Appearances Book

A study of fashion photography since 1945 which places it in the mainstream of popular culture. It links fashion to such influential figures as Walker Evans and Robert Frank, and its implications transcend purely photographic history. Martin Harrison explores the role of magazine culture and the influences of art directors and editors, who have both created and reflected the mood and tones of the post-war decades. With the participation of the greatest figures in the field, from Richard Avedon and Irving Penn to Bruce Weber, he presents some of the most famous fashion photographs of all time, as well as many rare images. The involvement of artists such as Cindy Sherman and Robert Mapplethorpe is also examined, whose work is peripheral to the fashion industry, yet whose influence pervades the look and climate of the times. The conclusion is that fashion photography is no longer dinstinct from the lineage of art photography and has now become central to an understanding of modern culture and vidual media.Read More