ludes is -the eye-, a visionary, photographer, designer, creator of beauty with everything he touches - faces, architecture, yachts, landscape, interiors.
the exhibition in florence is a retrospective of ludes’ years as the chanel paris beauté photographer and celebrities he photographed during this period.
gianluca sasso presents the first photographic exhibition in florence dedicated to the master and photographer ludes, an artist who with his visionary gaze has radically changed the way of photographing the world of beauty.
here is gianluca sasso’s introduction of the ludes exhibition in florence:
”ludes' photographs are synonymous with revolution. with the beginning of the new millennium, if you wanted to be avant-garde, you had to follow the teachings of this master of photography. details, close-ups on eyes and lips, liquid colors and many other innovations on how to convey the beauty image to others.
precisely for these objective reasons i can safely say that in the world of beauty photography, there is a pre-ludes and an after-ludes era. i would never have imagined, twenty years later, to meet him in florence. we have become friends, and this exhibition is my tribute to a man with a very modern look, who has always inspired my work.
ludes, who today is a renowned architect and designer in the luxury sector, has influenced the fashion world and the beauty segment of the last decades with his photographic work.
the years he spent as an official photographer for chanel paris allowed him also to portray the most fascinating women on the planet, from monica bellucci to isabella rossellini, from gwyneth paltrow to victoria beckham and penelope cruz, interpreting their charm with an almost pictorial exaltation of physical details. he was the first to use this style. and from then on, many took inspiration from him.
the exhibition, housed in florence, italy, in the former renaissance convent of the church of san barnaba, will be composed of 27 giant art prints of iconic ludes photographs.
the exhibition will open to visitors at the same time as the pitti uomo in january 2020 and will last until the pitti uomo of june 2020. the opening of the exhibition will be celebrated with a special event as well as its closure in june.”
”i am happy to host ludes in my space, he is a master and a friend.”
gianluca sasso
”ludes’ eye is as sharp as that of his great compatriot albrecht dürer.
he chisels his images into shape and then photographs them as delicate watercolors.”
jacques helleu - creative director chanel paris
all available editions
florentine palazzi by guido cozzi
beauties by wolfgang ludes
last days by gerald forster
orreries by susan pullman brooks
ceramic by john pawson
photographs by jean-philippe piter
collages by richard meier
each size edition of 20 / fine art archival photographic print / unframed
approx. 59 x 78 in / 150 x 199 cm - $8,400
approx. 52 x 39 in / 100 x 133 cm - $6,150
approx. 35 x 28 in / 70 x 93 cm - $3,900
other sizes on special request