Photo credit: Back to Life, by David Sims, styled by Melanie Ward, November 1990, © David Sims.
We are very much looking forward to The Face Magazine: Culture Shift photographic exhibition which launches at the National Portrait Gallery on 20 February and will run until 18 May.
About
The National Portrait Gallery’s first exhibition of the year explores the cultural influence of The Face magazine from its launch in 1980 to the present day. It will feature over 200 photographs (many of which are being exhibited for the first time) by 80 photographers including Sheila Rock, Stéphane Sednaoui, Corinne Day, David Sims, Elaine Constantine and Sølve Sundsbø.
The Face was started by New Musical Express editor Nick Logan as the first magazine to cover fashion, music and culture. The photographs created for the publication were not only iconic but helped launch and further the careers of its subjects, photographers and stylists. The National Portrait Gallery explains: “the magazine continues to provide a disruptive and creative space for image-makers, championing fresh talent in photography, fashion, music and graphic design.”
The exhibition’s Curator is Sabina Jaskot-Gill (Senior Curator of Photographs at the NPG) who has worked alongside Lee Swillingham (former Art Director of The Face) and Photographer Norbert Schoerner to create the show.
Sabina comments: “The Face has been a trailblazing title since 1980, not just documenting the contemporary cultural landscape, but playing a vital role in inventing and reinventing it. Within its pages, The Face has produced some of the most innovative fashion and portrait photography of its time – the magazine always allowed its contributors the creative freedom to react against the prevailing mood, to create a shift in culture. I’m delighted to bring together the most comprehensive survey of the magazine’s photographic imagery to date, and would like to thank my co-curators Lee Swillingham and Norbert Schoerner for all their work in making this possible.”
The National Portrait Gallery has produced a programme of fascinating workshops, talks and multi-sensory experiences to accompany the exhibition, all of which can be found on their website.
Getting there
The National Portrait Gallery is located off Trafalgar Square which is a mile’s walk from 9 Hertford Street. Alternatively, you can take the Piccadilly line from Green Park to Leicester Square.