Lu Magnus is pleased to present American Beauty, the first full-scale solo show of works by photographer Claiborne Swanson Frank on view from March 30th to May 20th 2012. The exhibition will feature a selection of images that Swanson Frank took over the course of two years while assembling her debut title for Assouline. The series includes over 100 intimate, stylized portraits intended to individually and as a whole capture the quintessential spirit of the contemporary American woman. Over the course of the project Swanson Frank al... Read more

Lu Magnus is pleased to present American Beauty, the first full-scale solo show of works by photographer Claiborne Swanson Frank on view from March 30th to May 20th 2012. The exhibition will feature a selection of images that Swanson Frank took over the course of two years while assembling her debut title for Assouline. The series includes over 100 intimate, stylized portraits intended to individually and as a whole capture the quintessential spirit of the contemporary American woman. Over the course of the project Swanson Frank also found herself documenting the topography of the country itself – from unmanicured rambling fields to windswept beaches on both coasts, centuries-old barns, and even the graffiti covered sidewalks that make up the unique landscape of America.
Often inspired by John Singer Sargent’s formal compositions, Swanson Frank’s full-length portraits reference traditional portraiture, while incorporating a modern and free-spirited sensibility and vivid color. Her photographs offer a glimpse into a rarefied world where her subjects have surnames like Lauder, Bush, Getty, Hearst, DuPont and Kennedy but, as Vogue’s Photo Editor Ivan Shaw aptly points out in the book’s introduction, the contemporary art historical precedent began with Andy Warhol advising young artists: “photograph your friends.” Over the years a legion of photographers have found their most profound subjects in those that were closest to them – Sally Mann’s children, Nan Goldin’s lovers and Tina Barney’s extended family, to name a few. Swanson Frank has already garnered comparison to the late Slim Aarons, whose photographs of the privileged at play defined an era.

Swanson Frank finds her own voice by injecting her work with something that is also intensely autobiographical: each image is infused with an inherent sense of fashion. Stylized by the photographer herself but unscripted, Swanson Frank subconsciously channels her own experience at Vogue, working under the tutelage of Anna Wintour, by making each portrait come to life in a realm that exists between the gritty and the ideal.

A photographer of psychological depth, Swanson Frank reveals the personality and individuality of her privileged sitters. The artist was careful in her selection, she wanted women who defied the stereotypes of privilege and the misconceptions of beauty. “I wanted women that were beautiful inside and out. I wanted to capture women who had depth,” she explains. With this in mind, all of Swanson Frank’s subjects are women with substantial careers or deep commitment to causes that extend far beyond the charity circuit. Take for example Jenna Lyons, whose quirky style and confidence transformed J. Crew into one of the most influential brands in the fashion industry. Swanson Frank’s admiration for each of her subjects contributes to the intimacy of the portraits and enables her to reveal their natural beauty.

Claiborne Swanson Frank was born in Naples, Florida and has lived in both London and San Francisco, currently residing with her husband in New York. She is a self-taught photographer who spent the bulk of her twenties in the fashion industry and at Vogue Magazine. In 2010, she created the series Indigo Light, a collection of 29 portraits of the women in her life, which served as inspiration for American Beauty.