I think a lot of people find his work to be either pretentious, offensive, exploitative or simply messy, but I've always loved the photography (and accompanying mixed media) of Peter Beard. Yes, he's a flagrant jet-setting posh boy with famous friends and all that, but I can't help but be captivated by his depictions of the wild, augmented by random found objects, collage, doodles and buckets of the man's own blood. Maybe it's simply the exotica aspect of it or the fact that he likes big scary beasts, self-mutilation, skulls and naked supermodels (often within one single piece), but I find his work really striking. There was a gallery on Broome Street in the early part of this decade that boasted a fine collection of his work. Peggy and I actually bought a tiny print there in 1999; a snapshot of two cheetah cubs, replete with drops of Beard's blood. It hangs in a rustic driftwood frame (also made by Beard), incongruously over our front hall telephone.
I wasn't aware of what he'd been up to lately until I spotted this article on Jezebel (via Gawker) today. Beard has just shot the mega-exclusive Pirelli Calendar, and it's rife with the requisite fauna and flora that has come to be Beard's signature. See the calendar shots in their entirety here. The nude shots are pretty tasteful, all told, but there are also some shots of rotting animal carcasses (of course). Enjoy.
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