Vibrant, iconoclast imagery featuring the biggest celebrities in the universe. David LaChapelle's work is inescapable. You might have seen the image of a 16-year-old Britney Spears holding a Teletubbie, right after releasing ...Baby One More Time, a naked Naomi Campbell pouring milk on herself or Amanda Lepore recreating Andy Warhol's iconic Marilyn Monroe print – these are the pictures that you'll find at Fotografiska New York's Make Believe – now on view until January 8, 2023 – the largest-ever United States exhibition.
More than one hundred and fifty works between 1984 and 2022, 40 years worth of LaChapelle's work. The photographer started exploring religious imagery in the 1980s just as the AIDS crisis ravaged his close circle of friends in New York City, and since then it has evolved into an extremely varied body of work, full of portraits of some of the most acclaimed stars from the 20 and 21st century, while even having time to photograph still life.
And yet, images like a foam-covered Tupac, Michael Jackson dressed as an angel stepping on a demon or Lil' Kim covered in an LV print all over are what come to mind when thinking of LaChapelle. And all of this and more is what you'll be able to see inside all six floors of the landmark museum. Get to see up close and personal some of the most influential figures of the last few decades in the wackiest, most whimsical of poses and settings.
And yet, images like a foam-covered Tupac, Michael Jackson dressed as an angel stepping on a demon or Lil' Kim covered in an LV print all over are what come to mind when thinking of LaChapelle. And all of this and more is what you'll be able to see inside all six floors of the landmark museum. Get to see up close and personal some of the most influential figures of the last few decades in the wackiest, most whimsical of poses and settings.
David LaChapelle's exhibition Make Believe is now on view at Fotografiska New York until January 8.
