AT 1812, INSPIRATION EXTENDS FAR BEYOND PRODUCT. IT EMERGES THROUGH ART, PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE WIDER CULTURAL LANDSCAPE THAT SHAPES HOW WE SEE PEOPLE, OBJECTS AND ENVIRONMENTS. AMONG THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PHOTOGRAPHERS OF THE MODERN ERA IS PETER LINDBERGH.
PETER LINDBERGH WAS BORN IN 1944 IN WHAT IS NOW POLAND AND GREW UP IN THE INDUSTRIAL LANDSCAPES OF DUISBURG IN GERMANY — A SETTING THAT WOULD LATER INFLUENCE THE VISUAL LANGUAGE OF HIS PHOTOGRAPHY. WHEN HE BEGAN WORKING IN THE LATE 1970S, FASHION IMAGERY WAS DOMINATED BY GLAMOUR AND HIGHLY STYLISED PERFECTION. LINDBERGH INTRODUCED SOMETHING ENTIRELY DIFFERENT: HONESTY. HIS PORTRAITS REMOVED HEAVY STYLING AND THEATRICAL LIGHTING, FOCUSING INSTEAD ON CHARACTER, EXPRESSION AND PRESENCE. MANY OF HIS MOST POWERFUL IMAGES ARE IN BLACK AND WHITE, WHERE THE ABSENCE OF COLOUR DRAWS ATTENTION TO LIGHT, STRUCTURE AND THE HUMAN FACE.
FOR THE FOUNDER OF 1812, LINDBERGH REPRESENTS A PHILOSOPHY OF STRENGTH THROUGH SIMPLICITY. TRUE PRESENCE DOES NOT REQUIRE EXCESS STYLING OR SPECTACLE. A SINGLE SUBJECT. NATURAL LIGHT. A LANDSCAPE. THESE ELEMENTS CAN CREATE AN IMAGE THAT FEELS TIMELESS AND AUTHENTIC. AUTHENTICITY CARRIES FAR GREATER POWER THAN PERFECTION.
