Bailey’s Stardust

6 February – 1 June 2014 National Portrait Gallery

I visited the David Bailey’s Stardust exhibition in April and was intriguingly surprised by some of the work shown. No, it was not the iconic passport style portraits of “A” listed celebrities, which by the way I like. It was the inquisitive addition of a series of portraits taken on a smart phone. These images were not as technically impressive due to photographic limitations, however having a photographer of David Bailey’s stature condoning and embracing this new approach to photography gives it great weight as an acceptable art form to exhibit.

The National Portrait Gallery flyer had a couple of interesting quotes, from Bailey giving us a brief insight into his approach. I have selected a few images from the exhibition to view while pondering his words.

” When I photograph people, directly they come through the door I’m already photographing them. You watch the way they move, and their personality, and which side of the face they prefer, and all sorts of things” David Bailey

Kate_Moss_2013_David_Bailey

Jerry_Hall_and_Helmut_Newton_Cannes_by_David_Bailey-1983

Jerry_Hall_and_Helmut_Newton_Cannes_by_David_Bailey-1983

mick_jagger_david_bailey_1964

mick_jagger_david_bailey_1964

“In photography everything is so ordinary it takes a lot of looking before you learn to see the extraordinary” David Bailey

Images left to right: Kate Moss 2013, Jerry Hall and Helmut Newton Cannes 1983 and Mick Jagger 1964. All images by David Bailey