Any place that dedicates fully four floors to photography gets high marks in my book. When you…read moreenter off the street you are greeted by cool stone garden only black and white stones (black and white...get it?).
Each floor contains at least one, and sometimes two artists (there are basically two wings at each level. There is a small book store / gift shop on the second level. Accouterments include wood floors, white walls and spot halogens.
On the downside and in terms of the gallery itself, there are parts of several galleries where they have images on both walls of a narrow hallway. I understand the need for quantity, but the viewing experience of having to wait, move around and sometimes in front of others is distracting.
English translation of the posted information seems to be hit and miss - it was there for Alice Springs, but not for Claude Nori. I know; I'm in France. But I don't feel the need to defend this mild criticism. This format - having information, biographies, etc. - posted in both French and English is simply a more enlightened approach to their business (see also Jau de Paume).
As for the exhibits currently in place, here's my take:
Choi: Large, abstract and relying on darkroom and technique. I don't get it.
Claude Nori: It seems like Claude traveled around Italy in the 1970s and 80s and took a lot of picture of his family and friends on vacation at the beach. That's cool, and he captured some moments for sure. But, overall I found the Nori exhibit little monotonous.
Alice Springs (June Newton): Definitely the marquis exhibit. I wasn't sure what to expect and was a little surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Alice Springs is known for her straight photography and straight-on it is.
In one sense, it's easy to believe that a big part of her success is simply access to the (at least in their own minds) movers and shakers of the 1970s - 1990s. But access is not all there is to June Newton's success and in fact its not really the predominant factor. Access only gets you in the door, its what you do once you're there that counts.
Many of the large black and white portraits are striking, if for nothing more than their subject. And, some of the impact comes from how quickly many of these individuals are forgotten - or perhaps never really known outside of June's circle (i.e. Edmund Teske, Erte, Lou Lou de la Falaise, Alice Springs, etc.)
One of the things you get to see with a retrospective exhibit is the artists work as a whole and when you look at it like this you can draw some conclusions about their vision and talent. Newton took pictures of people who were at the top of their game either as professionals or professional social climbers. Some of the images are ironic (ironic funny, not iconic) - especially the socialites who came across as insecure and arrogant in exactly equal measures. On the other hand, the two Dennis Hopper (1981 and 1986) images (the camera loved Hopper), were classic in that they capture a guy who is both believably insecure and completely confident. Ok, I guess Hopper is a bit iconic.
One of the strangest images was of Gordon Liddy and Timothy Leary together in 1990 - weird.
The Hells Angels images were a little contrived, until I got to the one of the HA president and his family - think chopper, small boy, top bad-ass and his smiling wife with a single almost missing tooth that is the centerpiece of the image - classic.
Frederico Fellini in 1986 - neither vain nor insecure - busy.
Robert Maplethorpe 1977 - cool portrait of an artist just starting.
The Scott brothers (Ridley and Tony) together in 1979. Sort of sad now.
If you have a chance to visit this exhibit or any other, please go. It's worth it. Probably a 10 minute walk from Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Marais or Bastille.
