David Hamilton - Biographie

Né en Angleterre à Londres en 1933, et décès le 25 novembre 2016 à Paris, David Hamilton s’installe à Paris vers l’âge de vingt ans et débute sa carrière au magazine File, oû il travaille comme directeur artistique avec Peter Knapp.

Quelques années plus tard, il revient à Londres et collabore au fameux Queen Magazine. De retour à Paris, Hamilton est engagé au Printemps en tant que directeur artistique. Il poursuit son chemin comme photographe en réalisant des clichés pour des magazines prestigieux (Realités, Photo) et en collaborant, entre autres, avec Nina Ricci et Chanel. En 1971, il rencontre le succès avec des livres tels que Rêves de Jeunes Filles (Robert Laffont).

Au fur et à mesure de sa carrière, il a réalisé cinq films et participe régulièrement à de nombreuses expositions dans le monde entier. Michel Nuridsany a été pendant vingt ans critique d’art au Figaro.

Commissaire d’exposition, cinéaste et écrivain, il est fauteur de nombreux ouvrages sur l’art et la photographie contemporaine. Peter Beale possède une immense collection d’Artplus de 1500 oeuvres une petite galerie au Palais-Royal, Peters Friends, et écrit des scénarios pour faire passer le temps.

À la fin des années 60, son style était immédiatement reconnaissable et il était demandé par de grands magazines tels que Realities, Twen et Photo. Par la suite, il publia une douzaine de livres dont les ventes cumulées dépssent allègrement le million d’exemplaires ainsi que de nombreuses publications dans des magazines et de nombreuses expositions dans les musées et galeries d’art les plus prestigieux du globe. Son style est également redevenu populaire ces dernières années dans des magazines de mode comme Vogue ou Elle.

Bibliographie de David Hamilton

• 2006 Les contes érotiques : cahier photographique 1970-1990 de David Hamilton, Hermé.
• 2006 David Hamilton de David Hamilton, La Martinière.
• 1999 Holiday Snapshots
• 1996 Le monde de David Hamilton de David Hamilton, Denoël.
• 1996 A Place In The Sun de David Hamilton.
• 1995 The Age of Innocence de David Hamilton, Aurum Press Ltd.
• 1993 David Hamilton, 25 years an artist de David Hamilton, Aurum Press Ltd.
• 1992 Les demoiselles d’Hamilton de David Hamilton, Robbe-Grillet Alain, Robert Laffont.
• 1988 Images de David Hamilton, Outlet.
• 1981 Tender Cousins de David Hamilton - Filipacchi.
• 1978 The Young Girl La jeune fille - de David Hamilton, Robert Laffont (Septembre 1978).
• 1977 Hamilton’s Movie de David Hamilton
• 1976 David Hamilton’s Private Collection de David Hamilton - Colomus.
• 1976 The Best of David Hamilton de David Hamilton - Swan.
• 1974 Souvenirs de David Hamilton - Robert Laffont.
• 1972 Sisters de David Hamilton - Swan.
• 1972 La Danse de David Hamilton, Robert Laffont.
• 1971 Dreams of a Young Girl de David Hamilton - Collins.

Biography David Hamilton

– David Hamilton was born in London in 1933 and lives in an 800 year old home near St.Tropez, France. David studied architecture and interior design before turning to typography and layout. While he was an art director of English magazine Queen, he bought his first camera. Later settling in Paris as art director of Printemps, he began devoting himself exclusively to photography.

– He has worked for the best international magazines, including Vogue, Realites, Twen, Playboy and Oui. His work has been shown all over the world, including leading centres of art culture in New York, Tokyo, London, Hamburg, Milan and Paris. He photographs in a dreamy, romantic, and tranquil style, characterized by subdued natural lighting, graceful period clothing of muted pastel hues, lace and flowers. His models often appear in varying degrees of disrobe and it is a tribute to his talents that the photographs are always tasteful, decorous and suitable for viewing by all ages.

– David pioneered the soft-focus style which has been imitated so often and is even known as the Hamilton look. The technique gives many of his works more the appearance of an impressionist oil painting than a true-to-life crisp photographic image. In a career spanning over 40 years, he has released an average of about one book a year, selling millions of copies. There have been further millions of posters, postcards, calendars, greeting cards and similar items sold. Farbe

– Clever marketing strategy called for the print runs of his books to be below market demand. Popular titles such as 25 Years of an Artist (1994) and Age of Innocence (1995) sold out completely (50,000 copies each in Britain alone) in just their first week of release there. Another more-recent title, Holiday Snapshots, was the quickest of all titles to sell out completely. Earlier books command three — and occasionally four — figures, us dollars, on the second-hand market.

– His early releases were mostly soft-cover but more-recent titles have included the hard-cover coffee-table format, elegantly designed and bound to a very high standard. Such books are often expensive even at the time of release one favorite from a few years ago, Hommage à la Peinture, retailed in large quantities for USD 200 with David’s signature.
His exhibition-quality limited-edition photo-prints are keenly sought at prices starting around USD 12,000. They hang in some of the world’s most prestigious art galleries and museums as well as in the homes of royalty, the rich and famous, serious art collectors and ordinary folks.

– David has also directed many television commercials. His relationship with the House of Nina Ricci, advertising their world-famous perfume l’Air du Temps, lasted over twenty years and produced images that transcended mere advertising, achieving permanence as exquisite art images in their own right that are treasured by collectors.

– Finally, he has directed five feature-length films that played in mainstream cinemas around the world to packed houses. All made profits for their financiers, a rare event in the movie world.

– In all of David’s films the Hamilton theme dominates. The story-line and dialog take second-place to the visual beauty of the art form, with the movies being really just extensions of his traditional photographic work and elaborate vehicles for some superb cinematography. Yet, despite their emphasis on art rather than populist drama, they remain within mainstream cinema, perhaps because of the widespread appeal of the theme which dominates David’s oeuvre. The film best-remembered was Bilitis but many aficionados regard Laura as his best work.

– As with David’s other movies, Laura featured an exquisite sound-track of tender, haunting orchestral music, which was released separately on vinyl. The album sold over 700,000 copies, an astonishing achievement for any record, let alone a movie sound-track, and a record, what’s more, that was never even released at all in the USA, the biggest market of all. The music was performed by Patrick Juvet.

Biblography David Hamilton

English version only

– Le Nu, 2004,
– Holiday Snapshots, 1999, Edition Olms Softcover, 215 pages, 340 photos.
– Seine Besten Bilder, 1999, Marion von Schröder German issue of 25 Years Of An Artist.
– A Place in the Sun, 1996, Aurum Press. Hardcover 202 pages, 190 photos.
– The Age of Innocence, 1995, Aurum Press. Hardcover 214 pages, 209 photos.
– Fantasies Of Girls, 1994, A rare and wonderful Hamilton book published in Japan only. Hardcover, 107 photos.
– 25 Years Of An Artist 1992 L’Ariana . Hardcover, 315 pages.
– Blooming Minayo, 1992,Hardcover, 96 pages, 95 photos.
– Venice, 1989, Pavilion, 95 pages, 90 photos.
– Flowers, 1990, Pavilion, 119 pages.
– Maiko Minami, 1987, Published in Japan only.
– Hommage à la Peinture Images, 1988 1984, AGEP, 142 pages, 117 photos.
– Dun Miho, 1983 - Published in Japan only. Softcover with dustjacket.
– Tender Cousins, 1981, Filipacchi. Hardcover 109 pages, 108 photos.
– Jardin Secret - Secret Garden, 1980, AGEP
– Souvenirs - 1978, Collins. Hardcover, 120 pages, 109 pictures.
– La Jeune Fille also published as The Young Girl, 1978, Laffont. Hardcover, 107 pages, 96 photos.
– Bilitis, 1977, Swan Hardcover, 111 pages, 137 photos.
– The Best of David Hamilton, 1976, Laffont. Hardcover, 144 pages, 63 photos.
– Private Collection, 1976, Laffont. Hardcover, 126 pages, 104 pictures
– Galeria Old Home, 1974, Private book, 20 pages plus lithos 16 pages.
– Sisters also published as Les Demoiselles d’Hamilton, 1972 - Laffont. Hardcover, 144 pages, 85 photos.
– La Danse, 1972, Laffont. Hardcover 104 pages, 62 photos.
– Dreams Of A Young Girl, 1971, Collins David Hamilton’s first book. Hardcover 143 pages.