Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level C , Case MB2H, Shelf DR7, Box PHOTO

Ossie Clark, Boy

Photograph
1968 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Jim Lee is a London-based photographer and film director. He began his career as a fashion and advertising photographer in the 1960s, working primarily in London and Paris for titles such as The Sunday Times and Elle. In the 1970s he became known for collaborations with a young Anna Wintour (then an assistant fashion editor at Harper’s & Queen) and his innovative shoots mixing high fashion with unexpected locations in a style that is now commonplace, but at the time felt ground-breaking. "People were doing such boring images," said Lee in a recent interview (Independent, 30 August 2015), "It was all just people standing there and the clothes. I just thought, why not make it interesting and tell a story?" His models, such as his former wife, Sally Lee, often appear as heroines of their own dramatic stories, he explained, "I wanted to make women seem important because, after all, these pictures were selling women's clothes."

In 1975, he followed Anna Wintour to New York and they continued to collaborate, producing images for the magazine Viva and clients such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale's. He later moved into film directing, creating television commercials and feature films.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleOssie Clark, Boy (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
C-type print. These are new prints.
Brief description
Photograph by Jim Lee, 'Ossie Clark, Boy', resin coated C-type colour print, 1968, printed 2015
Production typeLimited edition
Credit line
Given by Jim Lee
Object history
Acquired directly from the artist
Summary
Jim Lee is a London-based photographer and film director. He began his career as a fashion and advertising photographer in the 1960s, working primarily in London and Paris for titles such as The Sunday Times and Elle. In the 1970s he became known for collaborations with a young Anna Wintour (then an assistant fashion editor at Harper’s & Queen) and his innovative shoots mixing high fashion with unexpected locations in a style that is now commonplace, but at the time felt ground-breaking. "People were doing such boring images," said Lee in a recent interview (Independent, 30 August 2015), "It was all just people standing there and the clothes. I just thought, why not make it interesting and tell a story?" His models, such as his former wife, Sally Lee, often appear as heroines of their own dramatic stories, he explained, "I wanted to make women seem important because, after all, these pictures were selling women's clothes."

In 1975, he followed Anna Wintour to New York and they continued to collaborate, producing images for the magazine Viva and clients such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale's. He later moved into film directing, creating television commercials and feature films.
Collection
Accession number
E.685-2015

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Record createdJanuary 14, 2016
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