Coming June there will be an impressive and complete exhibition of photographs from the artist who marked history: Helmut Newton. The legendary Newton left behind a large and rich collection of artistic and fashion work.

“My job as a portrait photographer is to seduce, amuse and entertain.”

From June 17 until the September 4, 2016, Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam exhibits a fabulous retrospective and pays tribute to the fashion photographer, who revolutionised the focus on feminine beauty. Today it is obvious that women play a central role in all of his collections. Not only the women, but also the way the artist addresses taboo subjects, such as sado-masochism and fetishism, was recognized as genius by international fashion magazine such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Playboy, and Elle.

The Dutch retrospective shows over 200 photographs from his oeuvre of vintage prints from the Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin, consisting of rare works to monumental and famous photos. Also discover “Helmut by June” , the biography created by Newton’s wife in 1995.

Self Portrait with Wife and Models, Vogue Studio, Paris, 1981 © Helmut Newton / Helmut Newton Estate

Catherine Deneuve, Esquire, Paris 1976 © Helmut Newton / Helmut Newton Estate

Since his childhood, Helmut was attracted to photography as a form of art. Capturing the moment and, more precisely, the shapes, body positions and glances became an obsession. Famous for his trendsetting body of work, he started studying photography early on, as the apprentice of the popular German portrait and fashion photographer Else Simon. A few years later, because of political and military events, the Newton family moved to Singapore. Although the circumstances could force an artist to leave his artistic work, Helmut kept going with his love for photography. Finally he took a leap of faith and started a photo studio, where during the following years several icons of cinema, fashion and art were immortalized through his camera lens.

« It’s that I don’t like white paper backgrounds. A woman does not live in front of white paper. She lives on the street, in a motorcar, in a hotel room. »

X-Ray, Van-Clef & Arpels, French-Vogue, 1994 © Helmut Newton/ Helmut Newton Estate

During the following fifteen years, his reputation grew and he received recognition for his art and style, even across the borders. Innovative because of his vision on female sensuality, he always made portraits by paying attention to particular details. His love of black and white photos is present in his work, in which the positions and expressions of the models are emphasized. His collection contains a vintage effect and brings you back in time, as if you were present during the photo-shoot, whether it is in colour or black and white. In other words, this visionary changed photography by adding his personal touch and love for female beauty. Today we remember Newton for his unique twist given to each of his photographs.Save the date to learn more about this supremely influential photographer.

Book tickets now: https://tickets.foam.org/foam-en