SHAWN MORTENSEN R.I.P
One of my favourite photographers, Shawn Mortensen died in April this year. He was only 43 years old. It makes me sad to think that I will not have the privilege of seeing another of his striking photographs for the first time.
Another iconic 2Pac image shot by Mortensen is the one that appeared on the cover of Vibe in 1994 asking ‘Is Tupac crazy?’ The rapper was shown in a straightjacket looking back at the camera with a calm but dismayed expression. When the picture was taken, over a year before, 2Pac was not quite the star he was to become, known more for his appearance on Same Song by Digital Underground than his solo work. Mortensen spotted him in an alley in LA and ran up to him clutching a straightjacket he had found in a flea market a week before. The two had met before when Mortensen was shooting for
The Source and he easily persuaded Tupac to pose in the jacket. Mortensen offered the image to The Source as a cover shot, but they found it too controversial. The picture was then offered to Vibe who placed it on the cover and sold a record number of issues.
As well as music photography, Mortensen has had a lengthy career in fashion photography. His book, Out Of Mind features many beautiful catwalk shots of Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. Meanwhile his editorial work has been featured in iD and Vogue. To balance the superficialities of fashion, Mortensen would often disappear to some corner of the world and record social events. One of his largest projects involved the Zapatista revolution in Mexico, which will apparently become a book. The documentary photos he has taken are just as memorable as his portraiture. But most admirable was his free spirit, which caused him to flee the catwalks of Paris and instead photograph violent gangs in the slums of Kingston, JA; a man after my own heart.
As sad a loss as this is, it’s good to know that Mortensen lived life to the fullest. In an interview with Dazed & Confused a few years before he died he said, “whenever I try to make art, I make it as if it’s my last, because you just never know in this life, you could be hit by a bus or something”. Following, his sudden death, I’m sure he appreciates the fact he lived his life to the fullest, something we should all learn from.
Out Of Mind by Shawn Mortensen is available from all good bookshops. All images from Out Of Mind.
WORDS BY LILY MERCER
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COMMENTS
Sat 28 Aug 2010 at 04:15 am
bbjia
bbjia
Either The dedication links of london to the job or the diligent links of london silver and serious attitude cheap links of london towards customer is forced discount links of london the four young men to be one of them.
Fri 30 Jul 2010 at 06:03 am
angelaben
angelaben
Wed 5 Aug 2009 at 10:49 pm
pro digger
pro digger
i feel this piece right here! makes me inspired and reminds me that all people are not fake and some do actually appreciate the realness ... good looking out on the article and RIP SM
PEACE!
Tue 21 Jul 2009 at 04:04 pm
Amy
Amy
Great article Lily! I agree with Rebecca above - it's nice to see passion shining through.
Tue 21 Jul 2009 at 04:02 pm
Lily Wah
Lily Wah
Thank you Rebecca, that's what i was aiming for so I'm glad it came across. He really was an amazing person so make sure you check out his work.
Sun 12 Jul 2009 at 10:40 pm
Rebecca.
Rebecca.
This is a really nice article. Its not at all pretentious and it feels like the writing of a person who was a genuinely inspired by his body of work. I enjoyed this piece.
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