Empowering people
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| GEORGE HOLZ, NEW YORK ©2013 ROGER GIBBS F |
The Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin opens next 6 June the exhibition Three boys from Pasadena along with Newton's SUMO exhibition. Who are these "three boys"? Photographers Mark Arbeit, George Holz and Just Loomis, all three Newton's former assistants. George Holz was born in the known as "the Secret City", Oak, in Tennessee. Graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, he met Helmut Newton offering himself as his personal assistant. Newton accepted and Holz had the chance of learning Helmut Newton's work process. By the years, Holz became an important fashion photographer, publishing his works in some of the most important magazines such as Italian Vogue, French Elle, Vanity Fair and Harper’s Bazaar. His fine-art nudes have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world, some of them will be shown in the Three boys from Pasadena exhibition along with some celebrities portraits.
What is art for you?
Art is creating an environment where you can be surrounded by it every day. For me, it is where I live—the mountains, the sky, the wildlife, the rivers—it’s where nature abounds, flourishes, and changes on a daily basis.
Why and when did you decided to become a photographer?
I took a lot of family photos with a Kodak Brownie and Instamatic Cameras while I was growing up, but I really knew I wanted to be a photographer when I was in High School and took my first photography class, which of course, included darkroom work. I remember the first time I saw the image appear in the developer tray ––I was hooked!
You describe Helmut Newton as your career guide. When did you meet him for the first time and how was your experience working with him?
I met Helmut through Lina Lee, who owned a cool little Boutique on Rodeo Drive. She’d tipped off my friend Mark Arbeit, (Art Center classmate, photographer) that Helmut may come in that day. So we hung around, hoping to meet him. Of course, we had no real plan for what we’d say when that happened. When he showed up, Lina introduced us and we just blurted out, “If you ever need anything –– assisting, driving –– we’ll do whatever you want!” And he said, “Great, you can drive me back to my hotel.” I was driving a “69 Dodge Dart in those days, and it was in pretty bad shape. I kept an old milk crate behind the passenger seat to keep it from falling back and had to open the door with a fork. But Helmut seemed delighted. He loved riding around Beverly Hills, with all its Maseratis and Lamborghinis, in that beat up old car of mine. He loved all things Americana –– hamburgers, Hollywood, trailer homes –– kitsch! And I think he loved our energy and youth. Helmut was great fun. On a shoot, he could also be very demanding.
He wasn’t the kind of photographer that lugged around a ton of equipment, but he was very technical and precise when it came to his film exposure and lighting. Some of my favorite memories were hanging out in the Polo Lounge of the Beverly Hills hotel where we would show him our work and get critiques, or listen to his stories about the business. Most of all I learned how he saw things, directed, and always stuck to his personal vision.
You have a really important career in fashion photography. Is it easy to preserve your creative freedom in that world?
Art is creating an environment where you can be surrounded by it every day. For me, it is where I live—the mountains, the sky, the wildlife, the rivers—it’s where nature abounds, flourishes, and changes on a daily basis.
Why and when did you decided to become a photographer?
I took a lot of family photos with a Kodak Brownie and Instamatic Cameras while I was growing up, but I really knew I wanted to be a photographer when I was in High School and took my first photography class, which of course, included darkroom work. I remember the first time I saw the image appear in the developer tray ––I was hooked!
You describe Helmut Newton as your career guide. When did you meet him for the first time and how was your experience working with him?
I met Helmut through Lina Lee, who owned a cool little Boutique on Rodeo Drive. She’d tipped off my friend Mark Arbeit, (Art Center classmate, photographer) that Helmut may come in that day. So we hung around, hoping to meet him. Of course, we had no real plan for what we’d say when that happened. When he showed up, Lina introduced us and we just blurted out, “If you ever need anything –– assisting, driving –– we’ll do whatever you want!” And he said, “Great, you can drive me back to my hotel.” I was driving a “69 Dodge Dart in those days, and it was in pretty bad shape. I kept an old milk crate behind the passenger seat to keep it from falling back and had to open the door with a fork. But Helmut seemed delighted. He loved riding around Beverly Hills, with all its Maseratis and Lamborghinis, in that beat up old car of mine. He loved all things Americana –– hamburgers, Hollywood, trailer homes –– kitsch! And I think he loved our energy and youth. Helmut was great fun. On a shoot, he could also be very demanding.
He wasn’t the kind of photographer that lugged around a ton of equipment, but he was very technical and precise when it came to his film exposure and lighting. Some of my favorite memories were hanging out in the Polo Lounge of the Beverly Hills hotel where we would show him our work and get critiques, or listen to his stories about the business. Most of all I learned how he saw things, directed, and always stuck to his personal vision.
You have a really important career in fashion photography. Is it easy to preserve your creative freedom in that world?
It’s not easy, but it’s essential. You must stay true to your creative self and follow your gut. It’s easy to get swept up in current photographic styles and trends that clients so often want you to imitate.
I always try to do some extra shots just for me –– sometimes they are just behind-the-scenes, sometimes, whole setups –– and those images are often the most iconic. A huge percentage of Holz Hollywood images were taken as extras, BTS, or after-shoot experimenting. You have to seize the moment.
How do you know you are in front of a really good photograph?
It just grabs you. Whether you love it or you hate it, it makes a lasting impression.
You are presenting some fine art nudes and celebrity portraits in the exhibition “Three Boys from Pasadena” along with works by Mark Arbeit and Just Loomis. What does this exhibition mean to you?
It’s always been a great honor and privilege to show at the Helmut Newton Foundation, especially with my lifelong friends, Mark Arbeit and Just Loomis. We share so much history. This show, which is 10 years after the first one in 2009, is an extension of where we left off. It shows a lot of growth for all of us. We have to thank June Newton too. She’s always believed so much in us and our work. The 2009 Three Boys show was June’s idea, so there is this deeper meaning of legacy. Helmut mentored and guided us, but he never imposed his style. He encouraged each of us to develop uniquely, and we have. What does that mean to me? Everything.
How inspiring is the female body for your art?
The human body, regardless of gender, is a beautifully complex subject: movement, anatomy, the way light interacts with form, expressivity, and physical language. I like to think that my photographs empower people, and yes, women, whom I photograph quite a lot. Like Newton, I love to portray the strength of women. I’ve also been very lucky in working with subjects who bring so much of their own artistry to a shoot.
What is the photograph you would have loved to make, or the one you dream to make someday?
I would love to be the first photographer to do a series of nudes on the moon or another planet. Elon? Richard?
What are your future projects?
I am currently working on a book of fine art nudes. I have several more projects in the works, but I can’t talk about them yet.
Could you explain to us a dream you had while sleeping or a childhood memory?
I remember having a nightmare when I was a young photographer in Milan. I dreamed I was producing a big job in New York with a huge crew –– I dreamed of cameras breaking on set and assistants not knowing what they were doing, pretty much everything that could possibly go wrong did. And then I woke up and thought, “I’m going to do these big jobs someday. I’d better learn how!” A few years later I owned a studio on Lafayette and did lots of big shoots. We made mistakes, but we dealt with them. After that, something going wrong was not a nightmare, it was workable. Life is workable.
I always try to do some extra shots just for me –– sometimes they are just behind-the-scenes, sometimes, whole setups –– and those images are often the most iconic. A huge percentage of Holz Hollywood images were taken as extras, BTS, or after-shoot experimenting. You have to seize the moment.
How do you know you are in front of a really good photograph?
It just grabs you. Whether you love it or you hate it, it makes a lasting impression.
You are presenting some fine art nudes and celebrity portraits in the exhibition “Three Boys from Pasadena” along with works by Mark Arbeit and Just Loomis. What does this exhibition mean to you?
It’s always been a great honor and privilege to show at the Helmut Newton Foundation, especially with my lifelong friends, Mark Arbeit and Just Loomis. We share so much history. This show, which is 10 years after the first one in 2009, is an extension of where we left off. It shows a lot of growth for all of us. We have to thank June Newton too. She’s always believed so much in us and our work. The 2009 Three Boys show was June’s idea, so there is this deeper meaning of legacy. Helmut mentored and guided us, but he never imposed his style. He encouraged each of us to develop uniquely, and we have. What does that mean to me? Everything.
How inspiring is the female body for your art?
The human body, regardless of gender, is a beautifully complex subject: movement, anatomy, the way light interacts with form, expressivity, and physical language. I like to think that my photographs empower people, and yes, women, whom I photograph quite a lot. Like Newton, I love to portray the strength of women. I’ve also been very lucky in working with subjects who bring so much of their own artistry to a shoot.
What is the photograph you would have loved to make, or the one you dream to make someday?
I would love to be the first photographer to do a series of nudes on the moon or another planet. Elon? Richard?
What are your future projects?
I am currently working on a book of fine art nudes. I have several more projects in the works, but I can’t talk about them yet.
Could you explain to us a dream you had while sleeping or a childhood memory?
I remember having a nightmare when I was a young photographer in Milan. I dreamed I was producing a big job in New York with a huge crew –– I dreamed of cameras breaking on set and assistants not knowing what they were doing, pretty much everything that could possibly go wrong did. And then I woke up and thought, “I’m going to do these big jobs someday. I’d better learn how!” A few years later I owned a studio on Lafayette and did lots of big shoots. We made mistakes, but we dealt with them. After that, something going wrong was not a nightmare, it was workable. Life is workable.
Three boys from Pasadena
Exhibition at the Helmut Newton Foundation, Berlin
6 June - 17 November 2019
An interview by Juan Carlos Romero
For further information about George Holz
Photograph George Holz, New York ©+ courtesy 2013 ROGER GIBBS F
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