Guy Bourdin – Research

My initial thoughts on his colour prints are that there are some very clever photographs.  I don’t feel comfortable with them all as I dislike the sexual objectification of women. This may have been acceptable at the time but for me, it dates them

He uses unusual angles saturated colours and he plays with scale which I like. His photographs are glossy and constructed, despite what he might say.

“I have never perceived myself as responsible for my images.
They are just accidents. I am not a director, merely an agent of chance”

Barnes, F (2018) – The best books for photography lovers

After reading about him

His work is described as humorous, ‘filled with messages and unusual dramas that are difficult to decode’.  I’m still not sure I feel all his images are acceptable.  Sex sells, and no doubt gaping crotch shots are likely to appeal to a partner hoping to acquire the image along with the shoes he or she (although I’d hazard a guess these ads were aimed at men) might buy for their other half.

But reading the telegraph piece by Icaro Kosak, it seems that his desire was to shock to make you think about what you are looking at.  Ultimately though it seems he wanted the viewer to bring or take, whatever they wanted from the image; the story is all in the viewers head.

The emphasis on shoes (apart from being a foot fetish) was down to his work with shoe designer Charles Jordan.

 Guy was meticulous about what he wanted, and the results of his focused searching for the perfect shot of the invisible woman in her visible shoes are – like so many of his photographs – both humorous, and a little disconcerting. If you allow your imagination to wander, each picture tells a different story.

Kosak, I -2003: When art and fashion collide

References

Barnes, F. (2018) The Best Books For Photography Lovers. Available at: https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/articles/the-best-books-for-photography-lovers/ (Accessed: 12 April 2021).

Guy Bourdin https://www.guybourdin.org/artworks?itemId=tvukz5juk6bwemurozf6gg1gciztde

Kosak, I. (2003) ‘When art and fashion collide’, The Daily Telegraph, 12 April. Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/3592608/When-art-and-fashion-collide.html (Accessed: 12 April 2021).