Join Lucien Clergue for a signing of his book Brasília.
Lucien Clergue first won fame for his photographs of nudes, whose sensual use of light and water playing upon torsos enthralled Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau, his lifelong mentors. Today he is closely identified with Arles and its environs in the south of France, which he has portrayed for more than a half-century in numerous images of traveling artists, gypsies, war ruins and graves, plants in the swamps of the Camargue, tracks in the sand and bullfighting scenes. Brasília is the first presentation of Clergue's marvelous photographs of Brazil's capital, taken in 196263, just a few years after the city was builta body of work until recently believed to be lost.
Brasilia was developed in 1956, with Lúcio Costa as the principal urban planner, Oscar Niemeyer as the principal architect and Roberto Burle Marx as the landscape designer. Clergue's (mostly unpeopled) portrayals of the metropolis highlight the powerful, upward-sweeping curves of Niemeyer's architecture, while often leaving plenty of space to articulate the cool beauty of its emphatically modernist ambitions. Brasília is a breathtaking celebration of the sublimity of a confident, optimistic architecture, and a crucial rediscovery in the history of architectural photography. The first photographer to be elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in France, Lucien Clergue (born 1934) has published more than 75 books and directed numerous films. His photographs are in the collections of numerous well-known museums and have been exhibited in more than 100 solo exhibitions worldwide, including at The Museum of Modern Art in New York (1961, the last exhibition organized by Edward Steichen).
Please note that due to professional obligations, photographer's book signing dates may change without notification. Limit of two signed copies per customer. Pre-orders and reserve orders are not guaranteed but every effort is made to fulfill orders. Books must be purchased from the ICP Store. If purchased before date of event, please bring your receipt. For more information, call 212.857.9725.
This event takes place during voluntary contribution hours at the museum.
Free Friday night programs in the Museum are supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn.
