Riley Matthew Irving Penn
5/8/17
When I walked into the centennial I first read and saw the shots of people in what seems to be a narrow corner. This narrowness exacerbated people’s natural physique (the analysis/preface written by the museum points out someone’s thin shoulders but big feet). This creates an element of perspective that people aren’t normally in but this photoshoot shows the unnatural tension created. I’ve seen a lot of photoshoots with seemingly random things intertwined and being reacted to by other subjects but there’s an easiness and simplicity connected with these shots. There is intrigue in natural human composition, all that is needed is to find ways, like a very sharp, acute angle, to show it off.
I also loved the sleekness of his work for Vogue. It encompasses words like “vogue” or “chic” and “fashionable” but not in a pretentious way. The clothing and the position of the women is just so strong you can follow it with your eyes. There’s a part in the museum where there are about 9 Vogue covers fitted together in a square and the negative space works well when positioned behind strong, fashion statements. I noticed the repetition of thin, white models but that may be little more than a sign of the times. Another sign of the times was the reoccurrence of cigarettes in these shoots. With the thin, white women, the black hats and attire, cigarettes and darting eyes I get the stereotypical French femme fatale character. I like it though.
The nudes are one of my favorite collections because of the rejection of attraction because I like those who dabble in taboo. These bodies seemed like works of art like how women should be seen, not wonders of sexual desires, so examining the unorthodox positions and apparent vastness of human body is great to behold. One of the pieces, a woman sitting down, a bit hunched, with a view of her back reminds me of pictures of mountains out in the Midwest. Grand, vast and telling.Irving Penn