History of Fashion Photography Essay by
Aidan O'Rourke
Written by Aidan O'Rourke and submitted as part of the Advanced Level Examination in
Photography Summer 1997
There is a contradiction in fashion photography: In theory, its purpose the same as
that of a catalogue: to depict the clothes and help to sell them. In practice however,
fashion photography has been used as a vehicle for self-expression by some of the
world's greatest photographers. Often, the creative desires of the photographers are
at odds with the intentions of the editor, as Anna Wintour, fashion editor at Vogue,
illustrates:
Our needs are simple. We want a photographer to take a dress, make the girl look
pretty, give us lots of images to choose from, and not give us any attitude.
Photographers - if they are any good - want to create art.
Through this tension have come about some of the most memorable images in the history
of photography, transcending the time in which they were made, and representing that
time for us today.
I became actively interested in fashion photography when, in 1991, I saw an exhibition at
the Victoria and Albert Museum, detailing the development of the genre in the post war
years. I found many of the images extremely captivating and interesting. Though I had
enjoyed the fashion photography of contemporary magazines such as Harpers and Queen
and Vogue, I had never before seen so many original prints from earlier decades and I
responded to them with enthusiasm, hoping to introduce elements of their technique and
atmosphere into my own photography.
I intend to use this piece of writing as an opportunity not only to learn more about the
history and development of the fashion photograph, but also to analyse, by the use of
many of my favourite images, what it is that underlies their timeless appeal, and, from the
point of view of a student of photography, the techniques the photographers used to
achieve their desired effects.
The precursors of fashion photography go back to the eighteenth century, when images of
fashionable clothes were printed in magazines and often hand-coloured. Paris was at that
time a centre for the production of such magazines, many of which were imported into
England. Figure 1 shows a typical example of such an image.
The technique of photography was developed in the 1830s, but it wasn't until much later
that the métier of fashion photography came into existence. The earliest popular
photographic technique, the daguerreotype, could not be used for mass printing. A later
technique enabled the production of the "Carte de Visite" which were made for
individuals and which also depicted famous theatre and music hall personalities of the
age. It wasn't until advances in halftone printing techniques that fashion photographs
came to be featured in magazines. This happened in about the first decade of the 20th
century.
Baron de Meyer (1868 - 1946) called "The Debussy of the Camera", had wealthy,
though not aristocratic origins. He was born Demeyer Watson, of a French father and a
Scottish mother, and grew up in Saxony. He came to London and married into nobility.
He was given the title Baron de Meyer and set out on a life of extravagant entertaining
His main characteristic was a wonderful use of backlighting and the soft-focus lens. In
Fig. 2, we see many of the characteristics of his style. Though static, the pose is natural,
and the picture is arranged using a strong pattern of vertical elements, giving a sense of
authority and formality. We can see a clear use of the "rule of thirds" in the placement of
the curtains and chair.
What strikes us as being special to Baron de Meyer, however, are the glinting reflections
from the background material and the jewels. The overall key is a light grey, the only
dark areas being around the sitter's face, arms and lap. It's interesting to note that the
chair is hardly a suitably aristocratic-looking piece of furniture, but perhaps he chose if
for its colour, more than anything else.
Edward Jean Steichen (1879-1973) was born in Luxembourg, but his family moved to
the USA in 1881. With Alfred Stieglitz, he founded the Photo-Secession Galleries in
New York. He first photographed fashion models in 1911 for the magazine "Art and
Decoration", and worked with Conde Nast during the twenties. This photo (fig. 3) was
made for American Vogue in 1920, and shows Marian Moorehouse, wife of the poet E.E.
Cummings, wearing a Chanel gown.
The arrangement of rectangular shapes shows the influence of constructivist art, which
was influential at the time. The vertically placed white rectangular card has been
carefully positioned to show the shape of the falling drapery, which shows signs of
considerable retouching. A piece of horizontally placed black card provides further
contrast.
The head and shoulders stand out from the mid grey of the wall, and the toe of the shoe,
pointing elegantly downwards, protrudes into the area of white on the floor. A white and
black vertical band just to the left of the model, divides the upper part of the picture, and
completes the background. The lighting is a combination of general light plus
sidelighting, on both sides, giving the flesh tones a mid to high key, contrasting with the
solid blacks.
This image skilfully uses very simple props to create an elegant arrangement of forms,
modernist in flavour, but classical in order and arrangement.
George Hoyningen-Huene (1900 - 1968) was another of the aristocratic practitioners of
early fashion photography, and did most of his most memorable work between the midtwenties and the end of the Second World War. He was born in St Petersburg, but moved
to Paris in 1920, where he first did fashion illustration and then photography. He moved
to New York in 1935, and worked mainly for Harper's Bazaar. He spent the latter part of
his life in California.
The famous swimwear ad by George Hoyningen-Huene (Fig. 4) is familiar to
contemporary eyes, having been used recently in advertising for perfume. It displays a
combination of chic and classicism typical of the age. The image shows a meticulous
attitude to detail and arrangement. The models are placed very carefully, with close
attention to the effect of light and shadow. The combined outline forms a pleasing U
shape, similar to a Greek vase. By illusion, the scene appears to be outdoors, but on
closer inspection, we can see that, like most fashion shots of the day, it was taken in a
studio, and the "sea" is an area of light grey, with the "sky" and faintly painted clouds
above it. A very realistic effect of daylight is achieved by a strong, single light, placed to
the above left of the subjects.
If you went to the sea and took a photo of it around midday, the sea would almost
certainly appear much darker. The effect of this unnaturally light background is twofold:
it makes the models stand out, but more interestingly, it actually simulates how we would
see the background in harsh sunlight without sunglasses- very light and slightly fuzzy,
due to the smarting of the eyes. The visually inaccurate, but psychologically correct
portrayal of the background gives this image its mysterious appeal. The enigmatic quality
is heightened by the fact that the models stare away from us, so that we can't see their
faces, and appear to be looking at something out on the "sea", to the right, and beyond the
frame of the picture. What are they looking at? What are their faces like? And where
exactly is this seaside location?
Horst P Horst (born 1906, lives in New York) was a friend of Hoyningen-Huene, and
also had a fascination for classical imagery, indeed he made a detailed study of classical
poses, using Greek sculpture and classical paintings, paying special attention to the
positioning of hands. In his studio, he used all manner of props, such as plaster statues,
mirrors, crumpled paper, using them to both neoclassical and surrealist effect.
This photo (Fig. 5) of Helen Bennet is a good example of an image with a strongly
classical effect. A single spotlight shines down on the model from the top right. The
edges of the spot place shadows on the edges of the pleated cloak, which is exhibited,
peacock-fashion in a wonderful display of light and shadow. The model is standing in
front of a column, and we can see the shadow of the spotlight forming an arc just to the
right of the model's face. The light falls on the face to form a perfect jaw line, with just
the right amount of shadow on the cheekbone (although this might have been retouched).
The pose is statuesque and painterly, reminiscent of the paintings of Alfred Moore. The
background is a graduated dark to lighter grey, made apparently by a diffused light
placed behind the base. Around the base, there are three pieces of Greek-style plaster
sculpture, though these are partly cropped out of the picture. One criticism might be that
this arrangement looks botched and amateurish, and that the photographer couldn't make
up his mind whether or not to leave out the base altogether, but decided to crop it half
way! In my opinion this doesn't matter, as the main focus of the image is the model, and
her outfit. In his use of props, he was only trying to create an effect of the antique, not, as
perhaps in a painting, a detailed and accurate recreation of the real thing.
Cecil Beaton (1904 - 1980) was a contemporary of Horst P Horst and HoyningenHuene, and was based in London. His exhibition in 1927 at the Cooling Galleries,
London established him as a major photographic figure. Like Horst, he also used
elaborate studio props and experimented with surrealism. In the picture of Miss Mary
Taylor (Fig. 6), the image is dominated by two large and highly ornate oval-shaped
hanging decorations, with flowers and patterns similar to peacock tails. The left hand one
is closer to the camera, and is to the model's right. The right hand one is hanging behind
the model, and the edge intersects her face at eye level.
According to traditional rules of composition, the model is too low in the frame, but, like
others pictures by Beaton, it is not intended to be a portrait, but an arrangement of forms,
patterns, textures and tones, in which the model is included. The decorations, which were
probably made up specially for the shot, and don't resemble anything I've ever seen
elsewhere, dominate the image, and almost have a life and character of their own,
subjugating the model. There is a light source coming from the right, illuminating the rear
wall, and the model's face. A less intense, more diffuse light on the left fills in dark to
mid grey shadows on the model's face and lights the front of her garment. The placement
of the fingers adds an extra element of theatricality to the image.
An interesting development during the 1930's was a change in Beaton's attitude towards
the romanticism and indulgence in his earlier work. This quotation from "The Best of
Beaton" written in 1968, gives us the photographer's insight into the changing mood:
The posed, static hands with the pointed index finger and arched wrist acquired an
overnight vulgarity; the celestial expression in the eys suddenly became a joke shared by
everyone except the sitter. The earlier pictures appeared over re-touched and altogether
too artificial with ladies with forced rosebud simpers and impossibly goldern curls.
In the meantime, Beaton had developed a more realistic style:
'The results of my experiments in this genre of photography were considered to prove
that I had at last grown up, and had acquired a new sense of reality. "Reality" was
taken up by editors as the "new thing"'.
A result of this change of direction was a contributory factor in the termination of his
contract with Vogue in 1938. In the ensuing years he took many war photographs, and a
famous example of the then, still prevalent idea of "reality" was this study (Fig. 7) of a
model standing in a Paris courtyard. The look of the model and the clothes could almost
be contemporary. She couldn't be further removed from the high fashion models of
earlier years. The photograph is almost of snapshot character, with very little attention
wasted on artful arrangement of forms. The face appears exactly central in the frame,
which doesn't conform to traditional conventions. There are however, subtle evidences of
the photographer's eye - the natural light coming from above is at just the right angle to
scupt the model's face.
Personally, I feel that the photographer wasn't being honest with himself. A deliberate
urge to throw out former principles and techniques, and go to another extreme, is perhaps
a way of trying to prove his versatility or an attempt not to be typecast. Maybe the picture
is a product of its time - after six years of gruelling war, people were weary, more
concerned with making the best of meagre rations, whether food or cloth, than indulging
in opulent fantasies.
By 1948, however, the elegance was back, revived by Christian Dior's "New Look"
collection of 1947. This image (Fig. 8), epitomises the return to grand style, but in a
plainer, more direct way than in earlier decades. Eight models are posed in a neo-classical
salon, talking and drinking cups of tea from dainty teacups.
There are three sources, two shining in from the sides, and one very bright one placed
behind the two models to the centre left. An additional, low key diffused light shines in
from the left of the camera, illuminating very nicely the patterns of silken drapery. The
lighting ensures a full range of tones from very bright to near black. Reproductions of this
image in two different books turn out, on closer inspection to be slightly different. The
poses are almost exactly the same, except for a couple of small differences.
This must indicate that considerable effort must have gone into placing the models in
definite and highly stylised poses, artificial some would say. As we will see, there was a
reaction against this which would leave behind the famous pre-war photographers, and
usher in a new, post war era of spontaneity.
Norman Parkinson, (born in 1913) a contemporary of Beaton, also photographed the
beau monde during the twenties and thirties, but, as he explains, with certain differences:
'I was hardly aware of other photographers' work until I went to Harper's, when I
learnt about Steichen, Hoyningen-Huene, Durst and Beaton. But the women in their
photographs were a rarefied few, an elitist handful. My women behaved quite
differently - they drove cars, went shopping, had children and kicked the dog. I wanted
to capture that side of women. I wanted them out in the fields jumping over the
haycocks - I did not think they needed their knees bolted together. There was always
room in a magazine for the scent-laden marble-floored studios with lilies falling out ot
great bowls of flowers. but there was also room for my sort of photography.'
(Norman Parkinson Lifework, page 35).
A good example of this type of portrayal are the next two pictures, both taken by Norman
Parkinson in 1937. The first one (Fig. 9) has an irresistible quality of exuberance, 30's
style and femininity about it, but why is the image so successful? It would have been
difficult to pose the models carefully, though the photographer might have asked them to
"act out" seeing someone on another boat, and waving.
In any case, the three poses are complementary, the left hand model is holding her left
arm vertically, the middle one holding her left arm horizontally, index finger pointing
upwards, the right hand model has a relaxed, leaning pose. The outstretched leg of the left
hand model reaches over to the far side, close to the leaning model. The effect of the
wind, the sense of movement and shifting balance, gives the image great dynamism,
added to by the swathe of foam stretching from the bottom right to near the top left. But
by what means was the photographer able to attain this pleasing arrangement in such
unpredictable circumstances? Perhaps the gift of the photographer is to click the shutter
exactly the right time:
'I was using, on location, my by-now faithful Graflex quarter plate camera, and was
trying to make moving pictures with a still camera. many photographers who attempt
this technique have come to realize that if you see on the ground glass the image you
are striving for, and it is a moving or air-borne image, you are too late. The secret is to
direct the shot and to have the luck to anticipate it. It was discovering that I had the
exceptional good fortune to be able to do so that convinced me and I was hooked for all
time on photography'.
(Norman Parkinson Life Work page 28)
Interestingly, the eyes of the middle model are exactly level with the horizon, and this is
also a characteristic of the second picture by Norman Parkinson, showing a woman
walking along a country track. The eyes are level with the horizon, adding an extra
element of horizontality to the image. Again, the converging diagonals of the lane, going
out of focus as they stretch into the distance give a sense of movement, added to by the
brisk walk of the model. The pose is full of confidence. She looks directly to her right,
along the line of the horizon, striding forward towards the camera.
The movement of the body and the texture of the material act together to dynamically
portray the clothes.
A familiar and recurring issue in fashion photography, and perhaps photography in
general, is the dichotomy between "realism" and "artificiality". At any one time, both
have been in currency. The outdoor shots of Norman Parkinson were being made at about
the same time as the posed and stylised studio works of Hoyningen-Huene. One
photographer whose work was more at the romantic and impressionistic end of the
spectrum was Lillian Bassman, a protegee of the legendary Alexei Brodovitch at
Harpers, New York.
This image, dating from 1949, and entitled "New York", is timeless, almost
contemporary in its look. With the depiction of a corset, we can see a return to more
traditional, romantic vision of femininity. The image looks as if it was exposed sharp in
the camera, but given a soft-focus effect at printing. There is slight double exposure, with
probable use of a diffusing filter, or possibly an additional exposure was made out of
focus. The pose has a sweeping sense of movement, the face and upper body are tipping
forwards, the arms are pulling the strings backwards and upwards. The waist is tightly,
painfully drawn in, to the extent that it looks unnaturally narrow. The tightness is
contrasted with the looseness of the four hanging straps.
A moment is caught in time by the camera, a fleeting glimpse echoed by the reflection in
the mirror.
At first the image looks primarily decorative, but in addition to beauty of form, a
powerful feeling of constriction is expressed. Perhaps the fact that the photographer is
female made her better able to empathise with how it feels to wear a corset.
Like Lillian Bassman, Louise Dahl-Wolfe also worked for Harpers Bazaar, and not long
after her arrval at the magazine in 1935, was one of the first to use one-shot Kodachrome,
which had just been brought onto the market. Many of her pictures feature swimwear
fashion, and have a relaxed and luxurious feel, with tall, slim models in elegant,
outstretched poses.
This shot by Louise Dahl-Wolfe (Fig. 12), made in 1950, has an attractive period feel
due to the combined effect of the early fifties swimsuit style, and the yellowness of the
colour balance, typical of early colour film. A familiar hallmark of this photographer is
the reclining female model, the repeated curves of her body, and of the swimsuit material,
set against the screen.
A rough division into vertical and horizontal thirds is visible. The bowl of fruit with
tumbling exotic flowers recalls a still life. As if to contrast with the image by HoyningenHuene of the chic couple in swimsuits in an imaginary and unspecified location, this one
is taken in a real-life place, as indicated by the map of Tunisia. The point of the star
appears to indicate the exact place, a nice, cryptic touch.
The one photographer who more than any other came to symbolise the new direction
which fashion photography took after the Second World War is Richard Avedon, who
was born in 1923. He has been a leading figure in the world of photography since 1945,
and is still active. He gained his first professional photographic experience in the
Merchant Marine, taking ID photos. It was the innovative, 'in-and-out-of-focus' style of
his shots of merchant seamen twins that caught the eye of Harper's Bazaar art director
Alexei Brodovitch, and persuaded him to try some fashion photos for the magazine.
Soon, Avedon came to be regarded as the number one young photographer, creator of the
"NewVision".
Junior Bazaar, a separate edition, aimed at young people, ran for 3 years up till 1948, and
featured a new brand of fresh and innovative photography, much of it contributed by
Avedon. In its use of movement, the "in-and-out-of-focus" effect, motion blur, cropping
and the plain white background, we can see in this picture, (Fig.13) shot using
Kodachrome, a startling break with many of the basic principles of photographers like
Hoynignen-Huene, who by the time this photo was published, had given up fashion
photography altogether.
Despite the apparently casual nature of the arrangement of the figures, the effect is very
pleasing, and has a strong sense of circular, dance-like motion, a theme alluded to in the
text. The profile of the model on the left forms a dark, chevron-like shape, pointing to the
right - (the line of the back and rear of the dress forms a perfect arrow shape). The model
is leaning back, looking up and laughing, whilst standing still, meanwhile the model
further away is leaning forward, looking down whilst moving. The background model is
looking down at the same angle as the foreground model is looking up. To balance the
composition on the page, two leaf-shaped areas of dark colour have been added, again
fitting in with the text. All in all, it is an attractive, vibrant image, which, at least in the
case of the foreground model, shows off the clothes very well.
His style is described succinctly by Cecil Beaton and Gail Buckland:
'His pictures showed young ladies enjoying life to the full as they preened and jumped
with joy in their Paris confections. Avedon's photographs did not perhaps have
technical perfection, and they were all the better for this, for they created the statement
that he wished to make-of movement caught forever by his lens.'
The Magic Image, page 252
Dovima with Elephants (Fig. 14) is one of his most celebrated pictures. The image is
well-crafted, but its main appeal seems to be that it was the first time anyone had taken a
high fashion model together with elephants. It had a certain shock value. Richard
Avedon's modernism, had sweeping effect on photography, and there was a consequent
rejection of the earlier, more "classical" style:
'By 1945, Hoynignen-Huene's stiff, formal poses, perfectly attuned to the Neoclassicism of the 1930's, suddenly seemed anachronistic...The most devastating critique
of Hoyningen-Huene's photography was delivered in 1944 by Dr Agha (formerly
Hoyningen-Huene's art director at Vogue) who described it as "a cross between
stagecraft, interior decoration, ballet and society portrait painting done by camera.'
Perhaps there is a parallel with the Post War Modernism in other areas of creativity, such
as architecture, where older styles were thrown out, to be replaced by bold, but in
hindsight unsuccessful creations. I personally have a very high regard for the 'classical
style' of the 1930's but I also like the exuberance of the post war period. Each style has its
place. No successful artist or photographer should be rejected because of the dictates of
fashion. In a Post Modern age, all styles of the past are available in the present to be
drawn on.
Erwin Blumenfeld (1897-1969) was an experimenter in photography, who made
creative use of colour and lighting. This picture (Fig. 15) shows a remarkable use of
texture and colour. A finished print appears to have been rephotographed with a series of
coloured transparent bars placed on top of it. The effect is to play tricks on the eye,
forcing us to look more closely in order to try and make sense of what we are seeing.
As if to confuse matters further, curled strips of cellophane have been added. The
incorrect, but very attractive colour balance, typical of early Kodachrome, adds to the
image's appeal. Though the model's face is cut into a series of distorted vertical strips, she
still manages to look beautiful, at least, our eyes are able to reconstruct her beauty by
applying our innate knowledge - maybe if this image was presented to a computer facial
recognition system, it mightn't be able to recognise a face there at all!
The combination of a familiar subject viewed in a jarring and unfamiliar way is, for me,
like being a child again, discovering new textures and lighting effects for the first time - I
remember being especially fascinated with coloured transparent materials, as well are
metallic reflective surfaces.
By the time the "Swinging Sixties" came along, the fashionable (and pretentious)
photographer figure became a familiar stereotype. Even now, when an aspiring amateur
reaches for his camera and puts on photographer's airs, the name of "David Bailey" is
invoked! Born in 1938, he is one of the few photographers that most people have heard
of, and he is still active now.
(Fig. 16) is a casual, almost snapshot-like image, showing a model standing on the side of
a New York street at a pedestrian crossing. We see the run-down, and fashionably grimy
chic of Manhattan at street level, with lots of signs and lettering. A passer-by has been
caught awkwardly on the right hand side of the lamp post. The model, of course, is Jean
Shrimpton, in her celebrated "A-line" pose, to match the shape of the outfit. This must be
one of the most famous poses a model has ever struck, and came to symbolise a look of
the early sixties.
In this picture by David Bailey Another quintessential face of that decade is portrayed in
this shot, taken in January 1965. What it doesn't say about the clothes it makes up for in
the tantalising glimpse we get of Swinging London. The camera is at a "swinging" angle,
and fashionable Hampstead Hill is seen silhouetted late in the day, with a tiny figure on a
bench just visible.
Marianne Faithfull, looks into the camera with a distant expression, the stray wisp of hair
and billowing dress, along with the clouds, alluding to a windy day. The diagonals make
for a dynamic image, but it's also dark and brooding, a deliberate effect done, I think, at
darkroom stage. From the look of the clouds, the sun would appear to be fairly high in the
sky.
Perhaps our pre-conceived notions about "The Sixties" influence the way we interpret a
photograph such as this - the photographer himself was annoyed at being labelled as the
photographer of "Swinging London":
'I always hated the King's Road, really the whole thing was the creation of "Time"
magazine' (quoted in Appearances, page 218)
I can't help feeling though that this photograph is a window into a place and time I was
too young to fully experience, and I wish I could climb through into it!
Quite a different vision from David Bailey, much more planned and controlled, is that of
the Japanese photographer Hiro, who came to New York in 1954.
In this image (Fig. 18) we can seen an effect of disorientation caused by the raised
viewpoint, and the hiding of the arms, especially of the model on the left. The curved
background is used so as to eliminate the floor line, causing the shapes of the clothes to
become like abstract patterns, or perhaps the flowing drapery of Japanese woodblock
print. As in traditional Japanese Ukiyo-e art, the hair is pinned up into elaborate and
ornate designs. Only the false eyelashes of the right hand model allow us to date this
picture, which is otherwise timeless.
This is another famous image, this time much easier to place in time, due to the colour
and make up. The striking thing about it is the oval shaped area of projected light shining
down on the model's face from above. With the upturned eyes, the reverent, meditative
facial expression and the outfit, covering all but the face, the image has religious
resonances.
One of the more controversial photographers of recent times is Helmut Newton, born in
Berlin, Germany, in 1920. He received his training in Berlin, but spent time in Australia
and Singapore. He held an Australian passport and lived in Monaco and Los Angeles
where he was recently killed in a car accident.
'Few photographers have managed to polarise the art scene on such a regular basis as
Helmut Newton. It is split into those who are his fans, and admire his photographs,
and his embittered opponents, who denigrate him as a fashionable passing craze, or as
a woman-hater'
Quoted in "Photographie des 20. Jahrhunderts
His pictures, mostly set in expensive hotels, or on the streets of the chic capitals of
Europe, feature tall, long-limbed women, often nude, some androgynous. Each picture
features an action or situation, inviting viewers to imagine the before and after for
themselves. This picture (Fig. 20) features a woman standing pensively in a man's suit.
There is a feeling of sexual ambiguity, with the slicked back hair, reminiscent of Berlin in
the 1920's.
Like most of his images, this is in black and white, and the film is quite grainy, giving a
slightly harsh, unromanticised effect. The Parisian back street is full of empty
atmospheric eeriness. Perhaps the person has stepped out of the rear entrance of a hotel,
or some other establishment, to have a cigarette and take a break, from what? What is she
thinking about? And why is she dressed like a man?
The image of the chauffeur kissing his lady employer is tastefully scandalous in nature.
The two have them have descended to a lower level, both figuratively and literally, and
the photographer as voyeur catches them as if he were just passing.
The text forms a visual and linguistic pun too: The chauffeur is providing a different
"service" from the one on his job contract. "Servicios" in Spanish means "toilets" and this
shot might have been made in Spain.
The controversial nature of the type of subject matter - sophisticated women, fashionable
upper class milieu, raises questions concerning sexual identity, class, wealth,
respectability, female beauty, and notions of good taste.
This photograph (Fig. 22) by Jean Loup Sieff (born 1933) is similar to the style of
Helmut Newton, but was taken in 1960. The model, Denise Sarrault, looks every bit the
rich aristocratic lady or film star - as the photographer remarks, she looks like Greta
Garbo.
The image is full of symbols of class and power - the shiny Rolls Royce, the pearls and
expensive clothes, and the chauffeur, standing to attention. The composition is simple,
but brilliantly captures a moment of European hauteur and elegance.
In another Jean Loup Sieff shot, we return to a subject touched on in an earlier picture.
'It was the beautiful Anka, with her desperately tiny waist, who posed in this 1900
corset. In spite of her slim figure, she found it difficult to breathe'
(Quoted in Jean-Loup Sieff Monograph, page 131)
Evidently so, as we can see in the pose and the position of the hands, the left hand one
touching her hip awkwardly. The outline is uneven, and the material squeezes the waist
and digs into the skin at the legs. We are left in no doubt of the discomfort involved in
wearing it. An uncomfortable image, perhaps, but sexually arousing for some, and
symbolic of an ideal of fin-de-siecle femininity which seems to live on as a symbol of
Paris and French couture to this day.
The poignancy of the image is enhanced by the simple lighting, coming from a softbox to
the left, with a plain grey background. The frame is tightly cropped, cutting out part of
the arms, but focusing the attention directly onto the model's hips and waist. The legs are
slightly crossed to enhance the "hourglass" shape of the body.
As we near the end of this assignment, we approach closer to more contemporary times.
One photographer who has featured prominently in the last ten years or so is the
American, Matthew Rolston. In "Aly, Long Neck, Los Angeles" we can see what may be
one of the first examples of the use of digital imaging in fashion photography. It's typical
of the playful, experimental and eclectic nature of fashion photography in the last decade
or so.
A conventional head and upper torso shot of a model is transformed by extreme
elongation of the neck, a hat covering the head, with an eye in the middle, which has a
keyhole in it. Visually arresting it may be, but I can't help thinking of a one-eyed ostrich!
The transformational possibilities of image manipulation (digital or otherwise), are not
put to use here in a way I like.
Despite an unprecedented range of technical possiblities at the disposal of today's
photographers, I can't help preferring the more classic images of the earlier part of the
century to the "anything goes" style of photography one often sees in magazines today,
though certain other examples of Matthew Rolston's extremely varied work I like a lot,
but unfortunately not the next one!
This composite (Fig. 25) of Keanu Reeves demonstrates the arrival to the fashion
photography of the eighties of a more sexual and physical approach to the depiction of
the male, as seen here. Four closely cropped studies of different parts of the actors body
are rendered in a sepia brown. Symbols of street culture - denim, a knife, a leather
waistcoat, feature prominently. Just like Baron Demeyer, George Hoyningen-Huene,
Richard Avedon and David Bailey, it captures an impression of the age, and personally I
don't like it!
I'll conclude with the image by Javier Vallhonrat which appears on the cover of "The
Idealising Vision", showing a nude female model in a levitating pose, surrounded by a
floating length of material, emanating a ghostly luminescence.
I liked this image initially for its use of light, but it has a puzzling fascination which is
somehow a reflection of our times - the model could almost be a sculpture in a neonbased art gallery installation.
The glowing light, and the almost otherworldly, ectoplasmic nature of the material, may
be evidence of current paranormal obsessions as exemplified in programmes such as
"The X-Files". The visual effects may well have been achieved by use of digital imaging,
though they could also have been achieved by traditional techniques.
The italic f shape formed by the material also looks like some strange kind of otherworldly creature, which the model is riding like a horse. A suitably cryptic and futuristic
image to conclude this assignment.
Written by Aidan O'Rourke Photographer-Writer
19 January 1997