Famous film and theater actress Jessica Lange, winner of two Oscars, has been building a career as an art photographer for almost two decades. The first of its kind retrospective in Bulgaria is within the framework of the "Masters of Photography" platform and includes nearly 120 black and white photos revealing the interests of Jessica Lang, captured by the lens of the camera. These are very personal, almost intimate works created during travels around the world.
What happens when instead of being in front of the camera, one stands behind it?
Lang was drawn to the medium of photography, initially documenting her loved ones. In her book, 50 Photographs, she writes: "I remember looking at boxes of photographs as a child and being very impressed by them, by this ability on tape to capture a fleeting moment as a record of time and space."
In 1967, Lang won a scholarship to study photography at the University of Minnesota, which he gave up to pursue acting. During her stay in Paris in the 1970s, she befriended the notable photographers Robert Frank and Danny Lyon, who helped her develop, refine and focus her vision. She rediscovered this passion only in the early 1990s, when she received a Leica camera as a gift. Since then, he has not topped taking pictures.
Although initially drawn to photography simply as a way to document her children's lives and upbringing, Lang continued to shoot, using the art as an antidote to the unrelenting emotions of Hollywood. She says this: “It's a way of working that is the opposite of acting. Photography does not depend on interaction, it can be independent and personal.'
From the Yucatan to Russia to Scandinavia, from Minnesota to Romania to Ethiopia, Lang's photographs are both a cinematic and traditional fixation on a particular time and place. Although the subjects range from the traditional American carnival to a backwoods railroad covered in snow, time and again the feeling is reinforced that light is the real subject of the pictures. Lang cannot completely escape the influence of cinematography. The charm of her photographs comes from the cinematic feel of them – the atmosphere, the dramatic lighting and the brilliantly captured moments that seem to tell stories. Lang designates the location only as a title and does not date his photographs, further emphasizing their timelessness.
In 2007, Mary Ellen Mark, one of the greatest documentary photographers of all time, gave the world its first glimpse of Lang's visual work in an article for Aperture magazine: “Jessica's position as a photographer is decidedly that of an anonymous observer. I find this very interesting because as an actress she has to constantly engage both her co-stars and her audience. As a photographer, she chose the opposite point of view." And according to Deborah Klochko, director of the San Diego Museum of Photographic Arts: “The talented Jessica Lange is equally at home on both sides of the camera – both as an actress and as a photographer in her own right. Her photographs are powerful and expressive, allowing the viewer to touch a part of life that few get to truly see. The images have a strong cinematic feel that often teeters on the edge of darkness.”
Born and raised in Cloquet, Lang is known for her roles in King Kong, Tootsie, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Frances, Blue Skies and Gray Gardens. She is the thirteenth actress in history to be awarded the Triple Crown for acting, having won two Academy Awards, three Emmy Awards, one Tony Award, one Screen Actors Guild Award, and five Golden Globe Awards...
Her photographs have been exhibited at the George Eastman Museum in Rochester, NY (2009); Museum of Multimedia Art in Moscow (2014); The Art Photography Gallery of New Orleans (2014); The Santa Monica Art Center in Barcelona (2015); The Cultural Center of Cascais in Portugal (2015); the Howard Greenberg Gallery in New York (2008, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2020); MOPA - San Diego Museum of Photographic Arts (2013); The San Benito Municipal Gallery in Valladolid and the Niemeyer Cultural Center in Aviles, Spain (2011); BWA City Gallery in Bydgoszcz, Poland (2016); the "Alta" gallery in Paris (Paris Photo 2023), etc.
Jessica Lange was the inaugural recipient of the George Eastman Museum Honorary Award in 2009. Her books include her debut monograph 50 Photographs (powerHouse Books, 2008), In Mexico (RM, 2010) and the children's book It's About for a little bird' (Sourcebooks, 2013). She dedicates her book Highway 61 (powerHouse Books, 2019) to her partner of 26 years, the playwright and actor Sam Shepherd, who gave her her first camera.
For Howard Greenberg
Howard Greenberg is among the world's leading photo gallerists, curators and established art dealers. He founded the eponymous gallery in 1991. He is a leading authority on 19th and 20th century photography and a recognized leader in establishing its value in the fine art market. In recognition of these efforts and his unparalleled collection of more than 40,000 photographs, American Photo magazine named Greenberg one of the twenty-five most influential people in photography.
Greenberg is currently a member of the Association of International Photographic Art Dealers (AIPAD) and the Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA). He was on the Board of Directors of AIPAD from 1987 to 1994, and is currently Chairman of the Board of the Woodstock Center for Photography. Howard Greenberg and his gallery have received a number of honors: Lucie Foundation Photo Gallery of the Year (2004 and 2022); Aperture Foundation Award for Contribution to Fine Art Photography (2012); Lifetime Achievement Award from the George Eastman Museum (2023).
Greenberg's personal collection was presented at the Musée Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland (2012); The Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation in Paris, France (2013); The Hungarian House of Photography "Mai Mano House" in Budapest, Hungary (2013 – 2014) and the Jewish Museum in Amsterdam, The Netherlands (2014). In September 2018, the collection was acquired in its entirety by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Masters of Photography 16th Edition is organized by the MUSIC Foundation in partnership with the National Gallery and the Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York. The project is implemented with the financial support of the Ministry of Culture, the "Lachezar Tsotsorkov" Foundation, the Metropolitan Municipality - Calendar of Cultural Events and the US Embassy. The exhibition is supported by UniCredit Bulbank and "SOF Connect" - the operator of Sofia Airport. It is carried out with the cooperation of Grand Hotel Sofia and "VIP Digivision", an official representative of Leica. Official media partner of the National Gallery: BTA / Bulgarian Telegraph Agency.
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