2024-04-16
The Irving Penn Centennial exhibition opened at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on 24 April. It is a retrospective exhibition of the American photographer's work on the centenary of his birth. The curator of the exhibition emphasizes that Irving Penn is first and foremost an eternal master of photography, who remained creative throughout his many decades of artistic work.
Irving Penn (1917-2009) is one of the more famous and talented photographers of the 20th century. Most recognizable in his work are his celebrity portraits and photographs for Vogue magazine, but his oeuvre also includes still-lives, flower studies and photographs of the indigenous people of Peru. This exhibition showcases each of the types of photography taken by Penn. A series of nudes is one of his personal projects also presented during the exhibition, showcasing the photographer's artistic sensibility. Those who had the opportunity to work with him remember him as a person who worked in concentration and silence in his studio. He was not interested in fame, preferring to let his photographs speak for themselves.
The celebrity portraits in his work are minimalist in their expression. In the black-and-white photographs, the subjects are visible, with no props or set arrangement to distract from what he was most interested in - the person. The ascetic images we can see in the exhibition show the importance he placed on subtle details and composition. Similar conclusions can be drawn by looking at the still lives. This exhibition shows what a good photographer he was, who was able to achieve a multitude of artistic expressions through the use of a few means.
The exhibition is on view until 30 June at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.