OPENING RECEPTION WITH THE ARTIST
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8th, 6:00-8:00PM

"I don't think we should dismiss the importance of beauty because it cannot be articulated and isn't for sale; I think we should celebrate it because it belongs to everyone and cannot be contained." - Erik Madigan Heck

Originally from Excelsior, Minnesota, Erik Madigan Heck (born 1983) has become one of the most successful and prolific fashion photographers working today. His style works to capture the essence of painting through the lens of the camera. His work is elegant and unashamedly beautiful, exploring the intersections of fashion, painting, and classical portraiture.

Heck's work is influenced by the ambient light of Edgar Degas, the patterned interiors and fabrics of Edouard Vuillard and Gustav Klimt, as well as the high contrast colors of Pop Art. Heck's singular style, which can be patterned and ornate or stark and bold, is instantly recognizable and completely his own.

The title of this exhibition and the monograph published earlier this year by Thames & Hudson and Abrams, Old Future, references this duality of past and present existing together. Susan Bright writes, "Heck flies into the future with his back turned - he faces history, allowing it to double back on itself, reassigning and regrouping it with each new project."

Erik Madigan Heck is based in Connecticut and New York City. He has collaborated with fashion designers including Ann Demeulemeester, Haider Ackermann, Kenzo, and Giambattista Valli. His photography is frequently published in The New York Times Magazine, Harper's Bazaar UK, and Time. In 2013, he was one of the youngest photographers to receive the prestigious ICP Infinity Award. That same year, he was awarded the ADC gold medal from the Art Directors Club and AI-IP American Photography for his Old Masters Portfolio published by The New York Times Magazine in 2015.