Us and Them [Hardcover]

Helmut Newton (Author), Alice Springs (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This arresting collection of photography features work by both Helmut Newton and his wife, actress Alice Springs. Newton's coolly elegant and sexy studies are splendidly counterbalanced by Springs's warmer and more vulnerable pieces. The book is divided into three sections: two "Us" sections, in which Newton and Springs alternately photograph themselves and each other, and a final "Them" chapter that features subjects photographed differently by each photographer. The cast is a glitzy mix of Riviera-style celebrities. Catherine Deneuve is especially sultry shot by Newton, dressed in a black negligee with a cigarette dangling from her lips just below her bedroom eyes, while in the facing portrait taken by Springs, her torso is concealed within a black turtleneck and she stares confidently and directly at the camera. Karl Lagerfeld is here before he went gray, and Gianni Versace is posed not quite languidly naked on a leopard-skin sofa. The self-portraits are revealing and occasionally disturbing. Springs is often in various states of undress in front of mirrors. Newton is most often with naked models, occasionally cross-dressed, and when he is naked is oddly wired up to various types of medical equipment such as EKG machines. Aside from a very brief introduction by Newton, there is no accompanying text in the book--not even captions--but this is a book of images, not words, and nearly all these fine photographs are worth at least a thousand of them. --Nick Wroe, Amazon.co.uk

From Library Journal

Can two artists build their lives and careers together while maintaining separate artistic visions? Newton and Springs (born June Browne and later known as June Brunelle) here give us a resounding affirmative. Their singular monograph is a visual testament to the longevity of their partnership and the constancy of their individual artistic visions. Newton, internationally known for his idiosyncratic fashion and portrait photography, and Springs, an actress, painter, and late-blooming photographer, were married in 1947. The book contains their self-portraits, portraits of each other, and radically distinct portraits of celebrity figures. Of the approximately 180 photographs collected here, most are in black and white, and some contain frank nudity. Taken together, they comprise an intimate and highly personal chronology of an intimate partnership. A valuable addition to photography sections in large public and academic libraries.ADebora Miller, Minneapolis
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 199 pages
• Publisher: Scalo Publishers (June 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 3908247101
• ISBN-13: 978-3908247104
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 9.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,038,607 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Helmut Newton (1920-2004) was one of the most influential fashion photographers of all time. Born in Berlin, he arrived in Australia in 1940 and married June Brunell (a.k.a. Alice Springs) eight years later. He first achieved international fame in the 1970's while working principally for French Vogue, and his celebrity and influence grew over the decades. Newton preferred to shoot in streets or interiors, rather than studios. Controversial scenarios, bold lighting, and striking compositions came to form his signature look. In 1990 he was awarded the Grand Prix National for photography; in 1992 the German government awarded him Das Grosse Verdienstkreuz for services to German culture, and he was appointed Officer des Arts, Lettres et Sciences by S.A.S. Princess Caroline of Monaco. In 1996, he was appointed Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by Philippe Douste-Blazy, the French Minister of Culture.

Working and living in close companionship with his wife until his death at 83, his images remain as distinctive, seductive and original as ever.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Multidimensional Perspectives of Photography, March 21, 2001

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 109,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Us and Them (Hardcover)

This book has one of the most interesting premises of any photography book I have had the pleasure to examine. Spouses, Helmut Newton and Alice Springs, share their photographic perspectives of each other, themselves, and the same models. These different views echo around in your mind to help you understand the personalities, purposes, and methods of two interesting photographers. In the process, you get a better understanding of the photography itself . . . and how it changes the models in our perception. By providing images over many decades, you also get a time-lapse view of a relationship and the aging process.

Before going further, let me note that this volume contains many nude images of men and women that would be past the "R" rating if this book were a motion picture.

The book has a few brief comments by Helmut Newton to set the stage. "The book shows the work of two photographers . . . [who] have lived together for fifty years." " . . . [B]ut neither is usually present at the other's photographic sittings." " . . . [N]either one has in any way influenced the other's way of approaching their subjects." "I can see the truth and simplicity in the portraits of Alice Springs." "[She has] been an actress and a painter before she has taken up the camera seriously if somewhat sporadically." "As for myself, I recognize the manipulation and editorialising in my photographs."

Alice Springs looks for the core of the person, and captures the realities of daily life and aging very well. She shows you the joking and self-absorbed sides of Helmut Newton that help explain the stylized and challenging images that he is famous for producing. Helmut Newton obviously adds a gloss and a pose to everything, that gets his editorial position out. But it's fun in this context, much more so than in his other work. I found myself reevaluating his work after seeing these images by Alice Springs.

Here are my favorite images in the book by Alice Springs:

Of Helmut Newton -- Spain 1956; Rue Aubriot, Paris 1971; Ritz, London 1976; With Sylvia, Ramatuelle 1981; Monte-Carlo, 1987; Hollywood 1988, 1991

Of Alice Springs -- Ramatuelle, France 1975; Vail, Colorado 1996

Princess Caroline and son, Monte-Carlo 1985; Karl Lagerfeld, Monte-Carlo 1983; Rudi Gernreich, Los Angeles 1985; Tina Chow, Beverly Hills 1986; Angelica Houston, Hollywood 1983; Antonio Lopez, Paris 1977

Here are my favorite images in the book by Helmut Newton:

Of Alice Springs -- June as Hedda Gabler, Melbourne 1960; In our kitchen, Rue Aubriot, Paris 1972; Hotel Volney, New York 1982; Rue Aubriot, Paris 1974; Ramatuelle 1976

Of Helmut Newton -- Photomation, Paris 1970s; With wife and model, 1981; Clinique St. Jean, Cagnes-sur-Mer, 1997

Birgit Nielsen, Monte-Carlo 1987; Gianni Versace, Lake Como, Italy 1994; Donatella Versace, Off coast of Antibes, 1990; David Hockney, Los Angeles 1988; Peter Beard, Paris 1996

After you see this remarkable book, I suggest that you have some fun with your family. Take a day, bring a camera for each person, and make photographs of each other and the same subjects. Do this once a year to develop a better sense of your perspectives and relationships. Then comment on each other's work, and create a scrapbook or album out of this sharing. You'll have a lot of fun looking back on these images in future years.

Take a good look . . . and see more!

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Visual Autobiography, March 15, 2006

By 

Marek S. Mezyk "Marek S. Mezyk" (Edison, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Us and Them (Hardcover)

This book is a great visual autobiography into Helmut's private life. There are different sections of the book where he does have photographs of selected celeberties but the main focus of the book are photogrpahs of Helmut and his wife. Very well done edition of some B&W images.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars helmut at/with his best, June 15, 2000

By 

shawn t moore - See all my reviews

This review is from: Us and Them (Hardcover)

Great book I been througt it a hundred times already. You will find out where he gets his great influences from! Also see junes great work, that greatly resembles his work! If you like Helmut Newton this is a must!