Silver Press Images Presents…Fashion, Fame and Cultural Legacy
- 14 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Eliza Pritchett
On the 24th of October in SW10, Silver Press Images held its first ever exhibit, which was made up entirely of original press photographs. A time capsule into the iconic 1960s and 70s opened on Hollywood Road, Chelsea. The show was buzzing from 6pm until early hours of the morning, and I had the pleasure of soaking up the atmosphere and photographing this special evening. This piece serves as a private viewing of the hottest new photography space- through my lens.
For curator Felix Bartlett, this was his first exhibition for Silver Press, and after selling over 85% of his collection effortlessly, we can all agree it was a huge success. With every sale, a red sticker appeared; discreet yet triumphant. By the end of the night, the once monochrome walls had transformed into a constellation of success, glittering in red. When I spoke to Felix, he explained that at its heart, Silver Press “is about storytelling, celebrating the photograph as both a document and an object.” His words became the doorway into understanding the show.
The selected black and white press photos celebrated the icons and images that defined the 60s and 70s. These were the images circulated by the press at the time, helping to establish these stars long before widespread television or even the internet. They documented radical moments across sport, film, fashion, music, and art. The show transported viewers back to these two heavily transformative decades with the display of models smoking in silk dresses, fame and mystery, every photograph holding depth and weight.
The exhibit felt chic and modern. Felix’s curation shone a light on the exclusivity and importance of an often forgotten medium: press photography. These originals were once shot on film, developed with care, and then used in newspapers and magazines. It is important to note that the reverse sides of the images were officially trademarked through stamps and captions, and editorial traces of their circulation, relics of an analogue world. Knowing photography as it is today, these prints have now become relics that capture the spirit of this lost era.
Icons upon icons line the walls, each print deserving a moment in time so vivid it felt cinematic. Most exhibitions have one defining piece that draws the public’s interest, yet here, each photograph was the special star. Although Brigitte Bardot’s portraits seemed to steal the show (and the visitors’ hearts that night), the room was filled with equally commanding, prominent figures. As an art history student, it felt like walking into a gallery room to find Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, The Starry Night, and Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, all next to each other. Dramatic? Perhaps, but just consider a few of the names stamped on these prints. Names such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Salvador Dalí, Mark Chagall, Hugh Hefner, Marilyn Monroe, Michael Caine, Liza Minnelli, John Lennon, Diana Ross, and Mick Jagger. Not to mention Steven McQueen, Elvis, Jane Birkin and Pelé. The wall unfolds like a contact sheet of key cultural moments.
For the first time, I thought of photography not just visually, but as a reflection of its time. This was now a medium for me, which introduced attitudes of the past and atmosphere. For example, Mary Quants’ print reminds us of the revolution of the mini skirt revelation, whilst Bowie was represented as the alien, we all know and still imagine him to be. Ultimately, Silver Press captures not only how these icons looked, but what they represented.
Alongside the Press works, Felix showcases leading image-makers of the time, and some of their celebrity portraits. Turning to your left, you encounter Eve Arnold’s notably humanising portrait of Monroe, and to your right, you’re introduced to Stephen Shore’s rare documentation of Andy Warhol’s factory. Will Rizzo’s surreal portrait of Dalí is charged with the immediacy of the moment it was shot, acting as a key theme in this show.
These photographs aren’t as we know this medium today, as glossy reprints upon reprints in modern society. These photographs are frozen moments that are deeply alive, before the world turned digital.
This exhibit reminds us of a better time. A better time of glamour before the filters, fame and PR took over. This show burns with the kind of flawed, cinematic, and effortlessly cool beauty that couldn’t exist now. You walk out blinking, half convinced the seventies are still happening somewhere, just out of frame.
