11 replies to this topic

[miliosr]

This doesn't exactly qualify as writing but . . .

Bruce Weber photographed Chase Finlay (of New York City Ballet) and Laura Love (of Los Angeles Ballet) for a 16 page photo feature in the April issue of Paris Vogue [Gisele cover].  The photos are only OK . . . it's not Weber's best work.

[Batsuchan]

For anyone who is interested, I found photos from the magazine on someone's blog here:
http://dustyburrito....f-new-york.html

[puppytreats]

miliosr, on 24 May 2011 - 04:14 PM, said:

This doesn't exactly qualify as writing but . . .

Bruce Weber photographed Chase Finlay (of New York City Ballet) and Laura Love (of Los Angeles Ballet) for a 16 page photo feature in the April issue of Paris Vogue [Gisele cover].  The photos are only OK . . . it's not Weber's best work.

Yes, and BW photographed Roberto Bolle for German Vogue.  What do you consider his best work? His book of RB? LOL :>

[miliosr]

As a matter of fact . . . yes.

I own the Bolle book and the photos in that are light years better than the ones of Finlay and Love in Paris Vogue.  (Some of this may be the fault of the sittings editor for the Vogue shoot.  The styling is odd -- Chase Finlay wearing glittery capes???)

[puppytreats]

miliosr, on 25 May 2011 - 08:26 AM, said:

As a matter of fact . . . yes.

I own the Bolle book and the photos in that are light years better than the ones of Finlay and Love in Paris Vogue.  (Some of this may be the fault of the sittings editor for the Vogue shoot.  The styling is odd -- Chase Finlay wearing glittery capes???)

Can one make bad art out of perfection? I think the subject matter of the book is, visually, infinitely more interesting and capable of effective styling and studies in different settings.  To me, CF has a single look, and certainly is not appropriate for the story Vogue is trying to portray.

[kfw]

puppytreats, on 25 May 2011 - 08:48 AM, said:

Can one make bad art out of perfection?

I think Weber has certainly demonstrated, as so much fashion photography does, how to make shallow art: art that trivializes instead of enobles like (to pick the most obvious recent example at NYCB) Apollo.

[Quiggin]

It looks as if Bruce Weber was not interested at all in the Finlay/Love shoot- was rushed or the Art Director was doing the set-ups and there were far too many costumes and props and prior ideas. He's a good photographer -  influenced nicely by Horst and Herbert List. Great to see he's still shooting traditional b&w film (Is that Tri X printed on the edges of proof sheet?).

[puppytreats]

Quiggin, on 25 May 2011 - 12:15 PM, said:

It looks as if Bruce Weber was not interested at all in the Finlay/Love shoot- was rushed or the Art Director was doing the set-ups and there were far too many costumes and props and prior ideas. He's a good photographer -  influenced nicely by Horst and Herbert List. Great to see he's still shooting traditional b&w film (Is that Tri X printed on the edges of proof sheet?).

Didn't BW shoot Chase before, or am I remembering someone else?

I think he is a good photographer and generally does not trivialize, even if, at times, he does not ennoble (sorry, I did not copy the reference above).  He can create noble images.  Many of his images are very moving.  I think a photo that is beautiful or interesting, or that showcases a beautiful or interesting subject, is not trivial merely because it is not significant.  And sometimes things are appropriately trivial and light-hearted.

Sometimes, he seems disorganized, particularly in his collections.  For example, why were the photos of the gymnast included at the beginning of the book about RB?  Maybe he was in the middle of a panning a sequence of athletes in tights, or running through a series of linked thoughts, like Robert Altman (see other thread of today).  I don't know if he is making a statement by his lack of editing (which could be the interpretation) or if the editor made an error.  However, I found it took away from the whole.

[Quiggin]

puppytreats:

Quote

or running through a series of linked thoughts

Bruce Weber's photobooks are a little like commonplace books, and they do run in series of thoughts. I don't know the Robert Bolle book (though I like one picture of him which runs against the grain and shows that his teeth aren't perfect). BW's earlier books such as "O Rio" are runs of black and white images, some monochrome color and a few low-keyed color - all on matt paper. He did a good series on Cy Twombly's studio that ran in a recent book.

Weber's weakness I think is for an over-heroic, Leni Reifensthal-like take on the young male of the species. And Balanchine's Apollo is supposed to be a bit of a scamp, perhaps a combination of Apollo & playful Mercury who tricked Apollo, as much a Villella as a Peter Martins.

[miliosr]

puppytreats, on 25 May 2011 - 08:48 AM, said:

I think the subject matter of the book is, visually, infinitely more interesting and capable of effective styling and studies in different settings.  To me, CF has a single look, and certainly is not appropriate for the story Vogue is trying to portray.

I'm in total agreement w/ you on this.  Whatever story Paris Vogue was trying to tell (and I'm still baffled as to what it was supposed to be), it didn't play to Chase Finlay's strengths.  He would be perfect for a J.Crew fashion shoot -- clean-cut and all-American.  The sitting editor and the stylists made him look silly in some of the costumes.  I'm surprised Weber didn't veto it.  (In fairness, he may have vetoed even worse ideas.)

[miliosr]

puppytreats, on 25 May 2011 - 12:50 PM, said:

Didn't BW shoot Chase before, or am I remembering someone else?

He photographed Finlay and Robert Fairchild for his All-American series, excerpts of which appeared in Vanity Fair.

[puppytreats]

"I don't know the Robert Bolle book (though I like one picture of him which runs against the grain and shows that his teeth aren't perfect)"
-Yes, Quiggin, it is one of his greatest charms.