With a style at once impactful, reflective and irreverent, photographer Jonathan Becker belongs more to the artistic than the documentarian realm, masterfully capturing a theatrical sense of the unexpected as he offers glimpses into rarefied worlds.
Bea Feitler — the late, legendary artistic director responsible for vamping up Harper’s Bazaar and Rolling Stone in the 1960s and ’70s — gave Becker his first big break, in 1981, when she asked him to submit images for the relaunch of Vanity Fair.
Becker, who was 26 at the time, had already been the first Paris-based photographer for W magazine and had forged a close friendship with French-Hungarian Surrealist photographer Brassaï, who was then in his 70s. By this age, too, Becker had also developed an enviable reputation as a portrait photographer working on Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine and alongside Slim Aarons and Norman Parkinson at Town & Country, although he knew not to step on his famous colleagues’ toes. “I was a young little interloper,” he says. “I learned more by listening and watching those giants than by trying to engage in any direct interactions with them.”
The young photographer, who was moonlighting at the time as a New York City cab driver, hadn’t dreamed that the project would put his pictures on an equal footing with those of legends of the medium: Also contributing to this debut edition were some of photography’s most revered names, including Richard Avedon, Irving Penn and Helmut Newton, as well as rising star Annie Leibovitz, whose popularity had recently skyrocketed, thanks to her Rolling Stone cover picture of a naked John Lennon curled up alongside a fully clothed Yoko Ono.
That issue was a game changer in modern magazine publishing, with Vanity Fair setting the bar for engaging editorial and daring design for decades to come. It also signaled the making of a man: Becker’s talent for visual storytelling shone through in his avant-gardist tribute, and the magazine’s creative team kept him on, marking the start of his long career there.
As a regular Vanity Fair contributor, Becker operated in the highest echelons of society, traveling the world and immortalizing countless A-list movers, shakers and thinkers from the fields of fashion, culture and politics, not to mention royalty.
Becker's unconventional way of directing his eye is clearly instinctual, resulting in an unusual aesthetic that mixes perception, myth and reality in equal measure. This balance is most apparent in his famous black-and-white picture of Robert Mapplethorpe, taken in 1988 at the opening of Mapplethorpe’s retrospective exhibition at the Whitney, when the famed photographer was dying of AIDS. It is a group shot, showing various figures at different angles, in which Mapplethorpe, caught in profile and listening intently to a woman kneeling beside him, seems to stop time. The moment is heavy with emotion and also dreamlike. It is ineffably surreal.
Becker has given us Stephen King as a cross-eyed zombie (1980); Dustin Hoffman as a mischief maker, lounging on a stack of sun loungers at the Beverly Hills Hotel (2004); and Diana Vreeland as an aging Raphaelesque Madonna dressed in a voluminous black gown and sitting cross-legged in her famous red-clad living room at 550 Park Avenue (1979). The photographer, a lover of spontaneity who deftly plays with perspectives, keeps us intrigued with his open-ended narratives.
Find a collection of Jonathan Becker photography on 1stDibs.
On the Sofa at the Real Dolls Factory, San Diego, 19 February 2015
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
On the Sofa at the Real Dolls Factory, San Diego, 19 February 2015 Photographed by Jonathan Becker Contemporary 44" x 44.5" Archival Pigment Print Edition Nº 1 of 9 Certificate of O...
Archival Pigment
At the Real Dolls Factory, San Diego, 19 February 2015
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
At the Real Dolls Factory, 19 February 2015 Portrait of a sex doll crated for shipment to a client. The Real Dolls brand sat at the high-end of the trade, p...
Archival Pigment
Liu Ye in his studio with muse, Beijing, 16 May 2007
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
Liu Ye in his studio with muse, Beijing, 16 May 2007 X Photographed by Jonathan Becker Contemporary 44" x 44.5" Archival Pigment Print Edition Nº 1 of 9 Cert...
Archival Pigment
Linda Hutton in the attic tub, Southampton, August 1974
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
Linda Hutton in the attic tub, Southampton, August 1974 X Photographed by Jonathan Becker Contemporary 16" x 16.5" Archival Platinum/Palladium Print Edition Nº 1 of 6 Certificate o...
Platinum
Villa Cetinale, Siena Italy, May 2012
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
Villa Cetinale, Italy, May 2012 A moment at a storied property where centuries of history pile on Photographed by Jonathan Becker Contemporary 44" x 4...
Archival Pigment
Villa Cetinale, Siena, Italy, May 2012
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
Villa Cetinale, Siena, Italy, May 2012 A moment at a storied property where centuries of history pile on Photographed by Jonathan Becker Contemporary ...
Platinum
$700
H 24 in W 18 in D 0.1 in
"Untitled (Nr. 1546)" Nude Photography 24" x 18" Edition 2/20 by Rowan Daly
By Rowan Daly
Located in Culver City, CA
"Untitled (Nr. 1546)" Nude Photography 24" x 18" Edition 2/20 by Rowan Daly Signed and numbered by the artist Comes with COA issued by the artist Unframed - ships rolled in a tube ...
Archival Pigment
$5,421
H 23.63 in W 18.9 in
Divine Nude No.20 by Ronald Martinez - Fine art photography, Renaissance, woman
Located in Paris, FR
Divine Nude No.20 is a limited-edition photograph by French contemporary artist Ronald Martinez. This photograph is sold unframed as a print only. It is available in 2 dimensions: ...
Photographic Paper, C Print
$2,950
H 24 in W 32 in D 0.1 in
"Avernus" Nude Photography 24" x 32" in Ed. 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin
By Aaron McPolin
Located in Culver City, CA
"Avernus" Nude Photography 24" x 32" in Ed. 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin Archival Giclee Print Signed and numbered by the artist. Comes with COA issued by the artist NOT framed. Ships in a...
Archival Pigment
$2,950
H 24 in W 32 in D 0.1 in
"Lupa" Nude Photography 24" x 32" inch Edition 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin
By Aaron McPolin
Located in Culver City, CA
"Lupa" Nude Photography 24" x 32" inch Edition 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin Medium: Archival Giclee Print Signed and numbered by the artist. Comes with COA issued by the artist. Available ...
Archival Pigment
$2,950
H 30 in W 24 in D 0.1 in
"Sekhmet" Nude Photography 30" x 24" in Edition of 7 by Aaron Mcpolin
By Aaron McPolin
Located in Culver City, CA
"Sekhmet" Nude Photography 30" x 24" in Edition of 7 by Aaron Mcpolin Medium: Archival Giclee Print Signed and numbered by the artist. Comes with COA issued by the artist. Available...
Archival Pigment
$2,950
H 30 in W 30 in D 0.1 in
"Grounding" Nude Photography 30" x 30" in Ed. 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin
By Aaron McPolin
Located in Culver City, CA
"Grounding" Nude Photography 30" x 30" in Ed. 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin Archival Giclee Print Signed and numbered by the artist. Comes with COA issued by the artist NOT framed. Ships in...
Archival Pigment
$1,080Sale Price|20% Off
H 36 in W 44 in D 0.1 in
Untitled (Nr. 1072) Photography 36" x 44" Edition of 12 by Ben Cope
By Ben Cope
Located in Culver City, CA
Untitled (Nr. 1072) Photography 36" x 44" Edition of 12 by Ben Cope Signed and numbered by the artist. Unframed - ships rolled in a tube Ben Cope + Rowan Daly Off the Grid Off the Grid is the culmination of a six-year photographic journey through Baja, Mexico. Ben Cope and Rowan Daly began their travels in 2014, working their way through the towns of la Salinas, Baja Mar, and Cantamar, down through Ensanada and la Bufadora. This series of photographs depicts the pair’s adventures and explorations. Off the Grid documents the textures, people, and places visited during this incredible journey...
Archival Pigment
Kevin & Claude I
By Rick Day
Located in New York, NY
Archival pigment print Signed and numbered, recto 20 x 24 inches, sheet (Edition of 7) 11 x 14 inches, sheet (Edition of 20) This photograph is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. About the artist: Rick Day is an American photographer based in New York City, who names Bruce Weber, Herb Ritts, and Victor Skrebneski as influences. His work concentrates on fashion advertising photography and video—his fashion spreads and images have been published in numerous publications across the world including “ELLE,” “Details,” “Vogue Italia,” “Männer,” “DNA,” and “GQ.” Day has produced four photography books since 2008, with BelAmi being the most recent (all published through Bruno Gmünder...
Archival Pigment
$2,950
H 24 in W 36 in D 0.1 in
"Looking Glass" Nude Landscape Photography 24" x 36" in Ed. 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin
By Aaron McPolin
Located in Culver City, CA
"Looking Glass" Nude Landscape Photography 24" x 36" in Ed. 1/7 by Aaron Mcpolin Archival Giclee Print & Museum Framed NOT framed. Ships in a tube. Signed and numbered by th...
Archival Pigment
$1,350
H 36 in W 44 in D 0.1 in
Untitled (Nr. 5433) Nude Photography 36" x 44" in Ed. of 12 by Rowan Daly
By Rowan Daly
Located in Culver City, CA
Untitled (Nr. 5433) Nude Photography 36" x 44" in Ed. of 12 by Rowan Daly Unframed - ships rolled in a tube Signed and numbered by the artist Comes with COA issued by the artist Be...
Archival Pigment
$2,950
H 30 in W 24 in D 0.1 in
"Cernunnos II" Nude Photography 30" x 24" in Edition of 7 by Aaron Mcpolin
By Aaron McPolin
Located in Culver City, CA
"Cernunnos II" Nude Photography 30" x 24" in Edition of 7 by Aaron Mcpolin Medium: Archival Giclee Print Signed and numbered by the artist. Comes with COA issued by the artist. Avai...
Archival Pigment
Clyde
By Daniel Handal
Located in New York, NY
Archival pigment print, painted frame (Edition of 4 + 1 AP) Signed and numbered, verso This photograph is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. Price includes mounting and ...
Archival Pigment
Villa Cetinale, Siena, Italy, May 2012
By Jonathan Becker
Located in New York, NY
Villa Cetinale, Siena, Italy, May 2012 A moment at a storied property where centuries of history pile on Photographed by Jonathan Becker Contemporary ...
Platinum