8 28 September 2019 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I subscribe 0330 333 1113
T
hisneweditionof Helmut
Newton’sseminalworkSUMO
marks 20 yearssincethe
original,monster,35.4kg
packagewaslaunched.Althoughthisis a
‘smaller’versionit’sstilla bigpackage,
whichcomeswitha heftyoutersleeveand
containsa multilingual32-pagebookletthat
outlines‘TheMakingof HelmutNewton’s
SUMO’.Backin 1999,theoriginalSUMOwasa trailblazingpublication– a magnificent
behemothof a bookthatdidjusticeto
Newton’sprovocativeanddaringtalents.
Althoughheis arguablyoneof thebest
knownphotographersever,ontheoff
chanceyouaren’tfamiliarwithhiswork,
Newton,whodiedin 2004,wasa true
innovatorin fashion,portraitand
commercialphotographywhonevershied
awayfromcreatingcontroversythrough
hiseroticandhighlysexualimagery.
Thislatestversionof hisopusshowcases
464 of hismostfamousimages– a strikingly
impressivecocktailof vaguelymenacing
andedgyblack& whiteerotica,portraitsof
therichandfamousanduber-vibrantoutdoor
colourscenesthatoozesexandsuggestion.Publishedby
Taschen,£100,
464 pages,
hardback,
ISBN978-3-
8365-7819-
(English/French/
Germanedition)
★★★★★SU MO
By Helmut Newton
AneweditionofHelmut New ton’s photographs
showcaseshisfamous images. Steve Fairclough
revisitsthismammoth body of creative work
Top:Villad’Este,LakeComo,Italy,1975.Above: Rue Aubriot with nude, Yves Saint Laurent, 1975
‘Ironically, for somone so
associated with the naked
form, Newton didn’t shoot
his first nudes until 1980’
© COURTESY OF TASCHEN
The 2019 version of SUMO has been
updated by Newton’s wife June (aka
Alice Springs) and its early pages
include an autobiographical outline
penned by Newton, which describes his
purchase of a camera aged 12 and his
decision to be a photographer at the
early age of 16. Ironically, for someone
so associated with the naked and partlyBOOK
© THE HELMUT NEW TON ESTATE/MACONOCHIE FILM & PHOTOGRAPHY LTD
© THE HELMUT NEW TON ESTATE/MACONOCHIE FILM & PHOTOGRAPHY LTD