LACMA Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Larry Fink

13 Feb - 03 Apr 2011

© Larry Fink
Steven Tyler, 2004
Printed 2010
Inkjet Print
16 x 20 in.
LARRY FINK
Hollywood, 2000–2009
13 February – 3 April, 2011

From blue collar to black tie, Larry Fink has photographed gatherings of every sort during his 40-year career. Keenly attuned to the emotional vibrations that animate social events, he deploys basic capacities of photography—framing, flash, depth of field—to show us gestures, textures, and fleeting expressions we would otherwise miss.
Fink is, among other things, a society photographer, but he doesn't flatter the elite. From 2000 to 2009, Fink documented Vanity Fair's annual Oscar-night party. The very presence of Fink—who is neither paparazzo nor photojournalist—indicates how the parties, and Hollywood culture, have evolved. Mainstream media coverage gives everyone a glimpse of glamour, but Fink provides a different kind of access. The revelation of Fink's society photographs is not that celebrities are superficial, but that their humanity is profound and complex.
All prints are lent by the artist and were made in 2010. Larry Fink thanks Vanity Fair for allowing him to participate in their annual elegant salute to the Academy Awards and the Oscar recipients. This exhibition was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and was supported in part by a generous grant from The Alix Brotman Foundation of California. Image: © Larry Fink, Natalia Vodianova, 2007.