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<\/a>Joe Dobosz, Uranium Miner, Church Rock, New Mexico, June 13, 1979Photography by Richard Avedon \u00a9 The Richard Avedon Foundation<\/p>\nTitled with the subjects\u2019 name, age and occupation, each photograph is a masterclass in emotionally wrought storytelling. \u201cI\u2019m looking for a new definition of a photographic portrait \u2026 \u201d Avedon had stated, \u201cpeople who are surprising \u2013 heartbreaking \u2013 or beautiful in a terrifying way. Beauty that might scare you to death until you acknowledge it as part of yourself\u201d. Suffice to say, he succeeded: collectively, the works represent one of the most renowned portrait series of the 20th century. Now, just over 40 years after its unveiling at the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, Avedon\u2019s granddaughter Caroline Avedon, curator and archivist at The Richard Avedon Foundation, is offering viewers the chance to reappraise the project with Facing West, a new exhibition opening at Gagosian\u2019s Grosvenor Hill space in London.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I started at the foundation, I was tasked with organising the hundreds of Polaroid images taken of the subjects during the [making of the] western series,\u201d Caroline Avedon tells AnOther of the moment that In the American West first got under her skin. \u201cWow, was I taken aback. The sheer volume of people, all so unique and beautiful in their own ways, sparked a very intense admiration for the project.\u201d For this exhibition, she has chosen to showcase 21 prints from among Avedon\u2019s final selection with the aim of shedding light on images she feels \u201chave not yet had the chance to speak for themselves \u2026 and that might appeal to my generation [Gen Z], because each generation has to learn about the work anew.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her curation is both arresting and timely. Avedon\u2019s shot of Freida Kleinsasser, a 13-year-old member of the Hutterite colony, looks like a contemporary fashion editorial, courtesy of the girl\u2019s striking styling, combined with the timelessness of the studio-style set-up. His picture of BJ Van Fleet, meanwhile, a chubby-cheeked nine-year-old confidently toting a shotgun, feels eerily relevant \u2013 perhaps more so than when it was taken \u2013 as does the candid portrait of an unidentified migrant worker, the only subject whose name and age weren\u2019t included by the photographer.<\/p>\n Avedon described these photographs as representing \u201ca fictional West \u2026,\u201d declaring, \u201cI don\u2019t think the West of these portraits is any more conclusive than the West of John Wayne\u201d. And yet there is an unflinching intimacy and individuality to the works \u2013 a laying bare of sorts, heightened by the lack of environmental distractions and the directness with which the subjects approach Avedon\u2019s lens. \u201cEach sitter\u2019s comfort was important to Avedon,\u201d Caroline Avedon explains, detailing how her grandfather would often stand in front of or next to his camera while shooting in order to forge a deeper bond with those he was photographing. \u201cAs people, we are often focused on how we are perceived by others. Avedon wanted to strip that away. Anyone can pose for a camera and smile, but how do we drop the mask and be ourselves in a moment of vulnerability? That was his sole focus.\u201d<\/p>\nRobert Dixon, Meat Packer, Aurora, Colorado, June 15, 1983Photography by Richard Avedon \u00a9 The Richard Avedon Foundation<\/p>\n