L to R: Francesca Woodman, “Untitled," c. 1976, 4 7/8 x 5 1/8 in. Courtesy Elton John and David Furnish Collection. | Exhibition poster, “Fragile Beauty: Photographs from the Sir Elton John and David Furnish Collection” with Harley Weir, “Boys Don’t Cry, Senegal, 2015,” 2015 © Harley Weir | Francesca Woodman, “Untitled,” 1979, 5 7/8 x 5 13/16 in. | Detail from installation view of “Fragile Beauty: Photographs from the Sir Elton John and David Furnish Collection," Victoria and Albert Museum, 2024. Image courtesy and copyright Victoria and Albert Museum & James Retief | Exhibition graphic, “The ‘70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography” with Anthony Barboza, “New York City,” 1970s © Anthony Barboza Photography | Francesca Woodman, “Untitled,” c. 1977-78, 5 9/16 x 5 3/8 in. | Francesca Woodman, “House #3,” c. 1975-76, from the “Abandoned House” series, 6 3/8 x 6 7/16 in. All Francesca Woodman works gelatin silver prints © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / DACS, London
Francesca Woodman, “Untitled," c. 1976, 4 7/8 x 5 1/8 in. Gelatin silver print. Courtesy Elton John and David Furnish Collection. © Woodman Family Foundation / DACS, London
NOW ON VIEW: Francesca Woodman in “Fragile Beauty: Photographs from the Sir Elton John and David Furnish Collection” and “The ‘70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography,” 2024
This fall, check out two group exhibitions showcasing works by Francesca Woodman. Known for her performative approach to photography, Woodman stages the female body and intervenes in the environment to create narratives rich in metaphor.
Francesca Woodman. "Untitled," c. 1975-78, 9 1/2 x 12 1/4 in. (24.13 x 31.12 cm). Gelatin silver print © Woodman Family Foundation / VISDA, Copenhagen.
OPENING October 11: "OCEAN," Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark, 2024
This exhibition delves into the depths where imagination meets reality, considering ways the sea has been a source of adventure and destruction throughout history.
L to R: Pair: “Athens,” 1991 / “Massenet,” ed. 8/8, 2010 | “Athens,” 1991, Glazed earthenware, epoxy resin, lacquer, and paint. 35 1/2 x 68 5/8 x 10 1/4 in. | “Massenet,” ed. 8/8, 2010, Soft-paste porcelain biscuit. © Sèvres - Manufacture et musée nationaux, 2013.D.8587.1 / 20013.D.8587.2. Photographer: Gerard Jonca. All works by Betty Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
New Betty Woodman exhibitions, September 2024
This month, explore two group exhibitions in New York showcasing diverse works by Betty Woodman from the 1990s and 2000s.
L to R: George Woodman. "Daphne," 1982, 78 x 60 in. Acrylic on canvas. Image courtesy DC Moore Gallery. Artwork © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / Installation view, "Who Is There?", DC Moore Gallery, New York, 2024
George Woodman. "Daphne," 1982, 78 x 60 in. Acrylic on canvas. Image courtesy DC Moore Gallery. Artwork © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
NOW ON VIEW: George Woodman in "Who Is There?", DC Moore Gallery, New York, 2024
This group exhibition of personal, expressive landscapes features works that merge abstraction and representation, depicting threshold spaces and hybridized forms where the observed and the imaginative meet.
L to R: Pair: Julia Margaret Cameron. “Il Penseroso,” 1865, 252 x 202 mm. Albumen print. The Victoria and Albert Museum / Francesca Woodman. “Self-Portrait on That Same Day,” c. 1977, 5 5/16 x 5 1/4 in. Gelatin silver print. / Images 2-7: Installation views, “Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In,” Institut Valencià d'Art Modern, Valencia, Spain, 2024. Images courtesy Institut Valencià d'Art Modern. Photo: Miguel Lorenzo / Pair: Julia Margaret Cameron. “Marie Spartali,” 1870, 362 x 267 mm. Albumen silver print. The J. Paul Getty Museum / Francesca Woodman. “Space²," from the “Space²“ series, 5 11/16 x 5 11/16 in. Gelatin silver print. All Francesca Woodman artworks © Woodman Family Foundation / VEGAP, Madrid.
Pair: Julia Margaret Cameron. “Il Penseroso,” 1865, 252 x 202 mm. Albumen print. The Victoria and Albert Museum / Francesca Woodman. “Self-Portrait on That Same Day,” c. 1977, 5 5/16 x 5 1/4 in. (13.50 x 13.34 cm). Gelatin silver print. © Woodman Family Foundation / VEGAP, Madrid.
NOW ON VIEW: “Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In” in Spain
"Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In" is currently on view in Spain through October 20.
L to R: "Untitled," c. 1975-78, 5 5/8 x 5 11/16 in. / Group: "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/4 in.; "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/8 in.; "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/8 in.; "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/8 in. / "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/4 in. / "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/8 in. / "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 5/16 in. / "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/8 in. / "Untitled," c. 1977-78, 8 x 7 3/8 in. All artworks by Francesca Woodman. All gelatin silver prints. © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Francesca Woodman. "Untitled," c. 1975-78, 5 5/8 x 5 11/16 in. Gelatin silver print. © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Architectural elements: Francesca Woodman. "Francesca Woodman," Gagosian, New York.
In the current exhibition at Gagosian, works presented thematically and serially, including “Blueprint for a Temple (II),” draw attention to Francesca Woodman’s years-long exploration of the figure in space.
L to R: Group: “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 9/16 x 5 9/16 in. / “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 11/16 x 5 11/16 in. / “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 5/8 x 5 9/16 in. “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 9/16 x 5 9/16 in. “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 5/8 x 5 9/16 in. All artworks by Francesca Woodman. All gelatin silver prints. © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Group: “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 9/16 x 5 9/16 in. / “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 11/16 x 5 11/16 in. / “Untitled,” c. 1979-80, 5 5/8 x 5 9/16 in. All works by Francesca Woodman. All gelatin silver prints. © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Transforming the body into form. "Francesca Woodman," Gagosian, New York.
“Sitting in bed – the slide projector is humming in the other room – a slide of helen as caryatid – im feeling very very lazy and contented – the cat lounges on a newly washed pile of pink clothes and the room is strewn with fresh tulips – even my fish has fresh flowers from Chinatown.”
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Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In, installation view. Courtesy National Portrait Gallery, London. Photo: David Parry.
"Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron" in "4Columns," May 31
Read Emily LaBarge's review of Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In at the National Portrait Gallery on 4Columns.
Installation view of Francesca Woodman’s Caryatid series at the National Portrait Gallery, London, 2024. Photograph by David Parry.
"An Unexpected Pairing of Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron" in "Aperture," May 16
Read Stephen Frailey's review of Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In at the National Portrait Gallery on Aperture.
Francesca Woodman, Untitled, c. 1977–78. Gelatin silver print. © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
"Photography’s Shooting Star" in "Air Mail," March 16
Read Sarah Hyde's feature on Francesca Woodman and exhibitions Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In at the National Portrait Gallery & Francesca Woodman at Gagosian on Air Mail.
Pair: Julia Margaret Cameron. "The South West Wind," 1864. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. / Francesca Woodman, "House #3," from the "House" series, 1976 © Woodman Family Foundation/DACS, London.
"Two Visionary Women Photographers Collide in Unexpected Museum Showcase" in "Artnet," May 3
Read Jo Lawson-Tancred's review of Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In at the National Portrait Gallery on Artnet.
Francesca Woodman, "House #3," from the "House" series, 1976 © Woodman Family Foundation/DACS, London.
"‘Portraits to Dream In’ goes beyond the usual appraisals of art by women" in "British Journal of Photography," April 5
Read Eliza Goodpasture's review of Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In at the National Portrait Gallery on the British Journal of Photography.