Avedon's fascination with faces is evident in his 1964 collection, Nothing Personal, a collaboration with old friend James Baldwin which presented "unflattering photos of Gownsonlinesales affluent Americans." Both his and his subject's sensibilities are further evident in In The American West, (1985) where again, in front of his white background, Avedon presents the common man, people seeking to fulfill the american dream. Framed off center with his 8x10 Deardorf and cropped "arbitrarily", Avedon attempted to present
images sans camera. The result, as usual with Avedon, is quite powerful, showing truth and sensitivity unveiled.
One of the most remarkable aspects of Avedon's images is that once you've seen them, you don't forget them. From portraits of Brigitte Bardot to Andy Warhol, from the administration behind the Vietnam War to the Chicago Seven who protested it, from Truman Capote to Buster Keaton to Marilyn Cheapest Mermaid Wedding Dresses Monroe, Richard Avedon has successfully attempted to unmask the human personae. On an assignment for The New Yorker covering the presidential nominating conventions , Avedon suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and passed away on Oct. 1, 2004. Fortunately for us, his enormous body of work remains behind, including self-portraits by who else but the best, Richard Avedon.
A portrait is not a likeness. The moment an emotion or fact is transformed into a photograph it is no longer a fact but an opinion. There is no such thing as inaccuracy in a photograph. All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth.
Publications by 2002 Richard Avedon Portraits, Harry N. Adams, Inc.2001 Richard Avedon: Made in France1999 Avedon Ball Gown Wedding Dresses UK The Sixties, Random House, Inc.1994 Evidence:1944-1994, Random House, Inc.1993 An Autobiography, Random House, Inc.1985 In The American West 1979-1984, Harry N. Dutton.1964 Nothing Personal, Atheneum.1959 Observations, Simon and Schuster, Inc.
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