Arbus and Aberdeen

I took a trip to Aberdeen on Thursday to see the Diane Arbus exhibition at the Art Gallery.  I really admire her work and couldn't wait to see the photos up close including a self portrait which I believe has never been exhibited before.

Diane Arbus Exhibition Poster - Aberdeen Art Gallery

For anyone not familiar with Diane Arbus's work, she is largely known for her photographs of people who were considered to be on the fringes of society.  Her subjects include transvestites, circus performers, nudists and dwarves.  My favourite photograph is this one below entitled Identical Twins which was one of the photographs on display at the exhibition. 

Identical Twins, Roselle, New Jersey, 1967

I was pleased to find the 'Double Exposure' article (link in text above) which is a kind of 'where are they now'? piece about the twins and a couple of Arbus's other subjects.  I felt a kind of sadness when looking at some of the photos because they made me wonder what happened to those people and what path their lives took after the pictures were taken.  The names of most of her subjects has never been disclosed by Arbus's estate so very little is known about them.  

I find it sad that some people were very critical of her work because of some of the subjects and style of her photography.  It goes to show that the fascination with perfection and classic beauty has always been there, only in those days there was no airbrushing.   

The Diane Arbus exhibition runs at Aberdeen Art Gallery until 9th April 2011.