Duffy in London

02/23/2018

Ponte Vecchio, Florence, 1962 © Duffy

Alongside David Bailey and Terrence Donovan, Brian Duffy (1933–2010) was one of ‘The Terrible Trio’ (or, as Norman Parkinson preferred to call them, ‘The Black Trinity’) that documented the pop-cultural revolution of Swinging Sixties London and, in so doing, invented modern fashion photography: bold, informal, provocative, sexy as hell. His pictures of Jean Shrimpton, Grace Coddington, Michael Caine and particularly David Bowie – he shot the iconic, lightning-bolt cover of Bowie’s ‘Aladdin Sane’ – have come to define the era. In 1979, however, Duffy suddenly grew tired of his work and started a great bonfire of all his negatives in the yard outside his studio; luckily his neighbours complained about the acrid smoke, the majority of his archive was saved and now the highlights are on show at ‘Sixties Style: Shot by Duffy’.

More information at: Proud Central