Radiance

"Radiance"

Exhibition from the 11th of October 2019 to the 22th of January 2020

At Galerie des Bains, rue des Bains 22, 1205 Geneva

RADIANCE

David LaChapelle’s solo exhibition, from the 11^th of October 2019 to the 22^thof January 2020 at the Galerie des Bains in Geneva

Works from 1987-2019 explore various aspects of LaChapelle’s vast career to reveal the unique point of view which has expanded the definition of photography and established the image maker as a fixture in contemporary art. Highlights of the exhibition include My Own Liz (2017), an homage to LaChapelle’s early mentor – Andy Warhol, as well as Rape of Africa (2009), a re-imagining of Sandro Botticelli’s Venus and After the Deluge: Statue (2012), a romantic bodement of temporal beauty set in this present biblical epoch. In Gas Shell (2012) a mundane symbol of the industrial revolution becomes a temple, reclaimed by its own bloodline in the prehistoric jungle. On view from LaChapelle’s newest series is Annunciation (2019), a vibrant interpretation of Announcement of Incarnation.

ABOUT THE ARTIST 

David LaChapelle was born in Connecticut in 1963 and attended high school at North Carolina School of The Arts. Originally enrolled as a painter, he developed an analogue technique by hand-painting his own negatives to achieve a sublime spectrum of color before processing his film. At age 17, LaChapelle moved to New York City. Following his first photography show at Gallery 303, he was hired by Andy Warhol to work at Interview Magazine. Through his mastery of color, unique composition, and imaginative narratives, LaChapelle’s staged tableau, portrait and still-life works challenged devices of traditional photography and quickly gained international interest. By 1991, The New York Times predicted, “LaChapelle is certain to influence the work of a new generation…in the same way that Mr. Avedon pioneered so much of what is familiar today.”

In the decades since, LaChapelle has become one of the most published photographers throughout the world with an anthology of books including LaChapelle Land (1996), Hotel LaChapelle (1999), Heaven to Hell (2006), Lost & Found, and Good News (2017). Simultaneously, his work has expanded into music video, film and stage projects. His 2005 feature film Rize was released theatrically in 17 countries. Many of his still and film works have become iconic archetypes of America in the 21st Century.

In The past 30 years, LaChapelle has exhibited internationally in galleries and museums including the National Portrait Gallery (London), Musée de Monnaie (Paris), Barbican Centre (London), Victoria and Albert Museum (London), Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Musee D’Orsay (Paris), Groninger Museum (The Netherlands), Palazzo delle Esposizioni (Rome), National Portrait Gallery (Washington D.C.) and Casa dei Tre Oci (Venice). 2019 includes a major solo exhibition at La Venaria Reale (Turin).

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