Outstanding photographs by Horst P. Horst
Horst P. Horst entered the history of the 20th century as the greatest master of fashion and portrait photography and one of the creators of erotic photography in its modern form. During his career, he became a truly legendary figure, and his work is synonymous with elegance, style and refined glamour.
Horst Paul Albert Bormann was born in 1906 in Weissenfels, Germany, in the family of a wealthy merchant. Already in his early youth, he met the dancer Evan Weidman at his aunt's house, which largely determined his interest in avant-garde art. In the photo: a picture from the famous series "Dial" (Round the Clock), 1987.
At first, however, Horst was little interested in photography. He studied carpentry and furniture craft at the Hamburg School of Applied Arts and was passionately interested in architecture. In 1930, Horst moved to Paris to study architecture under the guidance of his idol, the famous Le Corbusier.
Soon Horst met a young Vogue magazine photographer, Baron George Goiningen-Gune, becoming his model, assistant, and rumored lover. Already in 1931, he began collaborating with Vogue himself.
In 1932 , the first exhibition of a young photographer was held in Paris. The exhibition received rave reviews in The New Yorker magazine, thanks to which it became known not only in Europe, but also in America. So Horst P. Horst suddenly "woke up famous", overnight becoming a real star of fashion photography.
In the same year, he made a portrait of actress Bette Davis, which became the first in the list of pictures of celebrities, which was replenished throughout the master's life.
In 1935, Horst became the main artist of French Vogue. Later, for many, Horst's name and the concept of "Vogue style" will become synonymous. In the photo: a picture from the famous series "Dial" (Round the Clock).
Horst's photographs are a brilliant play of light and shadow. He worked almost exclusively in the studio, where he could create the necessary lighting himself, and almost never used filters.
The models in his works are often associated with antique sculptures: Horst even forced the girls to go to the Louvre so that they would be imbued with plastic and graceful grace there. According to the photographer, the main technical problem that his colleagues have to overcome is the tightness of the model; the rest can always be easily handled.
Horst paid a lot of attention to details, often very catchy and unexpected: "In my best works there is always a little mess: for example, a dirty ashtray," the photographer said.
In 1936, Horst creates one of his most famous "fashionable" sketches - "White Sleeve" and shoots Lisa Fonssagriv (pictured), who will become his favorite model for a long time.
In 1937, Horst first met with Coco Chanel. He really admired this outstanding woman, called her the "queen of everything" and was ready to photograph anything for Madame.
In September 1939, Horst took his most famous photograph, The Mainbocher Corset, which made a real splash. This work is considered to be the pinnacle of eroticism in photography.
And next year Horst takes the first nude photo with the same model — "Lara with a harp".
In the 40s, Horst moved to America and received US citizenship. His American passport already contains the name under which he entered the history of photography — Horst P. Horst.
The famous series of photo portraits of Marlene Dietrich in 1942 captured the actress in thought: this work has become a classic of glamorous portraiture. According to the actress, none of the other photographers whitened the skin like that and did not hide even the slightest figure flaws.
During the war years, the photographer faced a difficult choice between his birthplace — Germany - and his new homeland - the USA. In July 1943, Horst joined the ranks of the American army and worked as a war photographer for an army magazine, but these works were not widely distributed.
After the war, the approach to fashion photography changed somewhat — photographs stylized as a reportage took the place of studio filming. And Horst switched to portrait photographs of international bohemians.
In 1945, Horst was invited to the White House, where he photographed US President Harry Truman, who would later become his true friend. In the post-war period, Horst made portraits of every new First Lady of the country. Pictured: Jackie Kennedy, 1953.
Horst continued to shoot until 1992, when his eyesight deteriorated dramatically. The photographer passed away on November 18, 1999 at the age of 93. In the photo: one of the author's later works — "Eve with a rose", 1988.
Today Horst is one of the most expensive photographers of the twentieth century, the prices for his original author's prints, which are very rare on the market, are constantly growing and fluctuate around $ 10,000. In the photo: another picture from the famous series "Dial" (Round the Clock), 1987.