1. Master Photographers of the 1980s, 1990s & 2000s
Joel-Peter Witkin
David LaChapelle
Your choice…

2. Joel-Peter Witkin (1939 – present, age 75)
An American photographer known for his use of bizarre and often morbid imagery
Witkin’s work deals with themes of death and spirituality
Hit photographs often feature corpses, body parts, and “outsiders”, such as dwarves, transsexuals, and people with physical deformities.

3. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y.C. to a Jewish father and Roman Catholic mother, who divorced due to their religious differences when Witkin was a young boy.
Witkin bought his first camera in the mid-1950s and taught himself basic photography.
He claims that his artistic vision was shaped by a car accident he witnessed when he was a child, in which a young girl was decapitated in front of his house.
In his teens he befriended and photographed side show performers at Coney Island.
Witkin won the respect of Edward Steichen, who chose one of his early pictures for inclusion in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.

4. From 1961-1964 Witkin worked as a war photographer, documenting the Vietnam war.
He earned a BFA in 1974 and a MFA from the University of New Mexico in 1986.
His unusual work became well known and he had several large showings throughout the 1980s.
Cadaver With Necklace, 1980

5. Visiting medical schools, morgues and insane asylums around the world, Witkin created haunting photographs that are both beautiful and grotesque.
Portrait of Nan, 1984
Un Santo Oscuro, New Mexico, 1987

6. His photographs are complicated tableaux (an artistic grouping of persons or objects) that address the morbid, the perverse, the erotic, and the religious.
Daphne and Apollo, 1986
Vanity, New Mexico, 1993

7. Witkin's photographs with corpses are created primarily in Mexico, where there are fewer restrictions on the handling of dead bodies.
The Kiss, 1984
Still Life, Mexico, 1993

8. His photographs often include references to classical paintings, sometimes directly recreating famous masterpieces.
Las Meninas, 1987
Diego Velázquez,
Las Meninas, 1656

9. He begins each image by sketching his ideas on paper, perfecting every detail before he gets into the studio to stage his elaborate tableaux.
Still Life, Marseilles 1992

10. Once photographed, Witkin spends hours in the darkroom, scratching and piercing his negatives, transforming them into images that look made rather than taken.
Harvest, 1984
Still Life With Mirror, 2003

11. Although Witkin is respected within the art world, the dark and graphic nature of his work has sometimes shocked public opinion.
Face of a Woman, 2004

12. David LaChapelle (1963 – present, age 52)
American photographer and film director, famous for his work in fashion, advertising, and fine arts
LaChapelle’s work walks the line between fashion and Fine Arts, often combining images from art history with contemporary figures and settings.

13. Born in Hartford, Connecticut, LaChapelle attended the North Carolina School of the Arts and later the School of Visual Arts in New York.
As a teenager, he struggled with bullying for being gay.
LaChapelle’s photography career began in the late 1980s when he started showing his artwork in New York City galleries.
His work caught the eye of Andy Warhol, who offered him his first job as a photographer at Interview Magazine.

14. He went on to photograph celebrities for numerous popular magazines, such as Rolling Stone, GQ, Vogue, and Vanity Fair.

15. His roster of famous subjects include Tupac Shakur, Madonna, Lance Armstrong, Eminem, Leonardo DiCaprio, Hillary Clinton, Pamela Anderson, Muhammad Ali and many others.

16. In 1995, he was named “Best New Photographer of the Year” by both French Photo and American Photo magazines.

17. Also in 1995, LaChapelle shot the famous 'kissing sailors' advertisement for Diesel.
It was one of the first public advertisements showing a gay or lesbian couple kissing.

18. LaChapelle’s portraits feature playful humour, bright saturated colours, and often bold sexuality.
His work has been described as "hyper-real and slyly subversive" and as "kitsch pop surrealism"

19. In addition to his career as a photographer, LaChapelle has filmed many successful music videos and advertisements
In 2005 he made his first feature film, the urban dance documentary Rize.

20. In 2006, LaChapelle decided to minimize his participation in commercial photography, and return to his roots by focusing on fine art photography.
Rape of Africa, 2009

21. The 2000s: you choose the photographer…
Digital cameras and image editing software have ushered in an exciting new generation of photographers.
Your task is to find a contemporary photographer online that you think qualifies as (or has the potential to be) a “master photographer”.
Focus on photographers who use digital manipulation in their work.
Requirements:
Create two PowerPoint slides, each featuring a high quality example of that artist’s work, along with one or two points about their art and/or career

22. The 2000s: you choose the photographer…
Check out the following websites for potential photographers: