06 November 2010

Herbert List (1903 – 1975)

Herbert List was a German photographer who worked for magazines like Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Life. He's known for his classical male nudes, taken in Italy and Greece, which have been highly formative for modern photography, with fashion photographers like Bruce Weber and Herb Ritts, just to name the most obvious, being clearly influenced by his work.




6 comments:

  1. OMG, what gorgeous & fresh-looking images. I'm afraid I've never heard of him before. Thanks for the intro.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Anon: When I first discovered him years ago (like at least a decade) I remember feeling disappointed by bruce weber who seemed to have ripped him off completely. Of course adding a lot more overt sex. Mr List's images have this purity and a german cleanliness do you agree?

    ReplyDelete
  3. 'a german cleanliness' - that's a good description. also: i think more hard-edged and less romanticised than Weber, from what little i've seen.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dear Anon: Hmmm by hard-edged i suppose you mean more alert to the graphic potential of a frame, less 'naturalistic' than bruce weber. both are equally romantic thought i must say weber's work is somewhat more sentimental on the one hand and verging on porn on the other.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yes yes that's what i was trying to say but failed to articulate as well as you did. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dear Anon: Thank you for always making such interesting comments - they make me think harder about why i post certain pictures up.

    ReplyDelete