Snowdon on Stage: Four Decades of Photographs - Hardcover

Antony Armstrong-Jones

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1862050406 ISBN 13: 9781862050402

Publisher: Chrysalis Books, 1997

Synopsis

Snowdon (then Tony Armstrong-Jones) started taking photographs professionally when he came down from Cambridge in 1950. It was his uncle and mentor, the stage designer Oliver Messel, who encouraged him to take theatre photographs. At that time theatre photography was dominated by Angus McBean and Houston Rogers, whose work he greatly admired. However, theatrical productions were moving from the drawing rooms of the home counties to the "kitchen sink" and "angry young men". Snowdon used a small camera, using available light, and often worked during performances. He printed huge twenty-foot enlargements outside the theatre. This fresh approach was favoured by directors like Peter Hall and Peter Brook as it took up less rehearsal time. For over 40 years Snowdon has been commissioned to photograph virtually everyone in the theatre, and this collection includes portraits of Helen Mirren, Alan Bennett, Maggie Smith, Ralph Fiennes, Lord Olivier and Harold Pinter.

About this title

From the Publisher

Snowdon (then Tony Armstrong Jones) started taking photographs professionally when he graduated from Cambridge in 1950. It was his uncle and mentor, the stage designer Oliver Messel, who encouraged him to take theater photographs. He used a small camera, available light, and often worked during performances. For some 40 years, Snowdon has been commissioned to photograph virtually everyone working in the theater; in so doing, he has brilliantly documented the changing life of the British stage. Among the many arresting images in this handsome volume are portraits of Ralph Richardson, Alec Guinness, John Gielgud, Vanessa Redgrave, and Noël Coward. There are portraits, too, of contemporary stars, including Jeremy Irons, Natasha Richardson, Emma Thompson, Jude Law, and Rupert Everett. Introducing the book, and bringing the photos into sharper focus, is ³A Personal View of the British Theatre 1954­1996² by noted actor Simon Callow.

About this edition

• Publisher: Chrysalis Books
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 1862050406
• ISBN 13: 9781862050402
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 157