Richardson

Terry (1967). American photographer, who was literally born into the profession. An unusual character even in the world of fashion (he dresses in jeans and a T-“shirt, shows off his tattoos and a prominent moustache), loves non-conformist behavior, just like his father Bob in his day, whom he also imitates in the style of his work: at first he fought against the sarcasm that surrounded him because he didn’t like complex sets or assistants, he never took test Polaroids and he never designed choreographies or lighting schemes. Quite simply, he would appear on the set with two compact Yashica/Contax cameras, and to those who questioned his approach he would offer little pills of wisdom (“You’re not going to let machinery and technology be the basis of your creativity, are you?”) or artfully targeted ironic phrases (“I’m nearsighted, I could never focus with bigger cameras”). The fact remains that he did famous photographic portraits of such famous personalities as Faye Dunaway and Catherine Deneuve along with his layouts in The Face, Vogue France, and Harper’s Bazaar, as well as his exhibitions in Paris, London, and New York. His campaigns for H M, Anna Molinari, Evian, Supreme shops (for whom he shot a 2002 calendar) and, recently, Gucci, were famous; at the same time, he had a decidedly innovative long-term relationship with Sisley and with its creative director Nikko Amandonico that began in 1990. Here, in campaigns rich with a harsh and mysterious allure, catalogues that were sent out in brown-paper wrappings to keep them from falling into the hands of minors, there emerged a daring conception of the body and sex that has come to embody a way of seeing: photographs that are only apparently immediate, ironic gazes, composition of stunning efficacy, acceptance of such technical “errors” as the so-called red eyes, a subtle parody of erotic photography, implemented with the same stylistic methods.