Bio

b. 1938

In 1959 David Bailey became a photographic assistant at the John French studio. Along with undertaking a large amount of freelance work, in 1960 Bailey he was being contracted as a fashion photographer for Vogue magazine.

Along with Terence Donovan and Brian Duffy, he captured and helped create the ‘Swinging London’ of the 1960s: a culture of high fashion and celebrity chic. The three photographers socialised with actors, musicians and royalty, and found themselves elevated to celebrity status. Together, they were the first real celebrity photographers. The film Blowup (1966), directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, concerns the work and sexual habits of a London fashion photographer played by David Hemmings and is largely based on Bailey.

The ‘Swinging London’ scene was aptly reflected in his Box of Pin-Ups (1964): a box of poster-prints of 1960s celebrities and socialites including Terence Stamp, The Beatles, and notorious East End gangsters the Kray twins (see photo).

One of David Bailey’s iconic images of London gangsters Ronnie and Reggie Kray. The Box of Pin-Ups was an unusual and unique commercial release, and it reflected the changing status of the photographer that one could sell a collection of prints in this way. (The strong objection to the presence of the Krays on the part of Lord Snowdon was the major reason no American edition of the “Box” ever appeared, nor a British second edition issued.)

One of Bailey’s most famous works depicts the Rolling Stones. It features Brian Jones, who drowned in 1969 while under the influence of drink and drugs. He is seen standing slightly apart from the rest of the group. In 1976, Bailey published Ritz Newspaper together with David Litchfield.

In 2005, he was involved in a feature titled “British Rule” for GQ magazine, charting the British influence on rock n’ roll, photographing several artists including Paul Weller, Jarvis Cocker, Razorlight, Brian Eno, M.I.A., Ian Brown, The Futureheads, Belle and Sebastian, Damon Albarn, Dizzee Rascal, Kaiser Chiefs, Robyn Hitchcock, Super Furry Animals, and Colin Blunstone for the spread.

Bailey has written and published books, directed films, arranged photographic shows and directed commercials. His book Goodbye Baby and Amen is the complete record of his work and captures the decade he first flourished in, with portraits of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, as well as actresses, politicians, artists and writers of the day. His first book of portraits, David Bailey’s Box of Pin-ups, was published in 1965. David Bailey’s Rock and Roll Heroes, 1997, showcases more than 80 of his most vivid images of the pop scene from the 1960s on – images of Mick Jagger, John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and The Who – and also includes more recent photographs of recording artists like Seal, Liam and Noel Gallagher of Oasis, Sting, and Dave Stewart. Two noteworthy films are Beaton by Bailey, 1971, and Andy Warhol, 1973. In 1984 there was a major retrospective of his work at Manhattan’s International Center of Photography, and in 1999 another major show, “The Birth of the Cool,” at London’s Barbican Centre.

David Bailey, Archive One 1957-1969, published in 1999, includes the bulk of his early fashion and portraiture work, but also unearths some photojournalistic gems taken in the early Sixties, mostly of London’s East End. Today, Bailey’s still going strong and shows no signs of slowing down. His most recent work includes portraits and celebrity shoots for Harper’s Bazaar, Italian Vogue, The London Times and Talk magazine, among other publications.

Books by David Bailey:

Goodbye Baby & Amen, by David Bailey (photographs) and Peter Evans (text), (1969)
The Birth of the Cool, by David Bailey, (1999). ISBN 0-670-88818-4

If We Shadows, by David Bailey (photographs) and George Melly (preface), (2001). ISBN 0-500-28255-2

Chasing Rainbows, by David Bailey (photographs) and Robin Muir (text), (2001). ISBN 0-500-54241-4

Havana, by David Bailey, (2006). ISBN 3-865-21270-0

Bailey’s Democracy by David Bailey (photographs) and Desmond Morris (text),(2005) ISBN 0500543151

David Bailey: 8 Minutes: Hirst & Bailey, With Damien Hirst ISBN 3865218644.