7 Highlights at Photo London’s 9th Edition- More than 400 artists from over 30 countries are exhibiting at the 9th edition of Photo London, which features presentations from 120 exhibitors, ranging from vintage to contemporary photography.
Photo London takes over the iconic Somerset House, with established galleries and curators exhibiting in the central pavilion and main building, while the Discovery section in the basement, curated by Charlotte Jansen, is dedicated to ‘positions’, featuring 5 unrepresented photographers supported by collectors and patrons.
Significant solo presentations by women photographers include 20th-century greats Helen Levitt (Zander Galerie) and Lee Miller, as well as contemporary luminaries such as Lydia Goldblatt (Robert Morat Galerie), Jacquie Maria Wessels (Galerie Baudelaire) and Siân Davey (Trolley Books/Michael Hoppen Gallery).
Highlights include Peruvian photographer Roberto Huarcaya’s installation Amazogramas at Rolf Art, Gilbert McCarragher’s captivating images of Derek Jarman’s Prospect Cottage, and fashion photography by Steven Meisel and Max Vadukul at Ira Stehmann Fine Art, Patrick Demarchelier at ATLAS Gallery, and Sarah Moon’s magical images of fashion models at Persiehl & Heine and Peter Fetterman Gallery.
Lee Sharrock selected some favourite exhibitions for FAD:
1 Prospect Cottage, Derek Jarman’s House by Gilbert McCarragher.
Photographer Gilbert McCarragher gained unprecedented access to the hallowed interiors of Prospect Cottage, the home of artist Derek Jarman. Jarman’s seaside home in Dungeness, Kent, has become a kind of pilgrimage site for many fans of the iconic filmmaker. After Jarman’s death in 1994, his partner hung net curtains in the window to keep out the prying eyes of Jarman enthusiasts, so the interiors were unseen until McCarragher, a neighbour and friend, was invited to document the house with his camera. Some of the resulting images are on display at Photo London and are featured in a book: ‘Prospect Cottage: Derek Jarman’s House’.
2 Giuseppe Lo Schiavo @ Spazio Nuovo.
Roman Gallery Spazio Nuovo are exhibiting breathtaking images of the Greek and Italian sea and lush gardens by Italian photographer Giuseppe Lo Schiavo. Through his photography, Schiavo creates a bridge between art and science, acknowledging the presence of technology while paying homage to classical antiquity and the beauty of nature.
3 James D Kelly @ GUERIN PROJECTS.
GUERIN PROJECTS presents James D. Kelly’s exuberant “Night Light” series for the first time. A celebration of youth and club culture by the celebrated London photographer capture moments of hedonism and offer a fleeting escape from the chaos of the world.
4 The Garden by Sian Davey @ Michael Hoppen and Trolley Books.
Photographer Sian Davey’s son came up with an unusual proposal after lockdown, when he suggested inviting people to be photographed in their overgrown English garden: “Why don’t we fill our back garden with wildflowers and bees, and the people we meet over the garden wall – we’ll invite them in to be photographed by you.” The result can be seen in a book of photographs published by Trolley Books, which captures a wide variety of people who visited Davey’s garden, where they revealed their personal stories, traumas and secrets, and have their portrait taken in various states of dress or undress.
5 Valérie Belin, Photo London Master of Photography 2024.
Valérie Belin, one of France’s most acclaimed photographers, is Photo London’s Master of Photography 2024. Valérie Belin ‘Silent Stories’ takes over the vast galleries beneath Somerset House, and features a curated selection representing 3 decades of her work, which she describes as,”…neither narrative nor documentary and tell no particular stories, but are designed to be seen as the mirror of fictions without words.”
6 Mariano Vivanco – Peru @ Fru Tholstrup.
Curator Fru Tholstrup has dedicated her presentation to photographer Mariano Vivanco, whose Peruvian heritage and peripatetic upbringing has provided endless inspiration for his photography. He made a name for himself as a fashion photographer, but the images he created for his epic series ‘Peru’ have a cinematic, otherworldly aesthetic, and draw on Peruvian history and fairytales.
7 Double Exposure: David Bailey & Mary McCartney @ Claridges ArtSpace.
In celebration of Photo London, Claridges ArtSpace has launched an exhibition of David Bailey and Mary McCartney’s photography, curated by Brandei Estes. David Bailey, such an iconic, groundbreaking photographer that he is known simply as ‘Bailey’, is in a visual dialogue with Mary McCartney, daughter of the famous musician Paul, who has made a name for herself as one of the foremost photographers of her generation. Bailey and McCartney represent different generations of British photography, and Estes brings them into direct dialogue for the first time, discovering that they have in common an innate sense of theatricality and drama, and an ability to capture the aura of their sitters. MORE
Photo London 2024 at Somerset House until 19th May: photolondon.org
