Lot 44: Susie Smoking, 1988

Susie Smoking, 1988
Hand-coated pigment print, printed 2008. 76.2 x 60.5 cm. (30 x 23.8 in).  Signed, dated and numbered 1/3 in pencil on the verso. One from an edition of 3 plus 2 artist's proofs.

  Out Of Fashion, Photographers Gallery, London, 7 April – 27 May 1989 (another example exhibited); Image and Fashion, Rencontres en Arles, 1989 (another example exhibited); Vanities, Centre National de la Photographie, Paris, 1993 (another example exhibited); Yohji Yamamoto ‘May I Help you?’, Maison Européenne de la Photographie (MEP), Paris, 30 October – 1 December 2002 (another example exhibited)

  Centre National de la Photographie, Vanities, exh. cat., Paris, 1993; Bruno Remaury, Dictionnaire de la Mode au XXe Siecle, Paris, 1994, p. 1994; Phaidon Press Ltd, The Photography Book, London 1997, p. 248; Thames and Hudson Ltd, Francois Baudot, Yohji Yamamoto (Fashion Memoir), London, 1997 p. 49; PHOTO magazine, March/ April, 1992, cover

 Acquired directly from the artist

Nick Knight published his first book of photographs, Skinhead, in 1982 at the age of 24 which lead to i-D Editor Terry Jones commissioning Knight to shoot a series of 100 portraits for the magazine’s fifth anniversary issue. The portraits caught the eye of art director Marc Ascoli who chose Knight to shoot the 1986 catalogue of Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto in collaboration with acclaimed graphic designer Peter Saville. Knight went onto produce 12 successive catalogues together with Yamamoto during a time when their campaigns were one of the most highly regarded. This sustained collaborative approach is something that has become a hallmark of Knight’s career in his work with Alexander McQueen, his revitalization of Dior in the 90’s, and his record covers and music videos for Bjork.
He seamlessly navigates the worlds of fashion, advertising, music, and art, with editorial and commercial projects for clients ranging from Vivienne Westwood to Mercedes Benz to the Royal Opera House. Knight is relentless in his harnessing of and experimentation with the latest technological advances in photography and film to question and challenge the conventional idea of beauty.
I don't want to reflect social change – I want to cause social change.                                                            Nick Knight
Another example of this work is held in the permanent collection of the Kobe Fashion Museum, Japan.