The list of celebrities photographed reads like the guest list for Oscars night. Johnny Depp and Kate Moss in a lazy embrace on a hotel bed; Brad Pitt engulfed by a backdrop and questionable wardrobe of warm hues; Nicole Kidman, polished and regal, amongst the spotlights of a concert hall; THAT photograph of Demi Moore, and next to it, a lesser known one of the bare-breasted actress with then-husband Bruce Willis’ lovingly-protective hands secured around her pregnant belly. The rapport and comfort between the photographer and her celebrity subjects is apparent, with many of the photographs capturing that essence of humanness that is often lost in the two-dimensionality of the celebrity world and the multitudes of images that capture this world. Leibovitz’s photographs show us that these are merely people, with their own complexities and intricacies, which only her lens can capture. Most haunting, but beautiful, is a monochromatic photograph of a lone Mic Jagger, sitting on a simple white bed, looking forlorn yet stoic. Here, the legendary rock star is just a man, no different to the men of Leibovitz’s family, whose photographs line the same walls as that of the celebrities.
Indeed, amongst the famous faces are those of Leibovitz’s family, in black and white photographs that chronicle the everyday-ness of their lives; at the beach, in the kitchen, in bed, the backyard. Author and literary theorist Susan Sontag is also heavily represented, as the exhibition includes photographs of Leibovitz’s ailing friend. Sontag’s fatal experience with cancer is recorded in detail; from her promising, yet frail, recovery, to her unfortunate relapse and deterioration, and finally to her final moments on an ambulance stretcher, Leibovitz shows her dedication to her friend as she is there every step of the way, capturing the moments that are dear to them both.
My favourite photograph in the exhibition is of dancer Bill T. Jones at Sun Studios in 1993. Here, Leibovitz shows why she is the master of the monochrome in a beautifully double-framed image of the back of the naked dancer in a delicate mid-jump. His dark skin is a crisp contrast to the backdrop of the white studio wall, which in turn is backgrounded by the grounds and buildings of a dilapidated industrial site. So many elements of dance, grace, texture, colour and contradictions are at work in this stunning, liberating, almost cathartic image.
The exhibition ends with two walls of chronologically-ordered prints, one personal, the other professional, which have been transplanted from Leibovitz’s home studio. Containing everyone from the Obamas and the Clintons (who appear on the ‘personal’ wall), to the photographer’s three young daughters, these walls are a fitting conclusion to the immensity and overwhelming density of the body of work one has just journeyed through (I didn’t even get to mention the large-scale landscape photographs which dwarf the very room they hang in). They capture the spirit, professionalism, longevity, and innovativeness of Leibovitz’s still-strong career. And with the birth of the photographer’s first child in 2001, the death of her dear friend Susan Sontag in 2004, and the arrival of her twins in 2005, this exhibition perhaps marks the end of one stellar phase of her life and the beginning of a new, but no less epic, journey. I am anticipating the photographic results of that in another 15 years. [Image from http://www.dailygloss.com/]
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