American Masters - Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light

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Vividly portrayed in this American Masters Special, photographer Richard Avedon shoots for two different worlds. Primarily, he is a fashion photographer, having worked for various magazines for more than 50 years. Of particular note is the description of photographing Natassja Kinski, a shoot that took two hours of her lying naked on a cement floor as they tried to coax a snake up her body. As a fashion photographer, Avedon became known for his sense of movement and the energy he captured in each image; he gets exquisite models to leap, move, and flip their hair. His second, and perhaps lesser-known, body of work is art photography, including portraits of the famous and the unknown, with a signature style of photographing his sitters on a white background with no props. This documentary ably captures the tension between these two directions in his work by overlaying the positive and negative viewpoints about his photography in a collage of voiceovers. We learn how Avedon views his role as a photographer, and that for him the end result captures "the death of the moment." Also included are the controversial images of his dying father. This program aptly depicts this highly creative man exposed through his work as vulnerable, obsessed, and a perfectionist. This 81-minute-long program will interest a broad audience, from those interested in fashion, people of our times, the history of the 20th century, artists and art historians, and photography in general. --Anne Barclay Morgan

Customer Reviews:

Great insight and well produced........2004-12-30

This DVD was a pleasure to watch as Avedon himself talks about his work and progression as a photographer. He talks about his philosophies when dealing with sitters and other fashion notables lend some interesting insight into his work and life.

You can look at his images and read what he has to say about work, but his vibrancy on video really come out and you can imagine how dynamic and interactive he is on the set.

The King is Dead. Long Live the King........2004-10-02

This DVD is an amazing insight into the mind and vision of a true genius. His rare talent can be seen in every image, and his own narration makes you feel as though he were sitting there with you, telling you the story behind every photograph. His fabulous joy of life is an inspiration to all.

Thank you for sharing your talent and love of photography with us. We are so much better for having you show us what we could not see ourselves.

We will miss you, Richard, but we will never forget you.

Outstanding, Inspiring Documentary.......2004-06-24

This is a great video to watch if you are a lover of the photography (especially commercial/fashion photography) and the arts.
This dvd is entertaining from beggining to end and is well made.

A Thorough Document On An Astonishing Career.......2004-01-25

Helen Whitney's production, "Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light", provides a comprehensive overview of the career, and also to some extent, of the personal life of this exceptional photographer. The program details Mr. Avedon's work, which over the past fifty years has attempted to "nurture perceptions that most people discard".

The first thirty minutes of this film describe Mr. Avedon's journey, from his work in Paris fashion magazines in the year 1946, to around 1966 when he became temporarily disillusioned with the social life within the fashion world. The next twenty minutes work to describe his growth as a portrait photographer. During this period, the human face becomes the "primary focus of attention" of Mr. Avedon's eye, with portrait styles ranging from explosive multiple exposures to serene comments on human dignity. Most of the work of this period was photographed against Mr. Avedon's "signature" solid white background.

The documentary then becomes somewhat more personal in describing Mr. Avedon's relationship with his father, a Russian Jewish immigrant, during the final stages of his father's struggle with terminal cancer. Photographs of his dying father were made, however, thoughts regarding possible "invasions of personal privacy" and the meaning of the quality of their relationship at that time are explored.

The program describes Mr. Avedon's trip to the American West, while recuperating from health problems. There, he made photographs of working class people, drifters and generally those who exist outside of the gaze of the mass media. The final thirty minutes of the program become more philosophical in nature, with meditations on Mr. Avedon's relationship to his subjects and reflections on his reputation within the world of photography.

The subjects of Mr. Avedon's photographic work represent people both known to the general public and those unknown. These images serve as unique documents of the diversity of human experience in much of the later part of the twentieth century. So lovers of photography, and of the arts in general, will not want to miss this captivating documentary.

Enjoyable.......2003-10-31

A well done and informative DVD. I use it in my photo classes. My only complaint is that it is not closed captioned for the hearing impaired. I have students who are hearing impaired and this lack of captioning makes it difficult for al to enjoy.

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