“I have always avoided photographing in the studio. A woman does not spend her life sitting or standing in front of a seamless white paper background.”
—Helmut Newton
Provenance
Directly from the artist Galerie Rudolf Kicken, Cologne G.I.P. (Goro International Press), Tokyo Gert Elfering, Berlin
Catalogue Essay
The works in this collection, spanning from 1966 to 2000, showcase the range of Newton's artistic vision, encapsulating the essence of his provocative and playful visual style. Whether capturing fashion, portraits, nudes, or landscapes, Newton masterfully created an implied narrative through his keen sense of context. This selection highlights his unique blend of portraiture, social commentary, and eroticism, all infused with a bold, challenging tone that has cemented his legacy as one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century.
Helmut Newton's distinct style of eroticism and highly produced images was deemed rebellious and revolutionary in its time, as he turned the expected notion of beauty, depicted by passive and submissive women, on its head. Depicting his models as strong and powerful women, Newton reversed gender stereotypes and examined society's understanding of female desire.
Newton created a working space for his models that was part decadent and part unorthodox — a safe microcosm in which fantasies became reality. And perhaps most famously of all, Newton engendered an environment in which his female models claimed the space around them with unapologetic poise and commanding sensuality. His almost cinematic compositions provided a hyper-real backdrop for the provocative images of sculptural, larger-than-life women, and enhanced the themes of voyeurism and fetishism that run throughout his work.
1991 Gelatin silver print. 49 x 47.4 cm (19 1/4 x 18 5/8 in.) Signed, titled, dated by the artist and numbered 1/10 in another hand in pencil on the verso.
