It is commonly claimed that a picture is worth a thousand words. Likewise, a photograph can often tell much more of the portrayed person that the person oneself. Bearing a great power of strong emotions, meaningful message, and expression of beauty itself, the photograph can be however viewed and reinterpreted from many different ways. This essay thereby aims to analyze and provide my own personal reinterpretation of the photograph of Gabrielle Chanel made by Richard Avedon in March 1958.
This monochrome photograph exhibits a closely-shot, worm's eye view portrait of woman in her middle age. As it is judged by the photograph, the lady is endowed with an impeccable style and elegant accessories: exquisite jewelry, such as fine gems earrings and a pair of contrasting necklaces twirled around her neck, outlines her image of a fashionable person, which is intensified by her raven-black hat with a wide round brim. The woman's face is photographed in such a face that her hat resembles a nimbus. Despite her slightly wrinkled skin which may be seen on her chin, as well as not taking into account the angle of the shot and her facial expression, the woman is undoubtedly beautiful. On the given photograph, though, the woman bulges her lips strongly into the shape similar to the duck's beak, which makes a photograph highly unusual, greatly expressive, and somewhat funny.
The woman portrayed on the photograph is Coco Chanel herself. The photographer's style is apparent on this photo: it is claimed that Avedon “was able to capture the rare emotion and a unique essence of his subjects that many other photographers failed to do”. Creating what is considered fashion photography, Avendon, however, applied a mixture of different artistic techniques and was influenced by a number of art movements, namely, taking its creativity and experimentalism in photo perspectives from Dadaism, the style that, according to the Rndom House Dictionary, “programmatically challenged established canons of art, thought, morality, etc.”
Works Cited
Hill, K. Richard Avendon. International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum. N.d. Web. 14 January 2017.
