Wall of stars
Words Emma Juhasz Portraits Mark Seliger Celebrity photographer Mark Seliger lines up some of the world’s most talented famous faces at a new exhibition in Manchester The Brazilian supermodel Gisele lounges in her bikini while Jennifer Lopez smoulders, and a bare-chested Brad Pitt in a Roman warrior outfit stares provocatively out at us from under [...]
Words Emma Juhasz
Portraits Mark Seliger
Celebrity photographer Mark Seliger lines up some of the world’s
most talented famous faces at a new exhibition in Manchester
The Brazilian supermodel Gisele lounges in her bikini while Jennifer Lopez smoulders, and a bare-chested Brad Pitt in a Roman warrior
outfit stares provocatively out at us from under a curtain of hair. These are just some of the celebrities who have had their portraits taken by the renowned American photographer Mark Seliger. And while these images graced the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, Seliger’s vivid and compelling shots have also adorned other top publications from Vanity Fair to GQ.
Around 10 years ago Seliger bought an old brick building
in New York which triggered the start of a new project
entitled In My Stairwell and saw him overhaul his style.
During the building’s conversion an old lift was disassembled leaving an empty shaft and Seliger realised that this would make an ideal location for shooting his iconic photographs. He started taking subdued and reflective pictures in black-and-white; a complete break
from his previously vibrant, colourful work.
The resulting portraits are of an impressive roll-call of celebrities in the lift shaft, from singers Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney to ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov and the late Luciano Pavarotti, which have also appeared in a book of the same name. For the first time, 55 of these portraits are being exhibited and sold in the UK at the Richard Goodall Gallery in Manchester. It’s a rare opportunity to get your hands on a print of an iconic star by one of the finest photographers of the age.
In My Stairwell runs until 24 November 2007 at the
Richard Goodall Gallery, 103 High Street, Manchester,
+44 (0) 161 834 3330; www.richardgoodallgallery.com
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Bruce Springsteen, 2005 The guitar-wielding legend, nicknamed The Boss, burst onto the rock scene with the E Street Band and found musical stardom with his album Born to Run (1975). His hit Born in the USA (1984) sold 20 million copies and he later won an Oscar for his song Streets of Philadelphia (1994) |
Susan Sarandon, 2004 The fiery actress and political activist has had a prolific career so far. Her hit films include The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), The Witches of Eastwick (1987), Thelma & Louise (1991) and Dead Man Walking (1995) for which she won a Best Actress Oscar |
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Luciano Pavarotti, 2005 The late popular Italian tenor held a Guinness World Record for receiving the most curtain calls at 165 and brought classical music to the masses when his rendition of Nessun Dorma, from the Puccini opera Turandot, became the theme song of the 1990 FIFA World Cup |
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Mikhail Baryshnikov, 2005 The Russian is often called the world’s greatest living male ballet dancer. His mesmerising performance in the film The Turning Point (1977) earned him an Oscar nomination and he has more recently been seen playing Aleksandr Petrovsky, a boyfriend of Carrie’s, in hit American TV show Sex and the City |
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Chris Martin, 2003 The unassuming lead singer of the hugely successful British band Coldplay found fame with the group’s debut album, Grammy-winning Parachutes (2000) which sold five million copies. He married Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow in 2003 |
