Few photographers have spanned the genres from photojournalism to true artistic endeavor as completely as Bill Brandt. Yet Brandt’s journalism was never strictly reportage; all his work reflected a clear artistic purpose. His qualities as an artist were never better expressed than in his series of nudes, photographed in the studio and on location over a period of thirty-five years. He published that work in two justly famous books: Perspective of Nudes (1961) and Bill Brandt Nudes (1980). Now the oeuvre has been brought together in a single volume in Brandt Nudes: A New Perspective, previously published only in a limited edition.
This book reflects Brandt’s original selection and organization of the images. Each of the sections is introduced with a succinct and revealing essay on the work by Mark Haworth-Booth.
Reviews
It is Brandt's nude that reminds us of a life spirit that pervades the body itself that makes it more than just a mass of flesh but the vehicle for a spirit that is luminous on the page.
— Le Journal de la Photographie
Photography lovers and fans of Brandt's work will find this sumptuous collection with insightful commentaries a must-have.
— Publishers Weekly
Filled with gorgeous reproductions …and includes Lawrence Durrell's original preface to the first volume of nudes.
— The New York Review of Books
Contributors
Mark Haworth-Booth
Commentaries By
Mark Haworth-Booth is Honorary Research Fellow at the Victoria and Albert Museum and a Senior Fellow of the Royal College of Art.
Lawrence Durrell
Preface By
Lawrence Durrell is best known for The Alexandria Quartet.
