Richard Avedon - Photographs London Tuesday, November 22, 2022 | Phillips

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  • “The snake wound up her body very slowly. Nobody was telling it what to do. I could hardly believe what I was seeing. When the snake got to her ear, he kissed her and put out his tongue. Then the shoot was over and I was crying.”
    —Polly Mellen, Fashion Editor, Vogue US, 1979-1990
    The brilliance of Richard Avedon’s portraits lies in the effortless beauty and perfection of his prints. On 14 June 1981, Avedon photographed the actress Nastassja Kinski, intertwined with a boa constrictor for American Vogue. As Fashion Editor Polly Mellen recalls, ‘I had asked [Kinski] what she liked, and she said, “Snakes.” So, with [Avedon] we imagined this encounter.’ This arresting portrait with the subject gazing directly at the camera makes visible the intensity of her sensuality.

    • Provenance

      Phillips, London, 17 May 2012, lot 56

    • Literature

      K. Fraser, On the Edge: Images from 100 Years of Vogue, New York: Random, 1992, pp. 232–233
      Richard Avedon: Evidence 1944–1994, New York: Random, 1994, p. 163 (variant)
      Richard Avedon Photographs: 1944-2004, Humlebæk: Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 2007, p. 23 (variant)

    • Artist Biography

      Richard Avedon

      American • 1923 - 2004

      From the inception of Richard Avedon's career, first at Harper's Bazaar and later at Vogue, Avedon challenged the norms for editorial photography. His fashion work gained recognition for its seemingly effortless and bursting energy, while his portraits were celebrated for their succinct eloquence. "I am always stimulated by people," Avedon has said, "almost never by ideas." 

      Indeed, as seen in his portraits — whether of famed movie stars or everyday people — the challenge for Avedon was conveying the essence of his subjects. His iconic images were usually taken on an 8 x 10 inch camera in his studio with a plain white background and strobe lighting, creating his signature minimalist style. Avedon viewed the making and production of photographs as a performance similar to literature and drama, creating portraits that are simultaneously intensely clear, yet deeply mysterious.

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PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT PRIVATE COLLECTION

65

Nastassja Kinski and the Serpent, Los Angeles, California, June 14

1981
Gelatin silver print, printed 1982.
73.7 x 109.8 cm (29 x 43 1/4 in.)
Signed and numbered 37/200 in pencil on the mount; copyright credit reproduction limitation, title, date and edition stamps on the reverse of the mount.

Full Cataloguing

Estimate
£55,000 - 75,000 

Sold for £85,680

Contact Specialist

Rachel Peart
Head of Department, London

RPeart@phillips.com

Yuka Yamaji
Head of Photographs, Europe

YYamaji@phillips.com

General Enquiries
+44 20 7318 4092

Photographs

London Auction 22 November 2022