Sandro Miller's 'Malkovich, Malkovich, Malkovich' Exhibition Is Coming to Sydney
Last year's viral news story, this year's must-see show.
Last September, John Malkovich took time off from being John Malkovich to be Everyone Else for a change. Shot by Sandro Miller in Los Angeles, the highly publicised series of photographs dubbed Malkovich, Malkovich, Malkovich recreated some of the most iconic portraits in recent history — from John and Yoko to Che Guevara, Dorothea Lange's Migrant Woman to Andres Serrano's Piss Christ. And now the series is coming to Sydney as part of this year's Head On Photo Festival (running May 1 - 31), showing at Darlinghurst's Black Eye Gallery from April 28 - May 5.
According to the exhibition statement, Miller decided to undertake the project in 2013, wanting to honour the photographers whose work had inspired him and shaped his career. After selecting thirty five images to recreate, Miller got in touch with his ol' mate Malkovich — who apparently immediately agreed. "John is the most brilliant, prolific person I know," says Miller. "His genius is unparalleled. I can suggest a mood or an idea and within moments, he literally morphs into the character right in front of my eyes."
All at once creepy and genius with Malkovich rocking an excellent Marilyn and a spot-on Dali, the series is actually less about Malkovich than it is an homage to the photographers responsible for the portraits themselves: Dianne Arbus, Annie Leibovitz, Art Shay, Dorothea Lange, Alberto Korda. That being said, it's supremely satisfying to see Malkovich in dress-up like this — his Jack Nicholson and Albert Einstein are top notch.
Sandro Miller, Albert Watson / Alfred Hitchcock with Goose (1973), 2014
Sandro Miller, Philippe Halsman / Salvador Dalí (1954), 2014
Sandro Miller, Alberto Korda / Che Guevara (1960), 2014
Sandro Miller, Andy Warhol / Green Marilyn (1962), 2014
Sandro Miller, Annie Leibovitz / John Lennon and Yoko Ono (1980), 2014
Sandro Miller, Arthur Sasse / Albert Einstein Sticking Out His Tongue (1951), 2014
Sandro Miller, Andres Serrano / Piss Christ (1987), 2014
Sandro Miller, Dorothea Lange / Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California (1936), 2014
Malkovich, Malkovich, Malkovich is just the tip of the iceberg for Head On. The photography festival will showcase works from local and international photographers in over 50 featured exhibitions across Sydney, running from May 1–31. There's some pretty diverse exhibitions at the new Head On Festival Hub at Sydney Lower Town Hall. There's Georges Pacheco’s exhibition, Amalthée, which takes cues from Italian and Dutch renaissance painting to look at the universal and timeless act of breastfeeding. There's also Sydney-based photographer Nic Bezzina's show Cam Girls, which consists of screen grabs from 'Cam Girl' websites — where women enact instructed sexual fantasies via webcam.
There are retrospectives aplenty this year too. Internationally acclaimed photographer Emmanuel Angelicas has a retrospective detailing his 45 years of documenting Marrickville's often overlooked residents, and portrait photographer to the stars George Fetting will also delve into years of shooting the likes of Buzz Aldrin, Cate Blanchett, Baz Luhrmann, Spike Milligan, Lee Lin Chin, Marcel Marceau, Barry Humphries, Ralph Fiennes, Billy Idol, and many more.
For the whole Head On Photo Festival program, head to the website over here.
Images: Sandro Miller.
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