Albert Watson

Ltd. Edition 1946 Macallan Albert Watson Edition to Sell for $16,000

Filed under: Spirits, Art

Missed out on the the 64-year-old Macallan in Lalique Cire Perdue recently auctioned off at Sotheby's for a record breaking $460,000 (the world's most expensive bottle of whisky)? You can still get your hands on some equally precious elixir via an ultra-exclusive limited edition bottling from the famed Speyside distillery as part of its upcoming Albert Watson collaboration. Priced at $16,000 apiece, the offering stems from the Macallan's Masters of Photography series. Only 36 bottles of the rare single malt Scotch distilled in 1946 will be available early next year along with a one-of-a-kind platinum print from Watson's project.

If that's still out of your reach, you might still be able to lay claim to the regular but also quite special Albert Watson Masters of Photography bottling, above – a new, limited-edition 20 year old single malt priced at $1,000 apiece, of which only 1,000 bottles are being produced. Watson's images depict a young couple as they travel the path the wood used in the distillery's whisky casks takes as it moves from the Spanish forest to its "spiritual home on Speyside".

[via JustLuxe]

Tags: Albert Watson, Macallan, photography, Scotch, Scotland, single malt, The Macallan, whisky

Avedon Nude of Stephanie Seymour Expected to Fetch $210,000

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

A racy nude portrait of supermodel Stephanie Seymour (detail above) taken by the late, great Richard Avedon in 1992 is expected to fetch up to $210,000 at Sotheby's' Photographies sale in Paris on November 19. Part of a private European collection, the image will bolster the strength of the photography market if it achieves its price. Though most of the lots date from the early 1900s, the stunning sale also includes an Albert Watson portrait of Naomi Campbell from 1989 and a David LaChapelle portait of Andy Warhol from 1987 taken shortly before the artist's death, both estimated at up to $21,000; and a Herb Ritts portrait of Madonna from 1986, expected to fetch up to $10,000. Notable works by Irving Penn, Ansel Adams, Edward Weston and more round out the offerings.

Tags: Albert Watson, Andy Warhol, auction, David LaChapelle, Irving Penn, Madonna, Naomi Campbell, nude, Paris, Phtography, Richard Avedon, Sothebys, Stephanie Seymour, supermodel

Famed Photographer Albert Watson Publishes Epic 40-Year Retrospective

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art, Books

Famed photographer Albert Watson, whose celebrity portraits and nudes of Kate Moss fetch astonishing prices at auction, has come out with a stunning new 40-year retrospective of his work. Titled UFO, which stands for "Uniﬁed Fashion Objectives", the massive monograph includes iconic shots of famous faces from 50 Cent, Christy Turlington, Sean Penn, Johnny Depp, Uma Thurman, Beyonce and Jack Nicholson are interspersed with still lifes, fashion images and more, personally selected by Watson from his vast archive. The Scottish-born photographer's first celebrity photograph was a portrait of Alfred Hitchcock for the cover of Harper's Bazaar in 1973.

Since then he has amassed more than 200 Vogue covers and 40 Rolling Stone covers to his credit and has shot countless ad campaigns, TV commercials and movie posters. Many of the images in the book have never been published before and are presented here for the very ﬁrst time. The slipcased volume is also available as a limited edition book for $500 including an archival pigment print of 500 copies only, housed in a black acrylic case. Individually signed and numbered, the limited edition is available exclusively through galleries representing Albert Watson and selected retailers.

Gallery: Albert Watson's UFO

Scarlett Johansson, Interview, New York City, 2005

Joel West + Denise Gilpin, Little Italy story, Vogue Homme, New York City, 1995

Debbie Dickson + Christie Brinkley, American Vogue, Senegal, 1978

Tags: 50 Cent, Albert Watson, art, Beyonce, books, celebrity, Christy Turlington, coffee table books, fashion, Johnny Depp, Kate Moss, nude, photographer, photography, supermodels, Uma Thurman, Vogue

The Macallan Launches Albert Watson Edition [Video]

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits, Art

Famed Speyside distillery The Macallan has announced the second photographer tapped to collaborate on its limited edition Masters of Photography series – Scottish-born Albert Watson, whose nudes of Kate Moss fetch astonishing prices at auction. Following the form of the storied single malt's Rankin Edition, the Watson bottling's labels will feature examples of the master's work commissioned specially for the project, shot on various locations around the globe. The exact theme of the project is being kept under wraps for now, but we've been told that the the key elements include "a dramatic and yet romantic 'art noir' voyage, a stylish couple and the key secret behind The Macallan Single Malt." Check out this video from the first stages of the shoot documented on The Macallan Blog by Director of Malts for the Edrington Group, Ken Grier.

Tags: Albert Watson, macallan, photographer, photography, Rankin, Scotch, Scotland, whiskey, whisky

Helmut Newton, Richard Avedon, Mario Testino & More in London Photo Sale

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

World class works including nudes and celebrity portraits by Helmut Newton, Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Mario Testino, Albert Watson and more are on offer at Christie's Photographs sale in London on May 21. Among the top-priced lots is Albert Watson's greatly enlarged contact sheet of a nude Kate Moss, taken in 1993, estimated at $29,000 - $44,000; his portrait of Uma Thurman meanwhile, also taken in '93, is estimated at $9,000 - $12,000. Mario Testino's iconic 1997 portrait of Princess Di is also expected to do well with an estimate of $26,000 - $32,000. Richard Avedon's portrait of artist Francis Bacon from 1979 is estimated at $18,000 - $26,000. Among the Helmut Newton offerings is 1976's famous Saddle, I (above) and 1980's Tied-up Torso, Ramatuelle, both estimated at $10,000 - $15,000. And Robert Mapplethorpe's nude Sonia Resika, 1988 is estimated at $4,000 - $7,000.

Tags: Albert Watson, celebrity, Francis Bacon, Helmut Newton, Irving Penn, Kate Moss, London, Mario Testino, nude, photography, Princess Dianna, Richard Avedon, Robert Mapplethorpe, supermodels, Uma Thurman

More Nude Supermodels on the Auction Block

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions

Following Christie's' successful photo auction earlier this month where a nude of First Lady of France Carla Bruni fetched $91,000, the auction house is staging another sale of stunning images in a couple of weeks. The eye-popping event, taking place in London on May 15, features another photo by Michel Comte, who took the Bruni pic. The new one is of Brazilian bombshell Gisele Bundchen from 1999, and carries an estimate of $12,000 - $16,000.

Also included is an Albert Watson portrait of Kate Moss from 1993 (pictured here, est. $16,000 - $20,000), a Peter Beard photo of Salvador Dali in 1963 (est. $24,000 - $35,000), Richard Avedon's iconic 1981 image of Nastassja Kinski and a friendly boa constrictor (est. $30,000 - $40,000), and Lewis Morley's famous 1963 shot of Christine Keeler (est. $8,000 - $12,000), the model who was at the crux of a famous British government scandal in the '60s.

In addition, there are works by Ansel Adams, Diane Arbus, Robert Mapplethorpe, and William Eggleston on offer. The 115-lot auction is expected to bring in over $3 million.

[via Men.Style]

Gallery: London Photo Auction