Over 300 shots of 140 protagonists of contemporary photography on view
A shot can reveal the fragility of an ephemeral beauty, investigating the balance between strength and vulnerability. This connection, inherent in the human condition, becomes the dominant theme of “Fragile Beauty: Photographs from the Sir Elton John and David Furnish Collection”, the largest temporary photography exhibition held at the Victoria & Albert Museum.
The exhibition, housed in the Sainsbury Gallery of the historic museum in South Kensington, brings together over 300 prints of 140 masters of the image, made from the 50s to the present day, to which is joined by an impressive installation of 149 photographs by Nan Goldin, from the Thanksgiving series.
IN THE COLLECTION, AUTHORS SUCH AS PEN, RITTS, AVEDON, ARBUS AND MAPPLETHORPE
After the 2016 exhibition at Tate Modern entitled *The Radical Eye: Modernist Photography*, the large collection is again the protagonist of a project that explores the world of fashion, reportage, celebrities, the male body, and American photography. Through eight thematic sections, there are portraits, such as those of Marilyn Monroe, Miles Davis, and Chet Baker, but also images of key moments in history: from the civil rights struggles of the 60s to activism against AIDS in the 80s, until the events of September 11, 2001.
IMPRESSIVE THE INSTALLATION OF 149 IMAGES BY NAN GOLDIN FROM THE THANKSGIVING SERIES
The path returns 30 years of collecting to the public, from the first acquisitions of fashion shots by Horst P. Horst, Irvin Penn, and Herb Ritts to the most recent ones by Tyler Mitchell, Trevor Paglen, and An-My Le. Authors such as Robert Mapplethorpe, Cindy Sherman, William Eggleston, Diane Arbus, Sally Mann, Richard Avedon, and Ai Weiwei invite us to reflect on the fragility created by the illusion of momentary beauty.
WE FIND PORTRAITS OF MARILYN MONROE AND MILES DAVIS, BUT ALSO SHOTS OF THE STRUGGLES FOR CIVIL RIGHTS AND AGAINST AIDS
The only remedy is irony, represented by David LaChapelle in the shot that immortalizes Elton John with two fried eggs instead of glasses.
