New York’s 1980’s art world, then chock a block with Warhol’s (opens in new tab) infamous Factory, along with regular sightings of Jean-Michel Basquiat and Cindy Sherman on the prowl, is now somewhat clouded by today’s hipster galleries that dominate Chelsea. Yet that particular chapter in history can be relived in all its glory via the photographer Jeanette Montgomery Barron’s (opens in new tab) scrapbook-like tome, My Years in the 1980s New York Art Scene (opens in new tab), which is packed with her snaps, shot in the studios of Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and other now notable artists, as well as gallery posters and Village Voice reviews.
'I was fortunate to be in the center of it all,' says Barron who now resides in Kent, Connecticut, where her husband heads up James Barron Art (opens in new tab). At the tender age of 24, Barron was introduced by the prominent Zurich dealer Bruno Bischofberger to a wide range of artists in the Big Apple. From there, armed with her Hassleblad much like Robert Mapplethorpe, she captured the lower Manhattan art scene. In between hitting gallery openings and countless dinner parties, Barron also modeled for both painter Alex Katz and fashion photographer David Seidner. Both of their works are included in her latest book.
Despite the intimate photo-documentation of Andy Warhol’s tête à têtes with Jean-Michel Basquiat, and captures of David Salle and others in their studios, Barron is far from just a social photographer. Not only have more than 30 of her images been acquired by the Max Mara private museum Collezione Maramotti in Reggio Emilia, her work is also included in the permanent collections of Houston Museum of Fine Arts and the Andy Warhol Museum.
‘I was fortunate to be in the center of it all,’ says Barron who now resides in Kent, Connecticut
Katherine Bigelow
1980
Willem Dafoe
New York, 1980
In between hitting gallery openings and countless dinner parties, Barron also modeled for both painter Alex Katz and fashion photographer David Seidner. Both of their works are included in her book
Boy George, Bianca Jagger, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Quentin Crisp
Jeannette Montgomery Barron’s Cannes Festival pass, 1988
Boy George and Marylin (Peter Robinson)
The Factory, New York, 1984
INFORMATION
’My Years in the 1980s New York Art Scene’ is published by Collezione Maramotti (opens in new tab)and Silvana Editoriale (opens in new tab). Available at Amazon (opens in new tab) and Glenn Horowitz Bookseller (opens in new tab)
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