Peter Lindbergh's fashion photography at the center of an exhibition in Turin, Italy

From May 13 to August 13, ARTiglieria Con/temporary Art Center in Turin will host Untold Stories, the first exhibition on Peter Lindbergh (Leszno, 1944 Paris, 2019) curated by the author himself. The complete version of the project will be presented for the first time in Italy.

Born in 1944 and raised in Duisburg, the German photographer spent two years working on a free collection of 140 photographs that will offer an in-depth view of his vast oeuvre, from the early 1980s to the present day. The exhibition celebrates the legacy of Peter Lindbergh, who passed away in September 2019, and shows this master’s very personal approach to his work. “When I first saw my photographs on the mock-up walls of the exhibition, I was surprised, but in a very positive way. It was overwhelming to be so confronted with who I am,” Lindbergh explained in an interview for the catalog in June 2019. The exhibition offers a wide-ranging unprecedented look at images that usually live short lives, being mostly commissioned and published by magazines such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Interview, Rolling Stone, W Magazine or Wall Street Journal.

Lindbergh’s understanding with respect to fashion photography was that it can exist very well without putting fashion at the center. His images successfully transcend their context, redefining the parameters of fashion photography and contemporary culture. “The exhibition allowed me to reconsider my images in a non-fashion context. The presentation aims to open the photographs to different interpretations and perspectives,” Lindbergh stressed during the conversation. “However, I am not trying to claim that my photographs are not fashion photographs; that would not even be true. I insist on the definition of ’fashion photography’ because for me this term does not mean that one should only represent fashion: photography is much bigger than fashion, it is part of contemporary culture.”

The exhibition is conceived in three chapters. Two large-scale installations complement the presentation and shed a fresh and surprising light on Lindbergh’s work. Manifest, the monumental opening installation featuring several large-scale bluebacks, was developed specifically for the presentation and provides an engaging and thought-provoking introduction to understanding Lindbergh’s fashion photography.

In the central section of the exhibition, Lindbergh chose and organized together the images that he considered personally pivotal to the scope of his work. He experimented with his archival materials and revealed new stories while remaining true to his language. Emblematic photographs along with others never seen before are displayed in pairs or groups, resulting in unexpected and evocative interpretations.

The exhibition closes with the video installation Testament (2014), which reveals a hitherto unknown side of the German photographer’s practice and character. Shot through a one-way mirror, the video shows the silent exchange between Lindbergh’s camera and Elmer Carroll. The Florida death row inmate spent 35 minutes looking intently at his reflection: meditative, introspective and with minimal facial expression. Presented for the first time, the Testament installation adds an unexpected dimension to the exhibition and opens a discussion of topics that were of central importance to Peter Lindbergh: introspection, empathy and freedom.

For all information you can visit the official Paratissima website.

Pictured: Peter Lindbergh, Mariacarla Boscono, Paris (2015) Ph. credit: Peter Lindbergh, Paris

Peter Lindbergh's fashion photography at the center of an exhibition in Turin, Italy

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