David LaChapelle

1. The only way I can describe my initial reaction to LaChapelle's work is "weirded out". His work is of good quality and it's compositionally interesting, but it's incredibly bizarre, and just not the type of art I typically enjoy.

2. David LaChapelle is a commercial photographer because he photographs mainly celebrities for magazines to promote their image and allow the magazine to profit.

David LaChapelle | For Then It Was Vital, For Then It Was Graceful

3. Marino Testino's portraits of celebrities are very tame compared to LaChapelle's. He has also worked for popular magazines such as Vogue and Vanity Fair, but his images follow the mainstream: they capture celebrities in all their glory and glamour, perhaps adding a bold feauture or two. LaChapelle, on the other hand, magnifies the bold features and makes them the theme of his work. I'm not a huge fan of either of their works, but I don't hate them, either. There is clear craftsmanship involved for each, and I respect that, even if LaChapelle's is a little unsettling.

David LaChapelle, American Jesus: Archangel Michael Jackson, 64 x 48 inches

4. A hallmark of LaChapelle's work is the contrast of a bright, bold, luxurious figure set against a natural, sometimes harsh, environment as the background. If someone were to remake his work, I believe they would use places ravaged by war, climate change, natural disaster, etc. as the background, while still keeping the materialistic figure as the focal point. This would emphasize the discrepancy between first world materialism and third world poverty, making a beautiful picture as well as sending an important political/social message.

Lavazza Calendar 2020 by David LaChapelle

5. LaChapelle's quote concisely encapsulates the bold themes of his photographs, and offers an explanation as to why he chooses to make them so bizzare and bright. His pictures really do tell a story as well as, and perhaps even better than, the written word can.

Comments

Anton Corbijn Reflection

1. I was initially a bit surprised at Corbijn’s work, because it is unconventional in a way that made me feel slightly uneasy. However, as I looked at more of his photos, I grew to appreciate the beauty in the oddity. 2. Since his work is slightly unorthodox, it’s hard to place in a specific category, but I would say most of his work fits among human portraits. 3. Damon Baker is a photographer of people, as Corbijn is, and they both manage to capture the life of the people in their shots. However, Corbijn tends to lean more on the gritty, raw, and frankly a bit odd, side of people, particularly celebrities’, personas, whereas Baker captures the glamorous angst of modern day celebrities. I like both of their works, and appreciate both for their raw quality. (Sadie Sink!) Baker (David Bowie!) Corbijn 4. If someone tried to replicate Corbijn’s work today, i...

Michael Kenna

1. I immediately fell in love with Kenna's work when I first saw it, because it is simple and yet stark. I love the mysterious and sometimes a little spooky energy it has due to the shots being in black and white. His work has a peaceful, almost nostalgic energy due to the long exposure that makes it feel like the viewer has been suspended alone in time and space. 2. Michael Kenna is a monochromatic landscape photographer. He often finds simple objects, natural and manmade, and captures them in a way that makes them stand out, despite (and perhaps because of) being in shades of gray, black, and white. 3. Michael Kenna and Ansel Adams both captured the beauty of black and white landscapes, utilizing the contrast between light and dark to emphasize certain elements of their photos. Adams gravitates towards impressive, sprawling landscapes in places like Yellowstone National Park, or Yosemite, while each of Kenna's photos tends to focus on one complete subject, like a tree, rathe...

Nick Knight

1. Initially, I was mostly surprised and a little bit appalled by Knight's work. It is unique in a shocking way, because he is not afraid to use what I interpret as sci-fi or dystopian-like elements, whether they be prosthetics, editing, etc. 2. I would categorize Knight's photography as fashion surrealism, as he focuses on clothing/the style of his subjects, but does so in an unorthodox, often dreamlike and unnatural way. 3. Commercial photographer David LaChapelle's work shocked me in a similar way to Knight's, as both photographers are fearless in their unorthodox depictions of subjects, often with maximalist style. The main difference I've spotted between their respective works is their backgrounds: LaChapelle draws attention to the backgrounds as well as the subjects by making them bright, unusual, or a contrast to the subject/s, while Knight solely focuses on his subjects, utilizing a plain, neutral background to make his subjects stand out. I respect their ...

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