‘Vanity’ @ Kunsthalle Wien

Posted by useabrand.com Support on November 15, 2011

21.Oct 2011 – 12.Feb. 2012

(c) F.C. Gundlach

‚NO taking pictures, please!‘  These are not really the first words I’ve expected, when I entered Kunsthalle Wien for visiting the long time awaited ‚Vanity‘ exhibition. But leaving the doors couple of hours (!) later totally rebalanced my first bad mood. Thanks F.C. Gundlach for providing your extending collection of high quality fashion photography – consisting of impressive works from early 40’s G. Hoyningen-Huene over Helmut Newton to legendary Peter Lindbergh from nowadays.                                                                              

But the exhibition’s start was, of course, dedicated to the mastermind’s himself photographs. Started off with Pop-Art-like works for Brigitte, the exhibition cleverly guides through the history of significant fashion photography. Strolling through the decent concrete halls, which pure decency let clearly focus on the work only, you come across with all decade’s most beautiful pictures, basically held in toned-down black and white tones, until you finally recognize a mash of color backwards of the venue – at least since then you know you’ve arrived in the here and now – the era of David LaChapelle, German Armin Morbach and Schuller among others.  

That fashion photography does not always have to seem acted and theatrical, the wall on the upper floor clearly proved. There is a whole wall, collaged with streetstyle pics, dedicated to mister THE SATORIALIST Scott Schuman. Nearly reached the end of every fashion-adorer’s dream, another wall full of significant magazine cover’s, collected through the decades, guide you to some couches, inviting you to browsing some fashion mag’s as the visit’s closure – for further couple of hours!

(c) David LaChapelle, My House, Alek Wek, New York 1997 

xx 

Simon, dots-on-dots.com