Blockbuster exhibition of iconic fashion photographer Horst at McCord Museum

The first major retrospective of the works of iconic 20^th century fashion photographer Horst P. Horst, Horst: Photographer of Style, is on display at Montréal’s McCord Museum and features over 250 vintage shots that transcend time, from Horst’s Hollywood portraits of such stars as Marlene Dietrich and Joan Crawford, to nearly 100 covers of Vogue magazine. Produced by London’s Victoria and Albert Museum and curated by Susanna Brown, the McCord is the touring exhibition’s first international stop.

“I began thinking about this exhibition more than five years ago when I visited the Horst estate in America,” says Brown. “The more I looked at his work, the more I struggled to understand why he isn’t as revered as his fellow photographers of the last century, like Richard Avedon and Cecil Beaton, who have become household names.

“Interestingly, the images of Horst are familiar to people, but his name is not. I’m not entirely sure why that is, but after interviewing colleagues, friends and family, I think it came down to Horst’s own modesty, his own disbelief that these photographs would be worth anything outside the confines of magazines.”

The McCord’s beautifully laid-out exhibition is divided into several sections with different themes, such as Haute Couture, about the first models and celebrated couturiers from the 1930s, complete with garments by celebrated Parisian designers, including Chanel, Lanvin, Molyneux and Vionnet. Another section explores the influence of Surrealism on Horst, plus there are sections on his Hollywood portraits and colour photography.

“Horst was also quick to adapt new photographic technologies in the 1930s during his transition from black and white to colour photographs,” Brown explains. “Black and white is one language, and colour is another. That was a transition many of his contemporaries struggled with. Not every photographer who started in black and white was able to see the world in colour. In the final section of this exhibition you can see how rich and vibrant Horst’s use of colour still is.”

There is also a section on male nudes on loan from Elton John’s private collection.

“I think Horst’s gay sensibility did have an effect on his work,” Brown says. “Horst was extremely knowledgeable about the history of art, particularly in the 1930s in Paris where he spent a lot of time studying classical sculpture. You see in his male nudes from the early 1950s a close connection to sculpture – you think you can step into the photographs and see the sculptures from all sides. The impact this series of male nudes had on later photographers like Robert Mapplethorpe and Bruce Weber is enormous.”

Horst: Photographer of Style continues at the McCord Museum until August 23.