AUTHOR: ARTSY CHOW ROAMER

One Shot Gotts

LEGENDARY PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE FAMOUS

There is a wonderful exhibition at the Maddox Gallery in London highlighting the black and white celebrity portraits of photographer Andy Gotts from his new book called ICONS. Andy has been working in photography since college and still uses many of the techniques he learned there when beginning his career in 1990 with his photograph of British actor and comedian, Stephen Fry.

Interrupting Fry during a talk the 19 year old college student asked him if he would sit for a portrait. Fry rolled his eyes and said he would give Gotts 19 seconds. That photograph landed on the mantle of Fry’s home and the rest is history as they say.

Actor Kenneth Branagh loved it so much he contacted Gotts for a shot and based on that, his wife Emma Thompson came next. Before Gotts knew it word was passing around celebrity circles that there was a new talent in the photography world and they came calling for their turn in front of the camera.

Gotts portrait clearly captures the comedian’s personality; a certain devil-may-care wry amusement staring straight into the camera as if daring the young college student to take a good picture. A crooked nose, messy hair and dramatic lighting that creates a light and dark side to Fry’s face only make it more interesting to study.

STYLE AND EQUIPMENT

Perhaps without realizing it Gotts was creating the style he would become known for from the very beginning with that shot of Fry. There is an intimacy to the work as if he has known and been friends with the subject for a long time.

The decision to use a black and white format with an analog camera creates a stark simplicity where color can not compete or complicate. His lighting is near genius and is inspired by Old Master painters and film directors like David Lean and Alfred Hitchcock.

Gotts refers to his style as “a stripping down” of elements. Rather than shooting the glamourous shots preferred in the ‘90’s, he returned to a more simple form from the ‘60’s using plain black or white backgrounds; under and over exposing techniques center on “facescapes” that highlight all of the beauty and/or faults.

WHAT YOU SEE

In other words, what you see is what you get. Gotts is also known for never photoshopping a portrait he takes. If you see wrinkles, pimples, pores and moles so be it. It was there the day he took the photo and will forever remain so.

For most, that is one of the reasons they want him to take their picture-for others, not so much. Gotts personally knows two music icons who say they love and own his work but would never sit for him as he would show “how they really look”.

Gotts likes going to the homes of the famous or using a London hotel suite to work. He likes to chat with folks and often tells rude jokes to make them laugh. He asks them thought provoking questions, lets them use props and has even let other people crash the shoot.

Gotts will ask actors to cry on cue or act silly while shooting. Harrison Ford thought this was actually an interesting idea since no one had ever asked him to do that before and most folks were generally scared of him. Ford’s portrait shows a completely different side of the actor and caused me to laugh out loud the first time I saw it.

An obvious impression of the cartoon character Popeye right? Funny but endearing. There’s a willingness to let us see the man who needs a little grooming and has thinning hair but is comfortable enough in his skin to refuse to do anything but age gracefully. I know more than a few actors that could learn a lesson from that.

All of this is to create that intimacy that you see in these portraits. It makes the subjects feel safe and comfortable enough to share themselves with Gotts camera in a way they have never shared with the public before. They aren’t modeling, acting, singing or performing; they are showing you them.

ONE SHOT GOTTS

Andy also got his subjects comfortable by keeping it to just the two of them together. He works alone with no assistants which was and remains practically unheard of in the world of photo shoots. This allowed for a daring approach to Dita Von Tesse’s session and the decision to pose in the nude with only a hat and mask for props. If her body didn’t tell you, her head and hand position remind us she is a dancer.

He also developed speed as a tool. He works quickly taking a minimum of shots-many of the photos from the book were selected from only 9-12 shots on a contact sheet. The nickname came from his session with Paul Newman where the first was the winning shot causing Paul to call him “one shot Gotts” and the name stuck.

Gotts techniques make for surprising photos for some like the shot chosen of Robin Williams. While many might have expected a crazy face that spoke to his wild, brilliant and fast comedy stylings the result actually speaks to a more quiet sadness-perhaps even confusion which would turn out to be stunningly honest and true.

I would have liked to have been a fly on the wall for the work with Sting that produced the image of him belting out a song like Roxanne in mid yell. The portrait captures the spirit of the rocker with the piercing eyes, energy and youthfulness he still projects. I don’t think he will have to get off the stage for many years to come

ALL THEY CAN DO IS SAY NO

Over the years Gotts has asked for and gotten a wide variety of famous people to put their faces in his hands from Al Pacino and Robert De Niro (both of whom are ticked off with him) to Meryl Streep (who argued with him about lighting) and even Clint Eastwood (after asking Morgan Freeman for help).

He figured early on that if asking Stephen Fry when he was really a nobody had gotten a yes….you should just always ask. “All they can do is say no” so why not? Many of Andy’s subjects have been photographed multiple times sometimes 10 or 20 years apart.

He has also chosen on occasion to use some limited soft color in his photos-if only a slight warmth. It seems to greatly enhance both the portraits of Clint Eastwood and Pierce Brosnan. Two decidedly tough characters in serious pose made softer just by the warming of the skin tones.

HIS FAVORITE PORTRAIT

Andy had reached out for a session with Tony Curtis for years. He was told no over and over again. Gotts finally got ahold of his sixth and last wife and she arranged for Tony to come the next day. Curtis had been in advancing bad health for some years and was using a wheelchair by then.

Famous for his good looks and pretty face it couldn’t have been easy for him to consider a portrait at this stage of his life and health. He called Andy the night before and admitted to not feeling well at all but would honor his wife’s promise…he just had one request.

“Anything” Andy said. “Will you make me look like an icon one more time” he asked? Gotts responded with “I will do my utmost”. How do you do that with a sick and aging actor known his entire life for his face? Andy decided you paint a flag on that American icon’s face and shoot only in low lights with the smallest amount of color; the lights placed just so as to shine in the actors eyes. That’s how you do it.

Curtis saw the finished portrait hours before his death and declared it “the best ever taken of me”. Gotts made it about his face in a way that wasn’t about his age or his health but more about his status and his eyes. You are drawn over and over again to those eyes. Are they blue, green or gray? The lights imply a vitality from years past. It is simply a brilliant photograph.

While the book dishes stories and interesting details about Andy and his work it really is about the subjects themselves. It’s almost as if Gotts has put them in the spotlight from the beginning and wants to keep them there. He counts many of them among his closest friends and has built a lot of contacts should he need help running down more subjects.

Why now for the book? Gotts believes the idea of celebrity has changed now due to social media and influencers. He believes there are going to be fewer and fewer icons as celebrity becomes a more and more obsolete word in our everyday language. I’d like to believe that was true but I wonder…

Photos: Andy Gotts

CONCLUSION

I find Andy’s portraits to be very compelling. They require study and contemplation about what you thought you knew or didn’t know about the subject. The retro ‘60’s feeling of them still feels fresh and timely 60 years later. It just might be time for Gotts to include his own portrait in his exhibition of ICONS.

If you liked what you read, you might also enjoy other posts under Artful Ideal where you’ll find other posts about artsy things you might want to know about. Enjoy the interview video above of Andy Gotts as well. Look for my next post which will be a Snap Shot of a bucket list destination. Until then…

Cheers,

ArtsyChowRoamer

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