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Lot Essay
My women are always victorious.
– Helmut Newton
Helmut Newton left a permanent mark on fashion photography, creating a new, distinct style that has undeniably influenced the medium as we know it today. When he began his career in the 1950s, fashion photography was defined by stylistic conservatism and conventionality. Newton radically upended these norms, combining the elegant and glamorous visual language of high fashion with subversive sexuality to produce images full of emotion and desire that transcended tradition. He replaced the studio with glamorous, real backdrops, and the docile images of models with women who exuded sexuality and confidence. His portraits of women challenged the voyeuristic ethos of previous fashion or nude photography; his subjects often stare boldly into the lens with a confidence belying the vulnerability of their nude form.
As Newton famously stated, 'A woman who is a shrinking wallflower, who is not intelligent and strong and self-assertive, is uninteresting.' Newton brought women’s sexuality and power to the forefront of his images, and in doing so not only glamorized this aspect of society, but pushed the boundaries of fashion photography, revolutionizing the genre.
All of the prints offered here were acquired from photography gallery Goro International Press in Tokyo in 1989. The following year, Goro International Press curated an exhibition of Newton prints at the Shinjuku Okakyu Art Museum. They are printed on 20x24 inch double weight gelatin silver multi-contrast paper, consistent with the paper and output by Newton of this period.
– Helmut Newton
Helmut Newton left a permanent mark on fashion photography, creating a new, distinct style that has undeniably influenced the medium as we know it today. When he began his career in the 1950s, fashion photography was defined by stylistic conservatism and conventionality. Newton radically upended these norms, combining the elegant and glamorous visual language of high fashion with subversive sexuality to produce images full of emotion and desire that transcended tradition. He replaced the studio with glamorous, real backdrops, and the docile images of models with women who exuded sexuality and confidence. His portraits of women challenged the voyeuristic ethos of previous fashion or nude photography; his subjects often stare boldly into the lens with a confidence belying the vulnerability of their nude form.
As Newton famously stated, 'A woman who is a shrinking wallflower, who is not intelligent and strong and self-assertive, is uninteresting.' Newton brought women’s sexuality and power to the forefront of his images, and in doing so not only glamorized this aspect of society, but pushed the boundaries of fashion photography, revolutionizing the genre.
All of the prints offered here were acquired from photography gallery Goro International Press in Tokyo in 1989. The following year, Goro International Press curated an exhibition of Newton prints at the Shinjuku Okakyu Art Museum. They are printed on 20x24 inch double weight gelatin silver multi-contrast paper, consistent with the paper and output by Newton of this period.