′The Living and the Dead′: Life′s work of photographer Anton Corbijn | All media content | DW | 07.06.2018

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Culture

'The Living and the Dead': Life's work of photographer Anton Corbijn

From the Rolling Stones to PJ Harvey, Nick Cave and Johnny Cash, Dutch photographer and filmmaker Anton Corbijn has immortalized a gamut of musical idols. A retrospective in Hamburg celebrates his diverse oeuvre.

  • Anton Corbijn at the The Living and the Dead exhibition in Hamburg (picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt)

    'Music was the biggest thing for me'

    This image of Anton Corbijn standing at the Hamburg retrospective in front of his classic portraits of Johnny Cash and the band Nirvana — both taken in 1993 — symbolizes the love for music that has so inspired the Dutch photographer across 40 years. "Music was the biggest thing for me," he once said. Many of his works are showcased at the "Anton Corbijn: The Living and the Dead" retrospective.

  • Film scene Control by Anton Corbijn

    Born photographer and filmmaker

    He would later work with Depeche Mode and U2, but Anton Corbijn began as a self-taught photographer. He was born on May 20,1955 in the Dutch town of Strijen, the son of a pastor. From the early 1980s he moved from photography to music videos. In 2007, Corbijn rose to global prominence as a feature filmmaker with Control (pictured), about the life of singer Ian Curtis from the band Joy Division.

  • Bambi-Verleihung 2014 U2

    First great love: Music

    Music fascinated the introverted Corbijn from his early youth. For him, the camera was a social tool which helped him overcome social barriers and connect him with his favorite artists. The camera allowed him to drop his reserved guard and, through photography, led to deep connections and friendships with his many subjects — including Irish band U2.

  • Anton Corbijn poses in front of a self portrait in the Gemeente Museum in The Hague

    Second great love: Photography

    Corbijn's black-and-white photographs always speak in the language of melancholy. With a Hasselblad camera he portrayed musicians, painters, models and actors. In 2002 he shot a series of self-portraits, in which he disguised himself as dead rock musicians. Here, he poses in front of a self-portrait which is part of his retrospective exhibition.

  • Corbijn photograph of David Bowie (picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt)

    Corbijn and post-punk

    At 19, Corbijn decided to become a freelance photographer. At the beginning of the 1980s he moved from The Hague to London. One of the first bands he photographed in his adopted home were post-punk pioneers Joy Division. He soon became an in-demand photographer for music bible NME, snapping Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis, David Bowie (above right) and many more.

  • Nirvana Kurt Cobain MTV Unplugged

    Corbijn meets Cobain

    In addition to Joy Division, Corbijn formed close relationships with the bands Depeche Mode and U2, and began to shoot many of their album covers and direct their music videos. One of his most famous music clips was "Heart-Shaped Box" by band Nirvana, fronted by rock icon Kurt Cobain (pictured), for which he won the 1994 MTV Music Award for best art direction.

  • Chris Martin of the band Coldplay performs at the MTV European Music Awards 2011

    Stars on film

    As one of the world's most in-demand music video directors, Corbijn has also shot seminal videos for Depeche Mode, The Killers, Arcade Fire, Roxette, Metallica, U2, Nick Cave, Johnny Cash, Mercury Rev, Travis, Bryan Adams, Joni Mitchell and Coldplay (pictured), for whom he directed the clips for the singles "Talk" and "Viva la Vida."

  • photo of a man smoking (picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt)

    Bono up close

    Having shot the iconic album cover for U2's 1987 album, The Joshua Tree, and directed several U2 video clips, including for "Achtung Baby," Corbijn used his inimitable portrait style for this 1996 photograph of the band's singer, Bono. The image can be seen up close at the retrospective at Hamburg's Bucerius Kunst Forum.

  • Two men sit at a table (The American mit George Clooney)

    New love: Film

    His debut as a feature filmmaker was Control — an elegant and grainy black-and-white film reminiscent of the early days of cinema. In his second feature, The American starring George Clooney (pictured right), he stunned audiences with his minimalism and still images of barren and desolate landscapes. The film's striking soundtrack was composed by German pop icon Herbert Grönemeye.

  • Filmstill A Most Wanted Man von Anton Corbijn

    Old love never dies

    In Corbijn's 2014 film, A Most Wanted Man, Grönemeyer (pictured left) stars on screen in a supporting role. The two artists have been friends for 25 years, and Grönemeyer explained: "We are like a pair of lovers. There is a chemistry between us that I cannot quite explain. There are also differences: Anton is a very smart, wise person. I am rather childish, temperamental."

  • Fotograf Anton Corbijn auf der Berlinale 2015

    Acclaimed filmmaker

    Early in his career, Corbijn could let his photographs speak for themselves. Now he regularly gives interviews at film festivals, such as the Berlinale and Cannes. However, despite his wide popularity as a filmmaker, he once explained: "I like the melancholy side of life and use it as a starting point for my films. I believe that we all live our lives alone."


  • Anton Corbijn at the The Living and the Dead exhibition in Hamburg (picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt)

    'Music was the biggest thing for me'

    This image of Anton Corbijn standing at the Hamburg retrospective in front of his classic portraits of Johnny Cash and the band Nirvana — both taken in 1993 — symbolizes the love for music that has so inspired the Dutch photographer across 40 years. "Music was the biggest thing for me," he once said. Many of his works are showcased at the "Anton Corbijn: The Living and the Dead" retrospective.

  • Film scene Control by Anton Corbijn

    Born photographer and filmmaker

    He would later work with Depeche Mode and U2, but Anton Corbijn began as a self-taught photographer. He was born on May 20,1955 in the Dutch town of Strijen, the son of a pastor. From the early 1980s he moved from photography to music videos. In 2007, Corbijn rose to global prominence as a feature filmmaker with Control (pictured), about the life of singer Ian Curtis from the band Joy Division.

  • Bambi-Verleihung 2014 U2

    First great love: Music

    Music fascinated the introverted Corbijn from his early youth. For him, the camera was a social tool which helped him overcome social barriers and connect him with his favorite artists. The camera allowed him to drop his reserved guard and, through photography, led to deep connections and friendships with his many subjects — including Irish band U2.

  • Anton Corbijn poses in front of a self portrait in the Gemeente Museum in The Hague

    Second great love: Photography

    Corbijn's black-and-white photographs always speak in the language of melancholy. With a Hasselblad camera he portrayed musicians, painters, models and actors. In 2002 he shot a series of self-portraits, in which he disguised himself as dead rock musicians. Here, he poses in front of a self-portrait which is part of his retrospective exhibition.

  • Corbijn photograph of David Bowie (picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt)

    Corbijn and post-punk

    At 19, Corbijn decided to become a freelance photographer. At the beginning of the 1980s he moved from The Hague to London. One of the first bands he photographed in his adopted home were post-punk pioneers Joy Division. He soon became an in-demand photographer for music bible NME, snapping Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis, David Bowie (above right) and many more.

  • Nirvana Kurt Cobain MTV Unplugged

    Corbijn meets Cobain

    In addition to Joy Division, Corbijn formed close relationships with the bands Depeche Mode and U2, and began to shoot many of their album covers and direct their music videos. One of his most famous music clips was "Heart-Shaped Box" by band Nirvana, fronted by rock icon Kurt Cobain (pictured), for which he won the 1994 MTV Music Award for best art direction.

  • Chris Martin of the band Coldplay performs at the MTV European Music Awards 2011

    Stars on film

    As one of the world's most in-demand music video directors, Corbijn has also shot seminal videos for Depeche Mode, The Killers, Arcade Fire, Roxette, Metallica, U2, Nick Cave, Johnny Cash, Mercury Rev, Travis, Bryan Adams, Joni Mitchell and Coldplay (pictured), for whom he directed the clips for the singles "Talk" and "Viva la Vida."

  • photo of a man smoking (picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt)

    Bono up close

    Having shot the iconic album cover for U2's 1987 album, The Joshua Tree, and directed several U2 video clips, including for "Achtung Baby," Corbijn used his inimitable portrait style for this 1996 photograph of the band's singer, Bono. The image can be seen up close at the retrospective at Hamburg's Bucerius Kunst Forum.

  • Two men sit at a table (The American mit George Clooney)

    New love: Film

    His debut as a feature filmmaker was Control — an elegant and grainy black-and-white film reminiscent of the early days of cinema. In his second feature, The American starring George Clooney (pictured right), he stunned audiences with his minimalism and still images of barren and desolate landscapes. The film's striking soundtrack was composed by German pop icon Herbert Grönemeye.

  • Filmstill A Most Wanted Man von Anton Corbijn

    Old love never dies

    In Corbijn's 2014 film, A Most Wanted Man, Grönemeyer (pictured left) stars on screen in a supporting role. The two artists have been friends for 25 years, and Grönemeyer explained: "We are like a pair of lovers. There is a chemistry between us that I cannot quite explain. There are also differences: Anton is a very smart, wise person. I am rather childish, temperamental."

  • Fotograf Anton Corbijn auf der Berlinale 2015

    Acclaimed filmmaker

    Early in his career, Corbijn could let his photographs speak for themselves. Now he regularly gives interviews at film festivals, such as the Berlinale and Cannes. However, despite his wide popularity as a filmmaker, he once explained: "I like the melancholy side of life and use it as a starting point for my films. I believe that we all live our lives alone."


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