Pierre et Gilles Retrospective
by Shawn Thomson
A rare exhibition of famed photographers Pierre et Gilles opened in Berlin last month, comprising a total of 80 unique large-format works spanning over 30 years of collaboration and featuring images never before shown in public. In one word, fantastic!
Pierre et Gilles (born 1950 and 1953, respectively) have been living and working together in Paris since 1976, influencing contemporary photography definitively. Their shiny, glittering body of work flamboyantly romps through a fanciful universe filled with religious symbolism, mythological iconography, homoeroticism and lots of skin. Film stars and pop divas, princes and sailors, angels and demons, porn stars and boys next door are all represented here.
The duo has also created photographic portraits for the likes of Marc Almond, Catherine Deneuve, Marilyn Manson, Kylie Minogue, Iggy Pop, Nina Hagen, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Madonna, to name just a few. Pierre photographs the model and Gilles painstakingly retouches and hand-colors the print, highlighting each detail to create a vivid and colorful world of aesthetic perfection as dreamed up by the artists.
The show is a must-see for anyone in Berlin this summer.
Pierre et Gilles Retrospective
Through 4 October 2009
C/O Berlin
Postfuhramt Oranienburger Strasse, 35/36
10117 Berlin, Germany map
+ 49 30 28 09 19 25
