Fashion Photography Essay – Page 2 – Horst P Horst, Cecil Beaton

Horst P Horst (born 1906-1999) was a friend of Hoyningen-Huene, and also had a fascination for classical imagery, indeed he made a detailed study of classical poses, using Greek sculpture and classical paintings, paying special attention to the positioning of hands. In his studio, he used all manner of props, such as plaster statues, mirrors, crumpled paper, exploiting them to both neoclassical and surrealist effect.

This photo (Fig. 5 above) of Helen Bennet is a good example of an image with a strongly classical mood. A single spotlight shines down on the model from the top right. The edges of the spot place shadows on the edges of the pleated cloak, which is exhibited, peacock-fashion in a wonderful display of light and shadow. The model is standing in front of a column, and we can see the shadow of the spotlight forming an arc just to the right of the model’s head. The light falls on the face to form a perfect jaw line, with just the right amount of shadow on the cheekbone (although this might have been retouched).

The pose is statuesque and painterly, reminiscent of the paintings of Alfred Moore. The background is a graduated dark to lighter grey, made apparently by a diffused light placed behind the base. Around the base, there are three pieces of Greek-style plaster sculpture, though these are partly cropped out of the picture. One criticism might be that this arrangement looks botched and amateurish, and that the photographer couldn’t make up his mind whether or not to leave out the base altogether, but decided to crop it half way! In my opinion this doesn’t matter, as the main focus of the image is the model, and her outfit. In his use of props, he was only trying to create an effect of the antique, not, as perhaps in a painting, a detailed and accurate recreation of the real thing.

Cecil Beaton (1904 – 1980) was a contemporary of Horst P Horst and Hoyningen-Huene, and was based in London. His exhibition in 1927 at the Cooling Galleries, London established him as a major photographic figure. Like Horst, he also used elaborate studio props and experimented with surrealism. In the picture of Miss Mary Taylor (Fig. 6), the image is dominated by two large and highly ornate oval-shaped hanging decorations, with flowers and patterns similar to peacock tails. The left hand one is closer to the camera, and is to the model’s right. The right hand one is hanging behind the model, and the edge intersects her face at eye level.

According to traditional rules of composition, the model is too low in the frame, but, like other pictures by Beaton, it is not intended to be a portrait, but an arrangement of forms, patterns, textures and tones, in which the model is included. The decorations, which were probably made up specially for the shot, and don’t resemble anything I’ve ever seen elsewhere, dominate the image, and almost have a life and character of their own, overshadowing the model. There is a light source coming from the right, illuminating the rear wall, and the model’s face. A less intense, more diffuse light on the left fills in dark to mid grey shadows on the model’s face and lights the front of her garment. The placement of the fingers adds an extra element of theatricality to the image.

An interesting development during the 1930s was a change in Beaton’s attitude towards the romanticism and indulgence in his earlier work. This quotation from ‘The Best of Beaton’ written in 1968, gives us the photographer’s insight into the changing mood:

“The posed, static hands with the pointed index finger and arched wrist acquired an overnight vulgarity; the celestial expression in the eyes suddenly became a joke shared by everyone except the sitter. The earlier pictures appeared over retouched and altogether too artificial with ladies with forced rosebud simpers and impossibly golden curls.”

In the meantime, Beaton had developed a more realistic style:

“The results of my experiments in this genre of photography were considered to prove that I had at last grown up, and had acquired a new sense of reality. ‘Reality’ was taken up by editors as the ‘new thing’.”

A result of this change of direction was a contributory factor in the termination of his contract with Vogue in 1938. In the ensuing years he took many war photographs, and a famous example of the then, still prevalent idea of ‘reality’ was this study (Fig. 7 above) of a model standing in a Paris courtyard. The look of the model and the clothes could almost be contemporary. She couldn’t be further removed from the high fashion models of earlier years. The photograph is almost of snapshot character, with very little attention wasted on artful arrangement of forms. The face appears exactly central in the frame, which doesn’t conform to traditional conventions. There is however, subtle evidence of the photographer’s eye – the natural light coming from above is at just the right angle to sculpt the model’s face.

Personally, I feel that the photographer wasn’t being honest with himself. A deliberate urge to throw out former principles and techniques, and go to another extreme, is perhaps a way of trying to prove his versatility or an attempt not to be typecast. Maybe the picture is a product of its time – after six years of gruelling war, people were weary, more concerned with making the best of meagre rations, whether food or cloth, than indulging in opulent fantasies.

By 1948, however, the elegance was back, revived by Christian Dior’s ‘New Look’ collection of 1947. This image (Fig. 8), epitomises the return to grand style, but in a plainer, more direct way than in earlier decades. Eight models are posed in a neoclassical salon, talking and drinking cups of tea from dainty teacups.

There are three light sources, two shining in from the sides, and one very bright one placed behind the two models to the centre left. An additional, low key diffused light shines in from the left of the camera, illuminating very nicely the patterns of silken drapery. The lighting ensures a full range of tones from very bright to near black. Reproductions of this image in two different books turn out, on closer inspection to be not quite the same. The poses are almost identical, except for a couple of small differences.

This must indicate that considerable effort must have gone into placing the models in definite and highly stylised poses, artificial some would say. As we will see, there was a reaction against this which would leave behind the famous prewar photographers, and usher in a new, post war era of spontaneity.

In the meantime, Beaton had developed a more realistic style:

“The results of my experiments in this genre of photography were considered to prove that I had at last grown up, and had acquired a new sense of reality. ‘Reality’ was taken up by editors as the ‘new thing’ ”.

A result of this change of direction was a contributory factor in the termination of his contract with Vogue in 1938. In the ensuing years he took many war photographs, and a famous example of the then, still prevalent idea of ‘reality’ was this study (Fig. 7) of a model standing in a Paris courtyard. The look of the model and the clothes could almost be contemporary. She couldn’t be further removed from the high fashion models of earlier years. The photograph is almost of snapshot character, with very little attention wasted on artful arrangement of forms. The face appears exactly central in the frame, which doesn’t conform to traditional conventions. There are however, subtle evidences of the photographer’s eye – the natural light coming from above is at just the right angle to scupt the model’s face.

Personally, I feel that the photographer wasn’t being honest with himself. A deliberate urge to throw out former principles and techniques, and go to another extreme, is perhaps a way of trying to prove his versatility or an attempt not to be typecast. Maybe the picture is a product of its time – after six years of gruelling war, people were weary, more concerned with making the best of meagre rations, whether food or cloth, than indulging in opulent fantasies.

By 1948, however, the elegance was back, revived by Christian Dior’s ‘New Look’ collection of 1947. This image (Fig. 8), epitomises the return to grand style, but in a plainer, more direct way than in earlier decades. Eight models are posed in a neo-classical salon, talking and drinking cups of tea from dainty teacups.

There are three sources, two shining in from the sides, and one very bright one placed behind the two models to the centre left. An additional, low key diffused light shines in from the left of the camera, illuminating very nicely the patterns of silken drapery. The lighting ensures a full range of tones from very bright to near black. Reproductions of this image in two different books turn out, on closer inspection to be slightly different. The poses are almost exactly the same, except for a couple of small differences.

This must indicate that considerable effort must have gone into placing the models in definite and highly stylised poses, artificial some would say. As we will see, there was a reaction against this which would leave behind the famous pre-war photographers, and usher in a new, post war era of spontaneity.

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