Thursday, July 3, 2014

Prince Jérôme & Nan Goldin



The famous Napoleon Bonaparte had several brothers. The youngest was called Jérôme-Napoléon and lived from 1784 to 1860. He is pictured above after losing the puppet-title, King of Westphalia. His second son (below) entered French politics after the Revolution of 1848. He was named Napoléon Joseph Bonaparte and he lived from 1822 to 1891. Once in power, he was often referred to as Prince Jérôme Napoléon like his father.



What affinity links Napoleons's dead relatives to living American photographer Nan Goldin? Only the roulette of juxtaposition that characterizes all the mighty world's stock of visual artifacts. Nan Goldin was the subject of a recent documentary. Immediately below is a still from that film, along with two recent images created by Nan Goldin of herself with her own camera.




And for an ending, one example (just one) of the work that  starting experimentally in the 70s and taking off ferociously in the 80s  secured for Nan Goldin her membership in the small group of international fine-art celebrity photographers able to command five-figure and even six-figure prices for their prints.

Jens & Clemens embracing in my hall