SELF-REFLECTION IN FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY

18 July — 14 September 2008

The international photographers in this exhibition undress the theatre of fashion and question the creation of perfect beauty. Fashion in the Mirror is an overview of their self-examination and a rare look behind-the-scenes of fashion photography from the 1950s to the present day.

Finding both comedy and poetry in the set-up of the studio, the exhibiting photographers turn their cameras on the processes and paraphernalia of the fashion shoot. Photographers become mirrored in their own work and, as viewpoints are inverted and gazes misdirected, cameras stare back out at us expectantly.

Revealing the fashion industry’s secrets and undermining its glamorous illusions, the photographers in this exhibition create work that exposes this world from within.

The exhibition will feature work by leading international photographers;
Mario Testino (Peru, b. 1954); Richard Avedon (US, 1923 – 2004); Nick Knight (UK, b.1958); Juergen Teller (Germany, b. 1964); Steven Klein (US, b. 1962); Bert Stern (US, b. 1929; Steven Meisel (US, b. 1954); Helmut Newton (Germany, 1920 – 2004); Irving Penn (US, b. 1917); Norman Parkinson (UK, 1913 – 1990), Terence Donovan (UK, 1936 – 1996), Melvin Sokolsky (US, b.1933), Tim Walker (UK, b.1970), Bob Richardson (US, 1928 – 2005), Grégoire Alexandre (France, b.1972), William Klein (US, b.1928), Harri Peccinotti (UK, b.1938), Jonathan de Villiers (UK, b.1968), and Saul Leiter (US, b.1923); John Rawlings ( US, 1912 – 1970); and Inez van Lamsweerde (The Netherlands, b. 1963) & Vinoodh Matadin (The Netherlands, b. 1961).

Fashion in the Mirror is co-curated by Raphaëlle Stopin and Michel Mallard, organisers of the renowned annual International Fashion and Photography Festival in Hyères.