Helmut Newton Work (Taschen Jumbo Series) (German Edition) [Hardcover]

Manfred Heiting (Author), Helmet Newton (Author)

Book Description

Series: Taschen Jumbo Series | Publication Date: October 1, 2001

Considered shocking and provocative back in the sixties, Helmut Newton now enjoys the reputation of a photographer who was able to imagine and visualize women who take the lead rather than follow it; women who are both responsible and willing.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 280 pages
• Publisher: Taschen (October 1, 2001)
• Language: German
• ISBN-10: 3822813265
• ISBN-13: 978-3822813263
• Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 9.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,088,130 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Newton book to purchase...and keep, April 21, 2003

By 

Robie Kulokivi (Joensuu, Finland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Helmut Newton Work (Taschen Jumbo Series) (German Edition) (Hardcover)

If you plan on buying only a single hardcover photographic book by Helmut Newton I strongly recommend this one. (It probably will not be the last you buy anyway...)

The book cover quality is not the best possible but the price is at par with that. Luckily the printed, amply sized pages (279 numbered) are very good. The publisher is TASCHEN, Cologne and the book is printed by EBS, Verona 2000, at least the one I have

The book contains undisputably many of the icons of Mr. Newtons work the most striking, as always, in monochrome. The book has also several color plates.

On page 29 there's a statement that is a guidline for my own, and certainly many others work; "Nothing has been retouched, nothing electronically altered. I photographed what I saw."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nobody Smiles In A Helmut Newton Picture--Only the Viewers!, January 6, 2009

By 

James R. Holland "Author of Boston's Notable ... (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Helmut Newton Work (Taschen Jumbo Series) (German Edition) (Hardcover)

Once again Taschen has done a wonderful job of providing a quality portfolio of a great photographer's work. I've been a long-time admirer of Newton and even reading his autobiography didn't change my opinion of his work--although it did explain much about the man behind the camera. This large format, 280-page folio is meant for displaying Newton's somewhat eccentric photographic views of life. The cover photo of one of his Nordic-looking blond models standing next to a look-alike clothing store dummy is instructive because inside the book almost all of his subjects have a plastic looking appearance. Even his wonderful nudes seem so hard as to be made out wood. His series of Paris nude photos using mannequins with real hair and make-up are difficult to separate from the live models sometimes appearing in the same photo, but not in a dangerous setting, which is why Newton used the dummies in the first place.
Almost all of the celebrity portraits included in the book look somber at best, aggravated or are downright glaring into the camera in a mixture of frustration and anger.
In one portrait, Sigourney Weaver's expression and eyes almost look like she's ready to kill the photographer as easily as she dispatched so many of her infamous alien enemies. Even the wet T-Shirt effect displaying her breasts and nipples isn't enough to cancel out the unhappy appearance of Weaver. Ditto for the full-length portrait of Jack Maple.
About the only section of the book I didn't really care for was two sections of pictures--one black and white and the other color where the layout included dozens of pictures slapped onto two double-page fold-out spreads that reminded me too much of snapshots slapped on a bulletin board. However, that doesn't hurt the over-all quality of the book. It provides a little bit of break as the reader tries to find the correction captions.
It's nice to know where the idea for the big nudes germinated. The nude series was originally entitled "Terrorists" as a clue. Newton's photographs have always seemed to have that slick, unreal Vogue look. The models may be dressed in the most erotic clothes imaginable or they may be totally nude. They are all beautiful, and most of them in this collection appear to be Nordic Scandinavians. There are actually three pictures in the book where one of the models is actually smiling and a couple where they may be half smiling--probably in amusement of the silly situation they are in. The overtones of sex, fetish and BDSM remind me of the jaded looks of German strippers. They may be absolutely drop-dead beautiful, but they also display an unapproachable, jaded tombstone hardness.
This is an excellent book of fine art photography. It's a touch gloomy because of the lack of smiles throughout, even at the humorous intent of the photograph. And there is a lot of humor in Helmut Newton's work. Some of it is falling down funny. It's amazing how the models could keep from breaking out into fits of giggling at some of the poses and scenes they were being directed to play. Hopefully, those photos will eventually show up someplace else? Acquiring this book is a requirement for any serious collector or admirer of Newton's work. Anyone wishing to know more about the photos and photographer should also try to find a copy of Helmut Newton's Autobiography (please see my Amazon review). His life story will surprise, perhaps stun you, as well as explain a lot about his work. He was very, very lucky to have escaped Nazi Germany.

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-have for Newton lovers and erotic photography buffs, November 29, 2010

By 

Gregory Firlotte (Hollywood, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Helmut Newton Work (Taschen Jumbo Series) (German Edition) (Hardcover)

Back in the mid-1980s I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Newton and going on shoots with him in Los Angeles. But my most fond memory was sitting alone with him and having him tell me all about his photography and how he sees what he sees and how encouraging he was to me -- a photographer just starting out. Rather than go on with hundreds of words, all I can say is simply: buy this book. It sums up everything that we've come to know and love about Helmut Newton in one tasty package. Later, you can round it out with other Newton books, but this is a good place to start to capture the essence of this most original of photographers.