I recently visited the Fort Works Art Gallery located at 2100 Montgomery Street just down the street from the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas. They’re currently hosting a more than 30 year career retrospective, Chaos and Cosmos,  of the photographic works of Kate Simon, with over 100 of her gelatin silver photographs on display. From their write up: “Kate Simon is a portrait photographer best known for her imagery of numerous artists, writers and musicians–from Andy Warhol, William S Burroughs to Iggy Pop. Kate has works in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the National Portrait Gallery/Smithsonian Institution, the Andy Warhol Museum, and more.” 

Most of my favorite pieces in the show were her concert images, as she manages to capture the energy so beautifully of David Bowie, Sir Elton John, Mick Jagger in the midst of some of their performances.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also was really struck by a series of portrait shots of Madonna. One in particular I stared out for many long minutes. The genius of the composition here is just striking. See how the white stones climbing up the building frame her on either side from behind. The shadow cast upon the building, Madonna in dark looking outfit, the skirt billowing to the right, and then the dark patch of color in the bottom right from where she precariously perches on the ledge. The darks of the composition draw your eye on the diagonal from the upper left to the bottom right. Her atypical pose gives a sense of personality and vitality to the shot.