Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/01/13
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]You know I visited the NPG about 15 times over a 9 mos. stint in London. There I learned of Irving Penn's propensity to cut off 1/16th of the upper head (the bald part in some cases) in order to see more of the subject's body expression. I learned that he often photographed people in the corner of a room. I learned that you could get a photo hung in the NPG if you were lucky enough to catch Mick Jager (?) in an elevator with his bath robe on and hair wet, if you were creative enough to get Sting to stand on one leg on a dry desert just after a rain storm and paint himself in mud, if you had great timing and managed to shoot John and Oko with John nude in bed laying next to Ono on the day of his death, or if you had persistence and devotion to photography as did H.C. Bresson and you took a photo of a cricket match in black and white (he only had one photo in the entire museum). I learned that photography did indeed play an extremely large role in capturing the entire 20th centure on celluloid and print. I saw stills from old movies and even saw Joy Love in semi-nude by fire and that is why I kept going back. To counter that experience I went around the corner five if not more times to look at the 21 Rembrandts to see how he handled light and wondered how a photographer could get the same detail in shadows that he did. In all an awe-insprining experience. And wouldn't you know I didn't even know of the Photographer's Gallery until now. On my next visit. Christer Almqvist wrote: > The permanent part of the National Portrait Gallery is well worth visiting > too, it contains a wealth of photographic portraits in addition to the > paintings. The museum will lend you a portable CD players (for a fee) with > additional information on the exhibits (e.g. interviews with the artists) . > I found the CD to be quite entertaining too. > > Regarding bookshops: the one at the Photographer's Gallery is also quite > outstanding. And the café at the Photographer's Gallery is very good, it > has a nice non-tourist crowd, serves tea and coffee, salads and simple > meals ( a little bit on the health food side). It is not even five minutes > walk from the National Portrait Gallery. (Cross the street as you come out > of the NPG, turn left and walk up the street into Charing Cross Road. Then > turn right into the Great Newport Street. This is approx. the third street > on the right, provided you do not count the small alleyways. In Great > Newport Street, it is on the left hand side, about fifty meters down the > street. > > Photographer's Gallery often has interesting exhibitions. To quote you: > 'the entry is 0'. ---- but there is a collection box...... Life is > short, art is long - but not quite free! Regards > > >Hi all, > > > >I was in London today, and after the business was done, I visited the > >National Portrait Gallery to see the Kobal Photographic Portrait Award > >exhibition. Nice exhibit, and the entry is 0. But what turned out to be > >expensive was visiting the gallery's bookshop--a true paradise for > >photography books! It was fortunate that I got there only 20 minutes > >before closing time, limiting my wallet drain to about 130 pounds...I > >shall return! > > > >Nathan > > > >-- > >Nathan Wajsman > >Overijse, Belgium > > > >Photography page: http://members.tripod.com/~belgiangator/index.html > >Motorcycle page: > >http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/downs/1704/index.html > > -- > christer almqvist > eichenstrasse 57, d-20255 hamburg, fon +49-40-407111 fax +49-40-4908440 > 14 rue de la hauteur, f-50590 regnéville-sur-mer, fon+fax +33-233 45 35 58