«Peter Lindbergh: Untold Stories» extends in A Coruña
13/02/2022.
[A Coruña] Spain
metalocus, CARLOS GONZÁLEZ
metalocus, CARLOS GONZÁLEZ
"Peter Lindbergh: Untold Stories" is the title of the iconic retrospective that Peter Lindbergh himself curated shortly before his untimely death in 2019 and which can be visited in A Coruña until March 31, one month after the initial end date planned. The exhibition has already received more than 50,000 visitors, since it was inaugurated on December 4.
Lindbergh spent two years selecting 161 images stretching over his four-decade spanning career in which he immortalised some of the world’s most celebrated women in fashion, cinema and beyond, including Nicole Kidman and Charlotte Rampling to Uma Thurman and many of the models who defined the 1990s – including Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista and Kate Moss. He left an indelible mark on the worlds of both fashion and photography.
With more than 150 photographs from the early 1980s to 2019, the exhibition offers new and unexpected insights into the work of this legendary photographer.
Lindbergh spent two years selecting 161 images stretching over his four-decade spanning career in which he immortalised some of the world’s most celebrated women in fashion, cinema and beyond, including Nicole Kidman and Charlotte Rampling to Uma Thurman and many of the models who defined the 1990s – including Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista and Kate Moss. He left an indelible mark on the worlds of both fashion and photography.
With more than 150 photographs from the early 1980s to 2019, the exhibition offers new and unexpected insights into the work of this legendary photographer.
Linda Evangelista, Michaela Bercu & Kirsten Owen, Pont-à-Mousson, 1988 by Peter Lindbergh. Courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Hollywood, 1994, by Peter Lindbergh. Courtesy of Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Naomi Campbell, Ibiza, 2000 by Peter Lindbergh (courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris).
Milla’s shoes, Mojave Desert, 1990 by Peter Lindbergh. Courtesy of Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Querelle Jansen, Paris, 2012 by Peter Lindbergh. Courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Steffy Argelich, Los Angeles, 2014 by Peter Lindbergh Courtesy of Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Karen Elson, Los Angeles, 1997 (2) by Peter Lindbergh. Courtesy of Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Karen Elson, Los Angeles, 1997 by Peter Lindbergh. Courtesy of Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh by Stefan Rappo. Courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Peter Lindbergh by Stefan Rappo. Courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris.
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
Peter Lindbergh, Untold Stories. Exhibition in A Coruña, Spain. Photograph by Mathieu Ridelle
The exhibition, composed by 152 photographs carefully selected by Lindbergh himself, is conceived in three chapters. Two large-scale installations bookend the presentation and shed a fresh and surprising light on Lindbergh’s work.
Manifest, the monumental opening installation, which features several large- scale bluebacks, was developed especially for the exhibition and provides an immersive and thought-provoking introduction to Lindbergh’s understanding of fashion photography. It is presented in a completely black room and includes the 24 images that used to appear every time that the artist had to do a selection of works – those who condensed, in his view, the role of fashion photography withing the global visual culture.
Luciana Curtis, New York, 1998. Photograph by Peter Lindbergh (courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris).
In the central section of the exhibition, presented in a white room contrasting with the first installation, Lindbergh arranged the works he personally considered key to his oeuvre. He experimented with his own material and revealed new stories while staying true to his language. Both emblematic and never before exhibited works are shown in pairs or groups that give rise to unexpected and striking interpretations.
Here can be found some of his most iconic series, such as Naomi Campbell portrayed in Ibiza in 2000 or Milla Jovovich posing with cabaret inspiration. In this room, commissions, personal and editorial photographs are showcased as a whole body of work, without any hierarchies – just as Peter Lindbergh used to conceive it. His recurrent formal resources and obsessions arise here with clarity: body details, masks, scenic arts and alternative definitions of beauty are some of them.
The exhibition closes with the film installation Testament (2013), which uncovers a hitherto unknown side of the practice and character of the German photographer. Shot through a one-way mirror, the film shows the silent exchange between Lindbergh’s camera and Elmer Carroll. The Florida death row inmate spent 30 minutes looking intently at his reflection – thoughtful, introspective and without significant facial animation. Shown for the first time, the Testament installation adds an unexpected layer to the exhibition and opens a discussion about subjects that were of central importance to Peter Lindbergh: introspection, empathy and freedom.
Manifest, the monumental opening installation, which features several large- scale bluebacks, was developed especially for the exhibition and provides an immersive and thought-provoking introduction to Lindbergh’s understanding of fashion photography. It is presented in a completely black room and includes the 24 images that used to appear every time that the artist had to do a selection of works – those who condensed, in his view, the role of fashion photography withing the global visual culture.
Luciana Curtis, New York, 1998. Photograph by Peter Lindbergh (courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris).
In the central section of the exhibition, presented in a white room contrasting with the first installation, Lindbergh arranged the works he personally considered key to his oeuvre. He experimented with his own material and revealed new stories while staying true to his language. Both emblematic and never before exhibited works are shown in pairs or groups that give rise to unexpected and striking interpretations.
Here can be found some of his most iconic series, such as Naomi Campbell portrayed in Ibiza in 2000 or Milla Jovovich posing with cabaret inspiration. In this room, commissions, personal and editorial photographs are showcased as a whole body of work, without any hierarchies – just as Peter Lindbergh used to conceive it. His recurrent formal resources and obsessions arise here with clarity: body details, masks, scenic arts and alternative definitions of beauty are some of them.
The exhibition closes with the film installation Testament (2013), which uncovers a hitherto unknown side of the practice and character of the German photographer. Shot through a one-way mirror, the film shows the silent exchange between Lindbergh’s camera and Elmer Carroll. The Florida death row inmate spent 30 minutes looking intently at his reflection – thoughtful, introspective and without significant facial animation. Shown for the first time, the Testament installation adds an unexpected layer to the exhibition and opens a discussion about subjects that were of central importance to Peter Lindbergh: introspection, empathy and freedom.
More information
Curator
Peter Lindbergh.
Venue / Adress
Dock of the Batería s/n, A Coruña, Galicia, Spain.
Dates
December 4, 2021 – February 28, 2022. Extended until March 31, 2022.
From Monday to Sunday: From 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (last access at 7:00 p.m.). Thursday: From 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (last access at 9:00 p.m.). Saturdays: From 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (last access at 7:00 p.m.).
From Monday to Sunday: From 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (last access at 7:00 p.m.). Thursday: From 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (last access at 9:00 p.m.). Saturdays: From 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (last access at 7:00 p.m.).
Peter Lindbergh
Peter Lindbergh. Born in Lissa (in German occupied Poland) in 1944, he spent his childhood in Duisburg (North Rhine-Westphalia). He worked as a window dresser for a local department store and enrolled in the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts in the early 1960’s. He remembered these years: “I preferred actively seek out the inspirations of Van Gogh, my idol, rather than painting the mandatory portraits and landscapes taught in art schools...”
Inspired by the work of Van Gogh, he moved to Arles for almost a year, and then embarked on a journey hitchhiking through Spain and North Africa. He later studied free painting at the College of Art in Krefeld. Influenced by Joseph Kosuth and the Conceptual movement, he was invited before graduating to present his work at the renowned avant-garde Galerie Denise Ren - Hans Mayer in 1969.
After moving to Düsseldorf in 1971, he turned his attention to photography and worked for two years assisting German photographer Hans Lux, before opening his own studio in 1973. Becoming well known in his native country, he joined the Stern magazine family along with photography legends Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin and Hans Feurer, and moved to Paris in 1978 to further his career.
Considered a pioneer in photography, he introduced a form of new realism by redefining the standards of beauty with timeless images. His humanist approach and idealization of women set him apart from the other photographers as he prioritized the soul and the personality. He changed drastically the standards of the fashion photography in times of excessive retouching, as he considered that there is something else that makes a person interesting, beyond their age. He explained: “This should be the responsibility of photographers today to free women, and finally everyone, from the terror of youth and perfection.”
Lindbergh was the first photographer to include a narrative in his fashion series, and his storytelling introduced a new vision of art and fashion photography. Over the years, he created images that marked the history of fashion photography, characterized by a minimalist approach to post-modernist photography. In 1988, Lindbergh garnered international acclaim by showing a new generation of models all dressed in white shirts that he had recently discovered and whose careers he launched.
A year later he photographed Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington and Tatjana Patitz, young models then, together for the first time, for the legendary January 1990 Vogue UK cover.
Pop singer George Michael, the initiator of the “Supermodels” movement, later followed by Gianni Versace, was inspired by Lindbergh’s Vogue photographs to create the iconic video for his song “Freedom 90”, marking the beginning of the era of the celebrity models, which redefined the image of the modern woman.
Famous for his narrative fashion series, Lindbergh’s work is best-known for his simple and revealing portraits, his still lifes and his strong influences from early German Cinema and industrial surroundings of his childhood, dance and cabarets, but also landscapes and outer space. Lindbergh worked with the most prestigious fashion brands and magazines since the late 1970’s, including international editions of Vogue, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar US, Wall Street Journal Magazine, The Face, Visionaire, Interview and W.
His work is part of many permanent collections of art museums around the world and has also been shown in prestigious museums and galleries. Among these are the Victoria & Albert Museum (London), Centre Pompidou (Paris) and the exhibition A Different Vision on Fashion Photography at Rem Koolhaas’ Kunsthal in Rotterdam (2016), as well as solo exhibitions at Hamburger Bahnhof (Berlin), Bunkamura Museum of Art (Tokyo) and the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts (Moscow).
Lindbergh directed a number of critically acclaimed films and documentaries; Models, The Film (1991); Inner Voices (1999), which won the Best Documentary prize at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2000; Pina Bausch, Der Fensterputzer (2001) and Everywhere at Once (2007), which was narrated by Jeanne Moreau and presented at the Cannes and Tribeca Film Festivals. Lindbergh passed away on 3 September 2019. He is survived by his wife, Petra Sedlaczek and their four children.
Inspired by the work of Van Gogh, he moved to Arles for almost a year, and then embarked on a journey hitchhiking through Spain and North Africa. He later studied free painting at the College of Art in Krefeld. Influenced by Joseph Kosuth and the Conceptual movement, he was invited before graduating to present his work at the renowned avant-garde Galerie Denise Ren - Hans Mayer in 1969.
After moving to Düsseldorf in 1971, he turned his attention to photography and worked for two years assisting German photographer Hans Lux, before opening his own studio in 1973. Becoming well known in his native country, he joined the Stern magazine family along with photography legends Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin and Hans Feurer, and moved to Paris in 1978 to further his career.
Considered a pioneer in photography, he introduced a form of new realism by redefining the standards of beauty with timeless images. His humanist approach and idealization of women set him apart from the other photographers as he prioritized the soul and the personality. He changed drastically the standards of the fashion photography in times of excessive retouching, as he considered that there is something else that makes a person interesting, beyond their age. He explained: “This should be the responsibility of photographers today to free women, and finally everyone, from the terror of youth and perfection.”
Lindbergh was the first photographer to include a narrative in his fashion series, and his storytelling introduced a new vision of art and fashion photography. Over the years, he created images that marked the history of fashion photography, characterized by a minimalist approach to post-modernist photography. In 1988, Lindbergh garnered international acclaim by showing a new generation of models all dressed in white shirts that he had recently discovered and whose careers he launched.
A year later he photographed Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington and Tatjana Patitz, young models then, together for the first time, for the legendary January 1990 Vogue UK cover.
Pop singer George Michael, the initiator of the “Supermodels” movement, later followed by Gianni Versace, was inspired by Lindbergh’s Vogue photographs to create the iconic video for his song “Freedom 90”, marking the beginning of the era of the celebrity models, which redefined the image of the modern woman.
Famous for his narrative fashion series, Lindbergh’s work is best-known for his simple and revealing portraits, his still lifes and his strong influences from early German Cinema and industrial surroundings of his childhood, dance and cabarets, but also landscapes and outer space. Lindbergh worked with the most prestigious fashion brands and magazines since the late 1970’s, including international editions of Vogue, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar US, Wall Street Journal Magazine, The Face, Visionaire, Interview and W.
His work is part of many permanent collections of art museums around the world and has also been shown in prestigious museums and galleries. Among these are the Victoria & Albert Museum (London), Centre Pompidou (Paris) and the exhibition A Different Vision on Fashion Photography at Rem Koolhaas’ Kunsthal in Rotterdam (2016), as well as solo exhibitions at Hamburger Bahnhof (Berlin), Bunkamura Museum of Art (Tokyo) and the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts (Moscow).
Lindbergh directed a number of critically acclaimed films and documentaries; Models, The Film (1991); Inner Voices (1999), which won the Best Documentary prize at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2000; Pina Bausch, Der Fensterputzer (2001) and Everywhere at Once (2007), which was narrated by Jeanne Moreau and presented at the Cannes and Tribeca Film Festivals. Lindbergh passed away on 3 September 2019. He is survived by his wife, Petra Sedlaczek and their four children.
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