Property from a Private European Collection
31
Irving Penn
Kate Moss, New York
- Estimate
- £25,000 - 35,000‡
£43,750
Lot Details
Platinum palladium print, flush-mounted.
25 April 1996
42.9 x 42.5 cm (16 7/8 x 16 3/4 in.)
Signed, initialled, titled, dated, numbered 15/16 in pencil, Condé Nast copyright credit reproduction limitation stamps on the reverse of the flush-mount.
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Catalogue Essay
Irving Penn’s nudes of supermodels in the 1990s, be it of Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, Amber Valetta, or as seen in the current lot, Millennial favourite Kate Moss, was the culmination of a lifetime’s dedication to studying the female form. In the current lot, Moss is seen with her back turned to the camera but twisting her torso enough to engage the viewers. Penn’s soft lighting accentuates her tender skin and her rounded hips, imbuing the fashion icon with a sculptural quality that far transcends the era in which the photograph was taken.
Provenance
Literature
Irving Penn
American | B. 1917 D. 2009Irving Penn was one of the 20th century’s most significant photographers, known for his arresting images, technical mastery, and quiet intensity. Though he gained widespread acclaim as a leading Vogue photographer for over sixty years, Penn remained a private figure devoted to his craft. Trained under legendary art director Alexey Brodovitch in Philadelphia, he began his career assisting at Harper’s Bazaar before joining Vogue in 1943, where editor and artist Alexander Liberman recognized Penn’s distinctive eye and encouraged him to pursue photography. Penn’s incomparably elegant fashion studies reset the standard for the magazine world, and his portraits, still lifes, and nude studies broke new ground. His 1960 book Moments Preserved redefined the photographic monograph with its dynamic layout and high-quality reproductions. In 1964, Penn began printing in platinum and palladium, reviving this 19th-century process to serve his own distinct vision. An innovator in every sense, Penn’s approach to photography was endlessly adventurous. Few photographers of his generation experimented as widely with both conventional and historic print processes, and none achieved Penn’s level of excellence in all.
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