Newton's World
He has been called a misogynist,
a monster and a genius. He calls himself "a pretty weird guy."
For decades, Helmut Newton has been changing fashion and photography
with his shocking images of women. Now 80, he continues to
shock, but with photos of leaders and landscapes
By
LAUREN GOLDSTEIN London
The crowd
at photographer helmut newton's show isn't what one usually
finds at an exhibition of fashion photography. Sure, there
are some beautiful people-fashion editors, models and photographers-but
there are also a suspiciously large number of men in trenchcoats.
The site of the show, London's Barbican Centre, is near the
financial district, but it's hard to imagine that these middle-aged,
white-collar workers just stumbled upon the third-floor exhibition,
called "Work," during a lunchtime stroll. No, the truth is
that the work for which Newton is best-known-photographs of
tall, domineering and scantily clad women-draws the admiration
not only of the chic fashion set, but also of perverts.
Newton doesn't
mind. In the 1980s the Berlin-born Australian citizen (he
now lives in Monte Carlo) tried his hand at pornography, shooting
for the likes of Playboy. And he has proclaimed that he intends
to become less politically correct as he gets older. He turned
80 last year and is selling better than ever. Last month "Sex
and Landscapes," the first commercial sale of Newton's work
in two years, opened at the De Pury et Luxembourg Art gallery
in Zurich. Even before the opening, some 40 prints sold for
$30,000 each. Later this year the Mary Boone Gallery in New
York will also have a Newton sale, making it the art dealer's
first photography offering. At De Pury is some of the usual
titillating stuff, but also 54 landscapes never displayed
before. "They're actually quite romantic," Newton says. "It
is the first time I do something romantic."
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