We were invited by David Fahey to attend a very small private reception and pre-opening celebrating British photographer, Rankin’s new “Pop-up” Gallery in Los Angeles. British photographer and director Rankin, in conjunction with Fahey/Klein Gallery, launches Rankin’s Rubbish, his first exhibition at his new gallery on Melrose Avenue. This special preview has been held in honor of BritWeek.
Best known for celebrity portraiture and fashion photography, Rankin turns his lens to rendering more beautiful the detritus of everyday life with this exhibition.
Rankin says: “I have always wanted to call an exhibition ‘Rankin’s Rubbish’. I love the humor in the title – its not what people expect, especially as the opening show to a new venture. I always approach my work with a sense of fun. I want to amuse people with my photographs, and I try never to take myself too seriously. That’s a very British character trait and, in this sense, this is a very British show! I was inspired by Irving Penn’s still life images of cigarette butts and other discarded items. His images are beautiful, and he elevates the mundane to almost become objects to admire. I’ve always been obsessed by minute detail, and the patterns that emerge when you look at something so closely. I see faces in everything.”
Rankin lives and works in North London. Over the last 22 years, he has earned a reputation for his exceptional portraiture and is repeatedly commissioned for global advertising campaigns, editorial features and is exhibited in galleries around the world. As a director, he frequently shoots music videos, commercials and documentaries as well as directing an award-winning feature film, The Lives of the Saints.
In the months to come, separate exhibitions of Rankin’s photographs will be on view at this new space. The “Pop-up” Gallery is open in conjunction with the Fahey/Klein Gallery. The gallery officially opens on May 26.
Fahey/Klein Gallery
8070 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, 90046
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