Keeping it real is the theme du jour at That's Not My Age but I can't help wondering whether Juergen Teller's photos of Kristen McMenamy, 46, are a step too far. I understand Teller's warts and all aesthetic - it was provocative and refreshing in the nineties - but that was 20 years ago. Now his work feels tired, and insensitive as far as older models are concerned. Need I mention the Vivienne Westwood ad campaigns? I'm all for wrinkles over Botox, reality over Photoshop but this shoot for style mag 032c (a beautiful magazine that's maybe missed the mark this time) is deeply unappealing.
Naked pilates anyone?
Just be grateful I didn't include the bum hole shot.
Does this Juergen Teller shoot make the world a richer place? I think not. There's only one place for it:
Your comments, please...
Yuk. That wouldn't be pretty whatever age the model, and this one's in pretty good nick as it goes.
ReplyDeleteBeing older doesn't have to be tasteless...I don't find her offensive...I find the sets very unappealing and not age appropriate...cause as we get older, we get more sensitive to these things...not less!
ReplyDeleteNo it doesn't make the world a richer place...surprised
ReplyDeleteKristen did the shoot...she looks fabulous dressed...have you seen Karl Lagerfeld's film @ chanel.com? That's how I like to see Kristen...what exactly are Juergen Teller's photographs saying???
Great blog...new follower!
http://wwwcatherinerobinsoncashmere.blogspot.com/
agree with everything you said here. she isn't tasteless, but those photos are.
ReplyDeletealexa
Hmmm...I don't know! I like her so much, it affects what I think of the photos.
ReplyDeleteI agree his style hasn't evolved much...though it seems to me that no business lets anyone evolve much at all. If you're successful with XYZ you better keep doing it whether you're an author, a photographer, an actor or a jewelry designer :-(
I just wonder what the point of this is? It's not beautiful, it's not interesting - what is it trying to say? That even a beautiful woman doesn't look so great in soft porn shots past a certain age? I certainly didn't need to see these to know that ...
ReplyDeleteWendy - I agree, sticking with a winning formula makes business sense and I'm a Kirsten fan too, but like Tiffany and Catherine, I wonder what the point is? Maybe they're just reliving a nineties moment?
ReplyDeleteI like her. But these photos? Yikes. I look better naked than this. And I'm 54.
ReplyDeleteNo beauty in these images, even hidden beauty. Definitely BIN THEM!
ReplyDelete...wholeheartedly agree..... the bin's the right place.
ReplyDeleteI like the unairbrushed truth of them. Not flattering but good to see an aging, skinny body in all it's harsh lit glory. Get really bored of all those young models in fluffy fashion shoots. I'm buying the magazine!
ReplyDeletehideous no matter the age of the model.
ReplyDeleteGood God, she looks like something out of Belsen.
ReplyDeleteQuick, quick in the bin. I am really grateful you didnt show us the bumhole shot. Xxxx
ReplyDeleteToo much reality for me xx
ReplyDeleteugh - anorexic looking bodies are always a fright, but when someone is in their 40's, scary as scary can be. Nothing attractive whatsoever about theses photos - no celebration of aging at all. bleh
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. Hideous, pointless, insulting. Would turn me right of the magazine, too. Poor judgement.
ReplyDeleteI don't know...I'm Kristen's age and a photographer who makes self-portraits...how is this insulting? A photograph is just an image, not a reflection of character. Aging, and the deterioration of the body, is inevitable as long as we're alive; why regard it negatively?
ReplyDelete