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David Bailey
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David Bailey CBE (born 2 January 1938 in Leytonstone, London) is a celebrated English photographer.
ough born in Leytonstone, his family were forced to move to Heigham Road, East Ham when a World War II bomb destroyed the family home. Bailey was three years old, and this is where he and Thelma, his younger sister, were raised by their father Herbert, a tailor's cutter, and his wife, Gladys. Herbert left the family, and Gladys took work as a machinist.
Bailey developed a love of natural history, and this led him into photography.
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David Bailey CBE (born 2 January 1938 in Leytonstone, London) is a celebrated English photographer.
Early life
Although born in Leytonstone, his family were forced to move to Heigham Road, East Ham when a World War II bomb destroyed the family home. Bailey was three years old, and this is where he and Thelma, his younger sister, were raised by their father Herbert, a tailor's cutter, and his wife, Gladys. Herbert left the family, and Gladys took work as a machinist.
Bailey developed a love of natural history, and this led him into photography. Suffering from undiagnosed dyslexia, he experienced problems at school. He attended private school, Clark's College in Ilford, where he says they taught him less than the more basic council school.
In one school year, he claims he only attended 33 times. He left school on his fifteenth birthday, to become a copy boy at the Fleet Street offices of the Yorkshire Post. He raced through a series of dead end jobs, before his call up for National Service in 1956, serving with the Royal Air Force in Singapore in 1957. The appropriation of his trumpet forced him to consider other creative outlets, and he bought a Rolleiflex.
He was demobbed in August 1958, and determined to pursue a career in photography, he purchased a Canon Rangefinder. Unable to obtain a place at the London College of Printing, because of his school record, he became a second assistant to David Ollins, in Charlotte Mews. He earned £3 10s (£3.50) a week, and acted as studio dogsbody. He was delighted to be called to an interview with John French.
Professional career
In 1959 he became a photographic assistant at the John French studio before being contracted as a fashion photographer for Vogue magazine in 1960. He also undertook a large amount of freelance work.
Along with Terence Donovan, he captured, and in many ways helped create the 'Swinging London' of the 1960s: a culture of high fashion and celebrity chic. Both photographers socialised with actors, musicians and royalty, and found themselves elevated to celebrity status. Together, they were the first real celebrity photographers.
Of Supermodel Jean Shrimpton, Bailey said:
The 'Swinging London' scene was aptly reflected in his Box of Pin-Ups (1964): a box of poster-prints of 1960s celebrities and socialites including Terence Stamp, The Beatles, and notorious East End gangsters the Kray twins (see photo).
The box was an unusual and unique commercial release, and it reflected the changing status of the photographer that one could sell a collection of prints in this way. (The strong objection to the presence of the Krays on the part of Lord Snowdon was the major reason no American edition of the "Box" ever appeared, nor a British second edition issued.)
One of the most notable points about the portraits within the box is that Bailey cut off the tops of the subject's head or cropped in closer than most traditional portrait photographers would have done at the time. This gave an impression that the pictures were bigger than they actually are, and has since become a common practice in portrait and fashion photography.
In 1966, the film Blowup was made, directed by Michelangelo Antonioni. The film concerned itself with the work and sexual habits of a London fashion photographer played by David Hemmings and largely based on Bailey.
As well as fashion photography, Bailey has been responsible for record album sleeve art, for performers including The Rolling Stones and Marianne Faithfull. He has also directed several television commercials and documentaries.
One of Bailey's most famous works depicts the Rolling Stones. It features Brian Jones, who drowned in 1969 while under the influence of drink and drugs. He is seen standing slightly apart from the rest of the group.
In 1976, Bailey published Ritz Newspaper together with David Litchfield.
Bailey was awarded the CBE in 2001. and has worked with Manchester band Oasis, boxer Naseem Hamed and Supermodel Naomi Campbell.
In 2005, he was involved in a feature titled "British Rule" for GQ magazine, charting the British influence on rock n' roll, photographing several artists including Paul Weller, Jarvis Cocker, Razorlight, Brian Eno, M.I.A., Ian Brown, The Futureheads, Belle and Sebastian, Damon Albarn, Dizzee Rascal, Kaiser Chiefs, Robyn Hitchcock, Super Furry Animals, and Colin Blunstone for the spread.
He maintains that his style of photography remains the same:
Personal life
Bailey has been married four times: in 1960 to Rosemary Bramble, in 1965 to the actress Catherine Deneuve (divorced 1972), in 1975 to the model Marie Helvin and in 1986 to the model Catherine Dyer to whom he remains married. He has not eaten mammals from an early age, has not drunk alcohol for many years and does not exercise. He is an art lover with a long held passion for the works of Picasso..
Books
- The Birth of the Cool, by David Bailey, (1999). ISBN 0-670-88818-4
- If We Shadows, by David Bailey (photographs) and George Melly (preface), (2001). ISBN 0-500-28255-2
- Chasing Rainbows, by David Bailey (photographs) and Robin Muir (text), (2001). ISBN 0-500-54241-4
Further reading
External links
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