Warhol Polaroids
Posted on 01/06/10.
In 1970, Andy Warhol purchased a Polaroid Big Shot camera, a clunky piece of machinery that had a fixed focal length of just three feet. With his characteristic voracity, he turned his new toy on everyone, from the famous – Muhammad Ali, Georgia O’Keeffe, Blondie, and seen here Grace Jones and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – to the completely anonymous. Most of Warhol’s Polaroids were used as studies for eventual silk-screen portraits. The artist would cover his subjects’ faces in white kabuki-like makeup to conceal wrinkles and blemishes. He intended his Polaroids to serve as time-capsule glimpses of a specific era—namely, the ‘70s and early ‘80s when he was at the height of his fame.
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Dennis Hopper †
Posted on 29/05/10.
We are sad to hear that Dennis Hopper has died at the age of 74 following a battle with prostate cancer. Known for such cult classics as Easy Rider, Apocalypse Now, and–our favourite–Blue Velvet, Hopper embodied the image of the Hollywood icon. He was also a prolific photographer, painter, and sculptor. His photography is known for portraits from the 1960s. His painting style ranged from abstract impressionism to photorealism and often included references to his cinematic work and to other artists. He began working as a painter and a poet as well as a collector of art in the 1960s, particularly Pop Art. One of the first art works Hopper owned was an early print of Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans bought for $75.
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Frank Paulin
Posted on 25/05/10.
On a recent visit to Lowe Art Museum we discovered these great prints by American artist and photographer Frank Paulin. In the mid-forties he developed his documentary style by photographing wartime devastation of German cities. On his return to the US he continued working in Chicago and NYC. Remember there are still a few days left of Miami Museum Month so get down to the Lowe and see for yourselves.
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Corin Hewitt
Posted on 20/05/10.
We were lucky enough to go to a talk last night by artist Corin Hewitt who has been working in Dorsch Gallery over a period of two weeks to make a series of still life photographs of flower arrangements using microwave ovens to dry flowers. The arrangements combine seasonal flowers from Vermont and Florida, as well as other objects. The performance is sadly over but the prints will be up in the gallery for a while and are well worth a visit. This print was our particular favourite; incredible lighting, colour, and composition.
Link: http://www.dorschgallery.com/
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Polaroid SX-70 film
Posted on 17/05/10.
Following on from our portraits of Edwin Land – founder of Polaroid – this is an amazing film by Charles and Ray Eames about the SX-70 Land camera. A folding SLR and the first to use Polaroid’s automatic format integral film, which didn’t need to be separated from its back after being removed from the camera. Incredible.
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Bill Cosby Sports
Posted on 15/05/10.
We just picked up this classic stand up LP from 1970. We can’t think of a better way to show the animation and energy of Cosby, you just need the sleeve and it is as if you were watching him live. The photography is by Howard L. Bingham, famous for his shots of Muhammed Ali and work for magazines such as Life, and Time. This is actually pretty similar to a Rolling Stones Gimme Shelter poster we have, also from 1970…
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Edwin H. Land portraits
Posted on 14/05/10.
While doing some research we just came across these great portraits of Edwin Land founder of Polaroid. Among other things, Land invented inexpensive filters for polarizing light, a practical system of in-camera instant photography, and his retinex theory of color vision.
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