He saw himself as a contract killer: “A Gun for Hire”, as Helmut Newton jokingly called himself, referring to his work for various customers. The star photographer, who died in 2004, is best known for his nudes and portraits of strong women. The Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin is now devoting an exhibition to an aspect of Newton’s career that was also of great importance: his work as a commercial photographer.
Under the title “Brands”, over 200 of Newton’s photographs are shown, which he created for various clients during the 1980s and 1990s. You can see fashion shows for luxury labels such as Blumarine, Yves Saint Laurent and Valentino. But also for spirits manufacturers, hardware stores or plumbing companies. Newton knew no bounds in his artistic freedom – companies benefited from his genius and his love of provocation.
One of the last advertising campaigns that he realized shortly before his death was for a potency pill from the German pharmaceutical company Bayer. However, the black and white motifs were never released due to a looming legal battle.
The exhibition “Brands” runs until May 14, 2023 at the Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin.
At the same time, the Taschen Verlag a revised new edition of the illustrated book “A Gun for Hire”. The book was published by Helmut Newton’s wife June and shows numerous advertising photos by the photographer on 240 pages.