iconic & overt exposure

Last weekend’s UK rags featured iconic photographers in plenty.

The first offering is ‘You’ magazine’s reporting of Richard Avedon. Avedon, who suddenly died October 2004, was the superlative of fashion photography – the featured images of his work prove this. Model Dovima dressed in Veneziana looks timeless although the image was taken back in 1958. And also, the same model dressed in a floor length Dior dressed, is surrounded by elephants at the Cirque d’Hiver. Every image Avedon has created encompasses an imposing movement no other still has achieve.

Another photographer featured over the weekend was the less-known Bob Carlos Clarke in the Sunday Times Magazine. Here a sad story to tell, Clarke, said to be plagued by depression, ended his life by walking in front of a Waterloo train in March. What he offered to the world of photography was more than just fashion – it was rich in the deepest emotion us mumble human beings know. Sex. Clarke was aware of sex more than any other photographer to date. But he seldom abused its powerful aesthetic. Actually, Clarke found fashion photography more offensive, the feature reports: ‘Fashion’s a great threat to woman than photography, with its demands she conform to the freakish shape.’

Lets hope the profound style of both Avedon and Clarke continues to influence photographers for years to come.