Where: White Cloth Gallery, 24 – 26 Aire Street, Leeds LS1 4HT
£: 7 (5 concessions) for launch night tickets
What is it?
Brian Duffy’s highly anticipated exhibition The Duffy Collection comes to the White Cloth Gallery in Leeds this May.
The Duffy Archive presents David Bowie through a unique collection of photographs, released to coincide with the Victoria and Albert Museum’s 2013 exhibition David Bowie is.
Never before seen images taken by the late British fashion photographer Brian Duffy will feature in the exhibition at the White Cloth Gallery. The Duffy Collection comprises of images taken during five photographic sessions with iconic musician David Bowie. The exhibition includes shots from three album covers and documents Duffy’s special relationship with the artist over a period of nearly ten years.
Duffy’s work spans from Ziggy Stardust (1972) through to The Lodger (1979) and also includes additional photographs from the set of Nick Roeg’s film The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976). As well as documenting Bowie’s extraordinary career and pioneering reinvention, the collection features portraits of those close to the star such as David’s first wife Angie Bowie and Pierre LaRoche (Aladdin Sane make-up artist), plus some never before seen, behind the scenes photographs.
Duffy was one of the innovators of documentary fashion photography, contributing to leading newspapers such as the Sunday Times, Telegraph and the Observer. As one of the world’s most renowned editorial photographers, Duffy also worked for a number of leading fashion titles including British Vogue, French Elle and Harper’s Bazaar. He was largely accredited (along with fellow photographers David Bailey and Terence Donovan) with creating the ‘Swinging London’ of the 1960’s, photographing top models of the age such as Jean Shrimpton and Paulene Stone. Duffy helped shape today’s view of the ‘Swinging Sixties’ as shown in the 2010 BBC documentary The Man Who Shot the 60s. Duffy documented the fun, sex and glamour of the sixties London scene.
In 1979 Duffy decided to give up photography, and burnt many of his negatives, though some were saved from the fire. However, thanks to the work of the Duffy Archive which was established in 2007, many negatives and contact sheets from numerous UK and International publications have been successfully retrieved.
Sharon Price co-creative director of White Cloth Gallery said “We are thrilled and excited to offer Bowie fans unprecedented access to well-known images of Bowie and unique never before seen shots of the star himself.”
“The Duffy Archive has gathered an extraordinary collection of photographs taken by the great Brian Duffy and as such we expect an incredible response to the exhibition. We look forward to welcoming fans of Duffy and Bowie alike to see the collection.”
The first of its kind in the North of England, the White Cloth Gallery is a Leeds-based events space with a unique vision to support the artistic community. It aims to encourage creativity and work alongside other local arts organisations to aid the city’s burgeoning development as a cultural centre and become a go-to destination for art lovers everywhere. The gallery hosts regular events including workshops, seminars, screenings and book signings giving visitors the chance to meet those who exhibit.
More info: www.whiteclothgallery.com
[…] White Cloth Gallery in Leeds is currently running an exhibition of Bowie photographs taken from the Duffy archive covering a period of ten years in Bowie’s career. The images […]