We don't think anyone can dispute the fact that Helmut Newton was a really interesting guy.
Here are a few fun facts you might not have known.
We don't think anyone can dispute the fact that Helmut Newton was a really interesting guy.
Here are a few fun facts you might not have known.
He preferred faces over bodies
Despite being best known for his photographs of nude women, Newton said he preferred to shoot interesting faces.
He found eroticism in a woman’s face, not her body, although one woman he claimed he wanted to photograph may surprise you…Ann Widdecombe.
“A face made for the camera,” he said.
He sadly never got to photograph her.
He preferred faces over bodies
Despite being best known for his photographs of nude women, Newton said he preferred to shoot interesting faces.
He found eroticism in a woman’s face, not her body, although one woman he claimed he wanted to photograph may surprise you…Ann Widdecombe.
“A face made for the camera,” he said.
He sadly never got to photograph her.
His real name was Helmut Neustaedter
Born into a wealthy Jewish family in Berlin in 1920, Newton’s real name was Neustaedter.
After a warning that he was about to be arrested by the Nazis, he fled with just a razor and a handful of cash he grabbed. He and his parents later fled Germany altogether, his parents travelling to South America while he boarded a ship in 1938, bound for China, along with 200 other fleeing the Nazis. He didn’t actually make it to China, instead landing in Singapore where he was able to get a job with the Straits Times as a photographer.
After the war, he became a British subject and changed his name to Newton.
His real name was Helmut Neustaedter
Born into a wealthy Jewish family in Berlin in 1920, Newton’s real name was Neustaedter.
After a warning that he was about to be arrested by the Nazis, he fled with just a razor and a handful of cash he grabbed. He and his parents later fled Germany altogether, his parents travelling to South America while he boarded a ship in 1938, bound for China, along with 200 other fleeing the Nazis. He didn’t actually make it to China, instead landing in Singapore where he was able to get a job with the Straits Times as a photographer.
After the war, he became a British subject and changed his name to Newton.
He hated working in the studio - and he was colour-blind!
He hated working in the studio, often working at night and nearly always used natural light when possible. And he was colour-blind, unable to differentiate between greens and blues.
His work is almost always in black and white, a style which was influenced by Brassai, whom be admired very much.
Newton championed Brassai’s street photography, borrowing from New Wave cinema and the surreal images of Man Ray and Eugène Atget.
Along with Richard Avedon and Irving Penn, his influence on future generations has been seismic – most notably in the work of Terry Richardson and Juergen Teller.
He hated working in the studio - and he was colour-blind!
He hated working in the studio, often working at night and nearly always used natural light when possible. And he was colour-blind, unable to differentiate between greens and blues.
His work is almost always in black and white, a style which was influenced by Brassai, whom be admired very much.
Newton championed Brassai’s street photography, borrowing from New Wave cinema and the surreal images of Man Ray and Eugène Atget.
Along with Richard Avedon and Irving Penn, his influence on future generations has been seismic – most notably in the work of Terry Richardson and Juergen Teller.
As a youngster, he suffered from "Excessive Masturbation."
So much so, that his family physician prescribed “boom boom” with a woman to cure it!
Certainly not a remedy you would find on a modern-day prescription…
As a youngster, he suffered from "Excessive Masturbation."
So much so, that his family physician prescribed “boom boom” with a woman to cure it!
Certainly not a remedy you would find on a modern-day prescription…
He had tons of really famous mates.
He was great friends with Karl Lagerfeld who sat for him in 1973.
Lagerfeld was at the time producing ambitious collections for Chloé and both men forged up a lasting friendship, connecting over their shared love of photography.
Lagerfeld was a great admirer and collector of Newton’s work, noting during an interview with Aperture magazine: “I collect Helmut Newton, tons of them. Very beautiful and huge ones. The last thing I received from him was a beautiful photo of David Lynch and Isabella Rossellini”.
He had tons of really famous mates.
He was great friends with Karl Lagerfeld who sat for him in 1973.
Lagerfeld was at the time producing ambitious collections for Chloé and both men forged up a lasting friendship, connecting over their shared love of photography.
Lagerfeld was a great admirer and collector of Newton’s work, noting during an interview with Aperture magazine: “I collect Helmut Newton, tons of them. Very beautiful and huge ones. The last thing I received from him was a beautiful photo of David Lynch and Isabella Rossellini”.
And David Bowie too!
David Bowie was an avid collector of Newton’s work, and the two became great personal friends.
They shared a mutual respect for each other’s creative genius.
Bowie posed for Newton on numerous occasions for Vogue and Playboy magazine amongst others.
Tune in next week to see part three in our series.
And David Bowie too!
David Bowie was an avid collector of Newton’s work, and the two became great personal friends.
They shared a mutual respect for each other’s creative genius.
Bowie posed for Newton on numerous occasions for Vogue and Playboy magazine amongst others.
To see which exclusive Helmut Newton prints you can purchase click here
For details of our current Helmut Newton exhibition, click here
To see which exclusive Helmut Newton prints you can purchase click here
For details of our current Helmut Newton exhibition, click here