Irving Penn’s photographic works hold a timeless allure of simplicity and elegance. Almost everything we capture nowadays is digital, so the latest exhibit at de Young reminds us of an era before Photoshop; lighting was everything, and skill behind the lens only became apparent following a dark-room developing session. We didn’t have little screens that let us take a hundred selfies, review them, then try, try again.
“You had to be really confident and have good luck,” said Jeff Rosenheim, The Met’s curator in charge of photographs, during Wednesday’s preview. He and de Young curator Emma Acker walked us through a showcase of Penn’s work that opens to the public this Saturday in San Francisco.
The exhibit is what I expected for classic photography: Portraits set against simple lighting and placed in generously-matted frames. The museum showcases Penn’s work across twelve sections of its lower level, hanging on walls and in enclaves that have been color blocked in grays. Many portraits hang near still life and nudes, and while color photography is also here, the black-and-white prints stand out.
Penn’s career spanned over six decades from 1940 to the 2000s, and he remains Vogue’s longest contributor. His portraits of celebrities, artists, and everyday people became known for their simplicity. He’d place a model against a plain backdrop and use natural light, departing from heavily staged photographs that were typical of the time.
I haven’t stared at too many famous portraits, so I’d probably characterize these pictures as the Annie Leibovitz of their time — looking at them, I tried to feel a small piece of soul from the person in front of Penn’s camera. While I suspect so many of these portraits could be found online, seeing them in person allowed me to reflect on influential figures I knew comparatively little about.
Of course there’s more than just fame here. The collection of about 175 photographs also includes early documentary scenes and depictions of workers with their tools. In 1950, he began a series of “Small Trades” portraits, which depicted workers from various trades in Paris, New York, and London.
Another section highlights images from San Francisco’s Summer of Love, capturing hippies, members of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, and local rock bands like the Grateful Dead and Big Brother and the Holding Company.
With the Fashioning San Francisco exhibit just upstairs, the de Young Museum certainly feels like the place to immerse yourself in couture and the elegant parts of history. This latest experience opens Saturday and runs through July 21.
Saul Sugarman is editor in chief of The Bold Italic.
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