Contemporary? Irving Penn?

Elaine Maria

Elaine Maria

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Elaine Maria
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As part of my college portfolio submission I've been asked to fill out a questionnaire. One of the questions included is; Who is your favourite contemporary photographer and why?

Now, I want to more than anything say Irving Penn...but I don't know if that's pushing it.
 
I you feel he is still relevant today, why not? But you better give some very good reasons showing why.

He was more of my generation... though he only died last year.
Your flickr shots show you like to follow his style.
50's and 60's photography was a time of very clear and simple style and he was a master.
 
I'd have to go for one of the lighting/social media guys, chase jarvis zack arias david hobby ect
 
Go for Irving Penn if you feel you can justify it. Otherwise the following books are superb for photographer influences

art photography now - susan bright

genius of photography

regeneration - 50 photographers of today

to name but a few.
 
It depends on the context of the word contemporary. Penn is contemporary when referring to him in the context of other photographers or artists of his time - his time being the mid 20th century. He was certainly one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century, alongside Norman Parkinson and Cecil Beaton, and his influence on the work of the likes of Mario Testino and Annie Leibovitz is very evident today.

But if your question relates to him being a contemporary photographer of today, whilst his work is relevant, no, he is not a contemporary photographer. If you like his style look instead at Annie Leibovitz and Mario Testino to name just two very obvious and famous photographers of the same genre - I think you will see his influence, and you may at least then be able to bring in Penn from the perspective of him having had a visible impact on these two contemporary photographers, just as you can see the influence of Parkinson and Beaton.
 
ZoZo said:
It depends on the context of the word contemporary. Penn is contemporary when referring to him in the context of other photographers or artists of his time - his time being the mid 20th century. He was certainly one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century, alongside Norman Parkinson and Cecil Beaton, and his influence on the work of the likes of Mario Testino and Annie Leibovitz is very evident today.

But if your question relates to him being a contemporary photographer of today, whilst his work is relevant, no, he is not a contemporary photographer. If you like his style look instead at Annie Leibovitz and Mario Testino to name just two very obvious and famous photographers of the same genre - I think you will see his influence, and you may at least then be able to bring in Penn from the perspective of him having had a visible impact on these two contemporary photographers, just as you can see the influence of Parkinson and Beaton.
Click to expand...

Beat me to it!

If it were me completing the questionaire I'd be considering the likes of Rankin or LaChapelle both for different reasons.
 
squizza said:
Go for Irving Penn if you feel you can justify it. Otherwise the following books are superb for photographer influences

art photography now - susan bright

genius of photography

regeneration - 50 photographers of today

to name but a few.
Click to expand...

To follow up on Squizza's book list, you could also have a look at this one too; has been very recently updated and provides a great survey of what's going on now :thumbs:

Also Squizza, not being funny, but isn't the reGeneration book subtitled '50 Photographers of Tomorrow', or is that a different book?
 
squizza said:
Go for Irving Penn if you feel you can justify it. Otherwise the following books are superb for photographer influences

art photography now - susan bright

genius of photography

regeneration - 50 photographers of today

to name but a few.
Click to expand...

:plusone: Couldnt agree more with Squizza's list and also Simons suggestion. I wouldnt go for anyone too obvious like LaChappelle or Leibovitz, they'll be sick of hearing about them. If it was me I would go for Rineke Dijsktra or Alec Soth.
 
If I said Lachapelle , I'd be lying.

I'm going to go with mentioning Penn, relating him to Mario Testino but use Testino as my main contemporary photographer.


Thank you everyone. Very helpful.
 
I love Penn's work, but contempory? No...
"He's dead Jim"...I think by definition you have to be breathing a little bit at least...
 
I'm struggling to see the connection between Irving Penn and Mario Testino as anything other than "well, they both used a camera to take pictures of people ..."
 
If you're alluding to Penn being a genius and Testino's images only being of any merit due to the subject matter, then I concur...
 
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