-1971) ever organized in France, brings together all the images commissioned to the New York photographer by the Anglo-Saxon press in the 1960s.
The exhibition will present the original pages of the magazines, which correspond to the first appearance of these photographs: Harper's Bazaar, Esquire, Nova, The Sunday Times Magazine... While some of these photographs have become icons of contemporary America, others are yet to be discovered. The variety of subjects dealt with offers a wide perspective on Diane Arbus' talent, ranging from anonymous of celebrity portraits (Norman Mailer, Jorge Luis Borges, Mia Farrow, Marcello Mastroianni, Madame Martin Luther King...), children's fashion, to several « photographic essays » where the images are credited or commented by the photographer herself (« The Vertical Journey », « The Full Circle », « Auguries of Innocence »...). The unprecedented connections realized in Pierre Leguillon's display underline the actuality of this major 20th century practice.
window of the exhibition - - 2008
Diane Arbus : A Printed Retrospective, 1960-1971 - Pierre Leguillon - 2008
magazine pages, pile of magazines, crate
End of 2008, Pierre Leguillon presented at Kadist Art Foundation the first retrospective of the works of Diane Arbus (1923-1971) organized in France since 1980, bringing together all the images commissioned to the New York photographer by the Anglo-American press in the 1960s.
This exhibition, destined to tour in various locations, presents the original pages of the magazines, including 'Harper's Bazaar', 'Esquire', 'Nova' and 'The Sunday Times Magazine'.
Extract of Pierre Leguillon's text:The mythology surrounding Diane Arbus' character is willingly set aside to offer a more neutral point of view on a more unfamiliar part of her work, although it was mass-distributed.
Many of the characters portrayed in these commissioned works seem less sensational at first glance than the « freaks » that made Diane Arbus' work so famous, since the retrospective MOMA organized in 1973 in New York, two years after her suicide.
And yet, « leafing through » all her contributions for the press, the Diane Arbus « method », her installing the model in an environment in such a particular way, emerges obviously. Long sitting sessions, sometimes repeated, were destined to allow the model to « let go », while he never stopped fixing the camera, straight forward.
It is no doubt their rigorous construction that enables these images, still today, to be contemporary.
Diane Arbus : A Printed Retrospective, 1960-1971 - - 2008
View of the exhibition - - 2008
View of the exhibition - - 2008
View of the exhibition - - 2008
View of the exhibition - - 2008
